Casey Neistat: NYC scum

 Let me start off with while I though this was yet another Casey video and following what's been going on in NYC as of late, now I realize there's a pattern.

I primarily follow more right wing sources for news. Bill O'Reilly has talked about the situation in NYC and Matt Walsh of Daily Wire also had talked about. Any discussion about the administration of Mayor Zohran Mamdami - he just entered office last month - seems to show severe incompetence.

One thing being discusssed among O'Reilly and Walsh is that a number of dead homeless people have been found as a result of the weather. There was a policy in NYC that Mayor Mamdami failed to follow where homeless encampments are cleared and the homeless have to take shelter in a warming center.

Allow me to add as of Feb 4, 2026, 17 homeless people were found dead as a result of the weather in NYC.

Walsh especially noted that NYC sanitation workers cleaned up the area around the Mayor's home and yet we see piles of snow around the city. As Casey himself documents the piles of snow are also very filthy with trash and waste (human and animal).

Check it out, it was released three days ago. [VIDEO] 

It's safe to say not a great start to an administration that wants to show the "warm embrace of collectivism".

German in Venice: Hurricane Hilary hits L.A.

 

[VIDEO] I've been subscribed to German in Venice for quite a while now and he documents how Hurricane Hillary affected his native Los Angeles. The water channels that barely trickle a stream - especially in the handful of times I've visited are just full of water. And I've only seen a picture of Dodger Stadium surrounded by flood waters

It's very rare that the west coast gets his by hurricanes, it seems.

The 8 Bit Guy discusses weather in Texas

 

[VIDEO] The 8 Bit Guy is someone I follow on YouTube and he talks about the unprecedented blizzard that hit earlier this week and effectively shut Texas down. It's shocking to see his footage of bare shelves in the frozen section of his local supermarket. And he especially mentions the damage to his home.

Tucker: Elites pushing 'green energy' are out of touch with America

 

[VIDEO] I'm shocked to find out that Texas of all places is experiencing some energy breakdowns due to the unusual cold weather down there. I saw the Tucker segment about this on the rebroadcast and former TX Governor and Energy Secretary Rick Perry his hometown is the same latitude as Houston, TX and it's 9° Fahrenheit. Can you imagine it being 9°F in Texas?

No sir! Definitely not myself! 

At the end of Tucker's interview the memorable quote are those who advocate for the Green New Deal and the short-sightedness of their solutions to the issue of global warming is to stay in their gender study departments. They need to stay away from America's power grids.... I had to chuckle.

Bottom line why should we experience California's rolling blackouts - and I suppose the progressives there believe in solving the issues of climate change. We have to consider people will be very hot in the summer as in some parts of America some people are very cold. You don't want too many people to be adversely affected by extreme weather conditions? Insure they have the ability to cool or warm their residences.

That means we can't only rely on solar power and windmills for power. If it means we need coal, nuclear - which is clear though I know people are uncomfortable with the radiation, or even as mentioned by Rick Perry natural gas. Back-ups, upon back-ups, upon back-ups. Does it not make sense?

Desert lightning...

[VIDEO] I want to take my mind off of this pandemic. The posting as of late on this blog almost always involved any news on the pandemic. Indeed anything that lets me know that we're closer to the down curve with regards to coronavirus infections.

I started yet another YouTube channel which I've branded to my old Yahoo! GeoCities username which was lbj79us. Right now I plan to post old video shot by myself over the years that has never before uploaded. My original YouTube channel that I have shared with you in the past, I don't have much plans for it beyond posting more current videos.

What develops beyond that who knows, however, as I've often said the point is to just get started if one wants to gain traction especially with YouTube. Feel free to subscribe and even have a box for that purpose in the sidebar.

This could be one of those "My Mind's Eye" episodes that I had been talking about doing lately. My videography wasn't very good in July 2005 when I shot this video on board Amtrak's Southwest Chief. I was sitting in the observation lounge going through the Arizona desert - probably on the way to Flagstaff, Arizona. I knew to keep any eye on the sky because there were lightning strikes, and made sure to record a few near the end of this almost ten minute video, if you want fast forward to about 8:30 in this video.

Trains #PolarVortex

I had no idea railroads have their own answers to any potential hazards of extreme winter weather on the rails. I never knew that here in Chicago Metra our commuter rail system could literally set the rails on fire at certain points.

The vid below is courtesy of the BBC. [VIDEO]

Just as easily as it's best to de-ice an aircraft so that it could perform properly in cold winter weather rails especially needs to be "de-iced" to be able to perform properly in the winter time.

If you see fire along Metra tracks during the winter, don't panic. The Chicago area’s commuter rail service is fighting the cold with fire to keep switches working, and help with track repairs.

Winter weather can cause snow and ice to clog switches, which control which rail trains run on. Clogged switches can bring trains to a halt until the blockage is cleared.

To combat the problem, Metra uses a gas-fed system that runs adjacent to the rail, generating heat in areas where switches are supposed to make contact. This system is used in normal winter weather, not just extreme cold , explained spokesman Michael Gillis. The system is turned on when the temperature is between 40 and 32 and stays on when it’s below 32.

 Extreme cold weather can cause steel to contract, causing breaks, said Metra spokeswoman Meg Thomas-Reile. While Metra uses continuously welded rail on most of the system, there are some locations near switches and some crossings where the rail is bolted together. Those areas are the most vulnerable to separating in frigid temperatures, although breaks can happen anywhere along the line.

Here's a graphic with regards to how Metra fights ice on their rails from Chicago Tribune Graphics

If you see fire along Metra tracks today, then don't panic.

It's how the Chicago area’s commuter rail service keeps switches working during the #PolarVortex freeze: https://t.co/rvb5iTBSTT via @marywizchicago #ilwx pic.twitter.com/YA08K0fWOd

— Tribune Graphics (@ChiTribGraphics) January 30, 2019

I'm glad that for now we're out of the woods as far as the polar vortex and just remember next month will represent the start of spring. Warmer weather will be around the corner before we know it!

BTW, for an encore here's a video courtesy of Virtual Railfan showing something like what you see from the BBC. This time however in Deshler, Ohio [VIDEO]

Snowday on the south side and no snowday for Metra

[VIDEO] On Friday I shot this video on my iPhone along 95th Street from between Michigan to State. 95th & State is actually the location of the 95th CTA terminal. All the same just scenes during this past weekend's snow storm. I had actually posted this to my more visual blog at My Mind's Eye (you might actually remember that name though in a different iteration).

Via Railstream on YouTube, a video of a Metra train during this past weekends snow storms leaving Union Station. The title appropriately enough was "No snowday for Metra". Alas no embed for this one so just click this >>> [VIDEO]

The Railstream YouTube channel will on occasion have webcams featuring railroad action. Unlike Virtual Railfan - visit their two live webcams feeds here on this blog - they seem to have a free preview of the week that seems to go from location-to-location. This week they have a cam in Fostoria, Ohio. Once they also had a free preview live video from Chicago where you will see trains leaving Union Station. Like Virtual Railfan they also have a paid subscription website where you can view other live video of trains around the world.

How did you fare in this recent heavy snowfall?

A rare Chicago tornado

Found out Chicago had its last tornado in 2006. Why do I know about this now because on Tuesday with no rain or storms in the area a tornado touched down on Chicago's southwest side near Midway Airport. It stayed in one place and remained stationary according to reports but it's still what they call a landspout tornado.

WGN has some pictures from their camera at the Sears Willis Tower

This piece of trivia I found very fascinating and to recall I used to be terrified of tornadoes until I learned how rare these storms are especially in our city. Not sure I'd want to experience this in the sticks. All the same I'm sure there are media reports of this 2006 tornado.

I could still look but then I found this 2006 video of a tornado near Loyola University Chicago. So when this video was uploaded to YouTube I had been at Morehouse for a month already.

Out of hibernation...

[VIDEO] Well we finally have our warm temps here in Chicago and artistmac talks about that. The snow that fell on Super Bowl Sunday this year is finally melting. Hopefully the cold temps that kept our young people out of school for at least 4 days within the past two months are nothing more than a memory.

Even better daylight savings time has passed as of this Saturday and then in the next week or so the first day of spring. It seems we've had a miserable winter this year and the end is only around the corner!

The weather

On my Instagram account I have the tendency to post screencaps of the temperature and weather radar. Sometimes because it's of interest and mainly because I want to show the weather here in Chicago at any given time. Besides I've always been interested in the weather.

I used to say warmer weather is just around the corner and now it's here. In fact summer is this month, we've had a very harsh winter this year with temps going often below 0 that I'm sure many of us were wondering if the winter is over. Well it is over and many of us have survived.

Now we may be dealing with higher food costs because of this. Heh, this is where I only wish I had a better grasp of economics and the many forces that affect an economy. Of course there are probably other after-effects of this past winter to be concerned about.

In any event, summer is around the corner and unfortunately here in Chicago warmer weather means more crime because local headlines are already showing the violent incidents occurring in my fair city. While we should always remain safe, I'm still glad that this harsh winter is behind us. May there be peace during the course of this summer!

#Chiberia in downtown Chicago...

The top picture was at Madison St. and the bottom picture was on Michigan Ave. While this isn't exactly the first time I've seen ice on the Chicago River, it never occurred to be how frozen the river can get. Almost looks good enough to skate on although I'm not sure it's recommended.

BTW, this is a pic I saw taken during the recent "polar vortex" cold snap. That pic looks thawed compared to this one. This was shared with Chicago's ABC affiliate.

Post by ABC 7 Chicago.

I felt the bite of a "polar vortex" this week...

Temp on Monday

Had myself an interesting week. The weather has finally warmed up earlier this week the temperature was as low at 16 degrees below zero. I still had to work that day which was Monday and I was feeling the cold for certain.

It was not long after the snow had ended and because I had to work not enough time to really dig out which I eventually did on my day off. And at that school was out for the last two days in light of the weather although at first it seemed CPS was willing to stay open and force students to get out here in the elements.

Well, there are no complaints on my end, I stayed as warm as I could getting outside. I survived and hopefully many others did. And for Chicagoans - polar vortex or no polar vortex - weather like this is nothing new. Thankfully while we have at least two more months to go for winter, we should remember that spring is just around the corner.

It seemed that one or two days of very low temperatures was only temporary and it was. It seemed in spite of all the concerned, things got back to normal quickly. Even better the weather will warm and and all this snow and ice that accumulated will melt in the future.

BTW, sometimes I just get lazy to shave it coincided at the right time with the weather. The fuzz on my face kept it warm because once I had shaved and my face felt the bite of the cold. Though thankfully on that day it wasn't as cold as it had been on Monday. Still now, I'm glad to have shaven it off! :)

Weather video shot by me in Chicago

[VIDEO] I don't think I've ever seen the Chicago River this high! And another fun fact, the Chicago River normally flows to the Mississippi River. It has been this way since the turn of the 20th century when engineers changed the flow of the river away from Lake Michigan. Today because of the recent rains and flooding around the area the flow of water has been reversed back to the lake as the storm drains (or a deep tunnel that holds up to 2.3 billion gallons of water) are at capacity. Over the past day 5 inches of rain has fallen and according to WGN's meteorologist Tom Skilling that amounts to 80 billion gallons of water. WOW!

The video you see here I shot on the LaSalle Street bridge today looking west. The flow of the river is heading east towards the lake. As states earlier the river was a bit higher than usual.

AP: Mississippi Delta Farmers Suffer in Wake of Flood

[VIDEO] Well I know that there's been flooding along the Mississippi River although this video has little to do with covering the Mississippi. It mentions the Yazoo River especially! Here is an article on the Delta region of Mississippi!

SUN-TIMES: Blizzard is third-largest storm in Chicago’s history

Well I've never seen a snowstorm do what I have seen today. It shut down my neighborhood you can't even get around on the side streets. I never thought I would see that. Sun-Times:

In the end, the great Blizzard of 2011 didn’t set a record — but still dumped 20.2 inches on the city, shut down schools, closed businesses and even major shopping malls, knocked out power to hundreds of thousands and left hundreds stranded on Lake Shore Drive.

The total snowfall made it the third worst snowstorm on record, behind only blizzards in 1967 — when 23 inches blanketed the city — and 1999 — when 21.6 inches fell. 

“We are experiencing a storm of historic proportions . . . the likes of which we really haven’t seen in 20 or 30 years,” said Ray Orozco, Mayor Daley’s chief of staff.

Hey the blizzard of 1979 isn't even in the top three? What gives?

Snowpocalypse Sparks Chico-Emanuel Shoveling Match

Seeing as the weather has turned and the snow has stopped with the skies clear and some sunshine out it's time to look at our political situation during the recent blizzard.

I've noted on this blog once that the 1979 blizzard cost a past mayor and election thanks to his activity during that blizzard. Chicago didn't work that year during the blizzard and Mayor Bilandic gave way to Mayor Jane Byrne.

What's different in 2011 is that now Chicago's Mayoralty is an open seat now. We may well want a mayor who will be able to respond decisively when the weather turned the way that it had over the last 24+ hours. Well here's an answer via NBC Chicago's Ward Room:

Gery Chico and Rahm Emanuel competed in a snow clearing competition of sorts.

Chico has been out on the streets of Chicago clearing snow drifts and helping folks in need by pushing stalled cars and offering warmth.

Chico released of video of himself helping push a car out a snowbank, and will be leading a team of shovelers at 2201 N. Maplewood in Logan Square, starting at noon.

Not to be outdone, Rahm Emanuel hit the streets of Logan Square to clear snow as well.

Every Northern mayor wants to emulate the heroics of Newark’s Cory Booker, who was out until 3 a.m. clearing snow after a December blizzard.

Chico criticized the city’s handling of the crisis on Lake Shore Drive, which was shut down at 8 p.m. Tuesday night, after commuters endured hours-long trips, and even abandoned their cars.

“You can’t predict everything, you can only plan for things that are forseeable,” Chico said, according the Tribune. “The question is, what plan was in place and should we have closed (LSD) earlier? I don't think the response plan was good.”
...
Emanuel sent out an e-mail to supporters advising them to call 311 if they became trapped indoors, not to shovel snow onto fire hydrants, and to “wear several layers of warm, dry clothing. Keep your extremities covered. Wear hats, gloves, winter boots, and warm socks.”

Before the storm hit, on Tuesday, del Valle toured A Safe Haven, a West Side social service agency, to raise awareness of homeless caught in the blizzard.

“On this cold, harsh day in the city of Chicago, we must think of the thousands of individuals that are out there--some numbers indicate that there are as many as 89,000 or 90,000 individuals are homeless in the City of Chicago,” del Valle said.

Del Valle tweeted this morning that his phone bankers are calling “thousands of Chicagoans” -- and probably finding most at home.

I posted a link so this would be my fourth video of the day so here's former CPS Chairman and I believe he's the Chairman of Chicago's City Colleges, Gery Chico running for Mayor of Chicago helping a motorist

I think I will hand it more to Chico and Emanuel to get dirty with the people as they dig out of the snow today. Del Valle has the right idea as well to consider the homeless and where are they going to be when it snows like this. They have to have somewhere to go and it can't be staying outdoors. Maybe we'll see who will win this race amongst this group. Besides where was Carol Moseley Braun, Patricia Van-Pelt Watkins or even Bill "Dock" Walls? :P They should've been out here helping too and we shouldn't have to rely on the major news channels to tell us either.

VIDEO: Chicago Blizzard 1967 in Historic Pullman

This video takes you closer to my part of town. The Pullman neighborhood famous for originally being a planned community before it became just another Chicago neighborhood. Here's a description:

On January 27, 1967, a massive blizzard hit Chicago. In Historic Pullman, Al & Marilyn Quiroz picked up their shovels and cameras to capture the event.

Found via Lee Bey, where he has a couple of other videos from both 1967 and 1979.

VIDEO: Chicago Blizzard 1979

Found this on the CapFax in their morning videos post with a wintery theme of course there are some summer scenes from the Illinois State Fair last year. Description from YouTube:

"Chairs" by Nick Despota, John Mabey, and Bob Snyder. During the 1979 Chicago Blizzard, people saved shoveled parking spaces with chairs.

If you want to know what I see this morning in my neighborhood two cars on the street have been PWNED and so has thegarage looking from the backyard. :(

OH YEAH, as an added bonus check out this spoof of a 1979 mayoral campaign ad. In 1979, Jane Byrne became the first female Mayor of Chicago defeating incumbent Michael Bilandic. I've got to check out this website MediaBurn.

Since we're supposed to have a serious snow storm the next two days...

Let's check out how Chicago did snow removal back in 1907 according to Unknown Chicago. Streetcars did the plowing and manual laborers shoveled what the streetcars couldn't plow. Backbreaking work I can only imagine, especially if you had to do this around the city.

Unknown Chicago: The Blizzard of 1979 (1-14-1979)

Traffic snarl from Unknown Chicago

Believe it or not in one of my albums there are plenty of pictures of my parents cleaning snow from this blizzard. Thanks to the Unknown Chicago blog I know more about this blizzard. Politically this snowstorm meant the different between incumbent Mayor Michael Bilandic and the eventual Mayor Jane Byrne. There is a comparison between two snowstorms approximately 12 years apart the 1967 & then 1979. I found this quote telling:

Okay--so in 1979, the city had three days to clean up.  And by Tuesday, everything was back to normal.

No, it wasn't.  As soon as the snow started coming down, Mayor Michael Bilandic was all over TV, talking about the heroic job his administration was doing in this weather emergency.  But the public could see he was wrong.  The snow was not getting cleared.

The City That Works wasn't working.  Mike Royko, the newspaper columnist, put the blame squarely on the mayor.  According to Royko, city crews didn't know how to deal with the snow because their skills were too specialized--specialized in cranking out votes at election time.  That was the real job of Chicago payrollers.

Bilandic was running for re-election.  He was being challenged in the Democrat primary by Jane Byrne.  Now Byrne began hammering Bilandic about snow removal.  In one of her commercials, she was filmed with snowflakes falling around her.

Byrne's message connected with the voters.  Six weeks after the blizzard, she beat Bilandic in the primary, then went on to win the general election.

In 1979 Chicago's Democratic Machine didn't serve the city very well. Royko earned his pay back then, that line in bold was priceless. Needless to say though the Machine couldn't save Bilandic back in 1979 as he didn't serve his own full term as mayor.