Author Archive

Between the last day of Pintastic NE 2022, interviews, as much pinball as I could squeeze in before the machines were taken away, the drive home, and Mass last evening and uploading the final videos I didn’t get a post up yesterday nor did I comment on the Dobbs decision.

Now that I’m home with a night’s sleep let’s do a quick five thoughts about the Dobbs Decision.

  1. If there was ever a time to say: “Thank you Mitch we owe you one” it’s now. No Matter How much the GOP base might be angry with Mitch McConnell on other things no GOP legislator is more responsible for this result. None of this is possible without his willingness to:
    • Stop the Garland nomination in its tracks
    • Retaliate against Harry Reid for ending judicial filibusters
    • Push Judges including Trump SCOTUS picks
  2. Of course if we’re going to thank legislators we also have to thank Harry Reid who often claimed to be pro life and ironically turned out to be the single most important man in the Senate to get this going. Without out him nuking the filibuster for judicial appointment at the urging of Obama Mitch McConnell does not nuke it for SCOTUS allowing Trump to get through three justices that the left would have filibustered till the cows come home. Yes it meant that the left was able to seat Ketanji Brown “What’s a woman I’m no biologist” Jackson and perhaps other radicals like her but if that’s the price of killing Roe we’ll take it. Without his action Mitch’s prophecy never comes through, cue the video:
  1. Of course the primary person we have to thank is Donald Trump Not only did he push forward conservative Judges but when Ruth Bader Ginsberg died less that 50 days before the election he was ready to roll with Amy Comey Barrett getting her approved with only a week to spare. Can anyone think of any other GOP president who would have been willing to do so? If you had told me in 2000 that Donald Trump would do this, I would not have believed you, but the Hermit of Loreto would have. I guess Mitch’s Prophecy was not the only one that was fulfilled last Friday:

Capoverdi asked him in English if he was Thomas [Zimmer], and the two had a delightful conversation. When Trump was elected, Dr. Curran called and told him that, back in the 1980s, Tom Zimmer said he had received a “premonition” and that “a certain man would lead America back to God”—and that man would be none other than Donald J. Trump.

“The millionaire playboy from New York?” the incredulous doctor is said to have asked Zimmer.

“Yes,” the Hermit of Loreto responded, adding he was so sure Donald Trump would become a great spiritual leader of America that he wrote his name on a brick and had it placed in the reconstruction of St. Peter’s Holy Door after the Jubilee so Trump would receive blessings from the many Masses that would be said in the Vatican.

Ever wonder why the left’s hatred of Trump boarders on the demonically insane? This is why
  1. One can not stress enough how critical to this day the courage of Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch Barret and Kavanaugh in this ruling. The leak of Alito’s draft opinion was specifically used to try to intimidate them. The left openly threatened their lives (and are still doing so) with one person already facing attempted murder charges while protestors continue to harass them at home in violation of federal law. All the while Democrat leaders were either silent or encouraged such action and the Democrat AG who once was nominated to sit on the court did nothing to enforce the law. If they had caved not only would the rule of law be threatened in this country forever but it had the real possibility of turning our cold civil war into a warm one and generating an actual insurrection rather than the fantasy being advanced by the left in the house.
  2. Finally an odd thing that my family members have seen on facebook as been the incredible rage of people who loudly proclaim that they don’t want to associate themselves with anyone who is happy about this decision or posted anything to celebrate it. I actually find this amusing in the sense that my family members are all Catholics who regularly go to church and regularly receive the sacraments including confession. That there are people who are friends and associates of them who are shocked that such people who openly practice their religion actually believe what the the faith teaches seems a tad odd. In fairness if they only get their news from CNN & the MSM perhaps they figure that Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi and all the other public Catholics who consider faith a coat to remove if it becomes uncomfortable or inconvenient to their power the norm.

I interviewed Todd Tuckey of TNT Amusements on day one of Pintastic NE 2022

A one of a kind machine only at Pintastic N#

One of the great things about Pintastic NE is running into machines that you can’t see elsewhere. This Jaws Machine for example is a one of a kind device from some familiar folks.

There are a lot of machines you see here and almost nowhere else. Another popular machine in the vendor room was the Weird Al machine:

I mean is there a more perfect subject for a machine?

Some other familiar faces are here The Pinbox 3000 crowd was back

Like Steve Ritchie he really gets excited about his work

and of course Pintastic NE isn’t Pintastic NE without the folks from the Electromagnetic Pinball Museum 

Or the Silk City Hot Sauce display

Yeah my battery died right a the end

One familiar face is Todd Tuckey who brought an unfamilar face with him his daughter

My interview with Todd will go up as a separate post later today.

I did another walkthrough of the Vendor room where I found a handy product

And talked to a fellow who brought a dozen machines from his collection to sell

By the end of the day the Indiana Jones and three others were sold (Indiana traded for another machines and cash).

And while I do not generally interject non-pinball stuff in these posts let the record show that I found out about the Dobbs Decision just as I finished by 2nd Ball on a game of Areosmith in the Extra Ball lounge and with my son visited St. Anne’s Shrine down to the road to pray.

I did get a chance to play Toy Story 4 (Pretty Good) Rush (Ok but I think it won’t wear well on the ramp shots over time) but the majority of my time yesterday was spent on Doctor Who and the Tales of the Arabian Knights

I’m meeting a friend here for day three, very much looking forward to it.

I sat down for a long interview with Steve Ritchie Pinball designer extraordinaire at Pintastic NE 2022 day 1 in Sturbridge ma at the Sturbridge Host Hotel

The greatest thing about the man and this interview is the joy he clearly has in the hobby and the game that has no diminished over the decades.