By the end of the day, whole elements of five U.S. infantry divisions would effectively cease to exist, the U.S. 106th Infantry Division would be caught in a pincer movement at St. Vith, and the entire U.S. VIII Corps would be in headlong flight westward, as the German attack blew a 40 mile-wide hole in the line held by the U.S. 1st and 9th armies. German forces began pouring through the huge gap, threatening to rupture the entire Western front.

Nine days hence on Christmas Day of 1944, German panzer divisions would be 50 miles deep into the Allied rear in an apparent drive on the Belgian port city of Antwerp. The U.S. 101st Airborne Division was besieged in Bastogne, and the other American divisions desperately trying to hold them at bay appeared to be in complete disarray. The British 2nd and Canadian 1st armies, mindful of what happened four years earlier at Dunkirk, already had contingency plans in place to withdraw from southern Holland and retreat to the Meuse River. The situation was dire.

But on that same day, unbeknownst to the German High Command, the U.S. 3rd Army under Gen. George Patton had completed an amazing 180-degree pivot from their positions in Alsace-Lorraine in less than 96 hours. Patton immediately launched a counteroffensive against the German left flank, with the goal of relieving the U.S. 101st Division trapped at Bastogne. On Dec. 28, he entered Bastogne at the head of U.S, III Corps. While four more weeks of fierce combat remained, the German drive on Antwerp had been blunted.

The Battle of the Ardennes (Dec. 16, 1944-January 25, 1945), more popularly remembered in U.S. history as the Battle of the Bulge, remains the single biggest battle ever waged by American forces in U.S. military history. By its conclusion, the 800,000 U.S. troops who were engaged in the Ardennes had suffered approximately 90,000 casualties, including 20,000 dead, 47,000 wounded and 23,000 missing or captured.

It was a grievous loss over a five-week period, by any sense of measure. But what Americans on both the front lines and the home front had yet to realize at the battle's end on Jan. 25, 1945 was that the German Wehrmacht had shot its last bolt in the Ardennes, and Nazi Germany was literally teetering on the brink of an epic military collapse.

During the ensuing 14 weeks, organized German resistance disintegrated as Allied forces quickly overran the Nazi heartland, Adolf Hitler committed suicide as Berlin fell, and the Second World War in Europe came to a shockingly abrupt end.

As we celebrate this holiday season and ponder our country's future, let's pause for a moment and remember an earlier generation of Americans who answered the call in one of our country's darkest hours, and who overcame serious setbacks and challenges to eventually triumph over the gravest overseas threat this nation has ever faced. If they could do it, so can we.

I had not visited the site in about 8 or 9 years so I deleted the stupid game stuff (who cares) and restated my current position since 2007 as freelance marijuana tester.

The funny part is this morning I have a notice for 30 job openings as "Marijuana Tester"

Other films...
Marriage Story is more entertaining than it sounds.  Kind of a modern Kramer vs. Kramer with Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson.  

The Report, a political film also with Adam Driver has a good second half. Driver might get a nomination for this one.  

There is totally going to be a second season.
There was some big hints in the 2020 coming attractions thing before the show.

Basically, Barnicle just phones it in and then cashes in. And that was certainly on full display this morning on MSNBC when, literally minutes after the panel had discussed the latest Fox News poll in which 54% of Americans said they wanted to see Trump impeached, he turned to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and asked, "How do you explain the lack of fervor for impeachment among ordinary working Americans?"

Fox 32 News | December 15, 2019
Iowa homeowner says swastikas, Confederate flags are not racist - "A homeowner living next to an elementary school in Iowa is facing backlash for painting Confederate battle flags and swastikas on pallets around his property. The symbols are clearly visible from the school. 'It's a free country,' William Stark said. 'I'll put it out there if I want to.'"

In an interview with The New Yorker, Giuliani admitted that he got former American ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch fired so that he could more easily pursue his efforts to dig up dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden.

"I believed that I needed Yovanovitch out of the way," he said. "She was going to make the investigations difficult for everybody."

Giuliani also admitted that he recruited former Hill columnist John Solomon to help him spread negative information about Yovanovitch

""I said, `John, let's make this as prominent as possible,' " Giuliani said. " `I'll go on TV. You go on TV. You do columns.' "

Of the several people Zimmerman is suing, I believe the allegations are strongest against Jeantel. I used to have more sympathy for her, thinking she was naive and somewhat forced into this mess.  Now I'm not so sure.   Jeralyn didn't  buy her act on the witness stand during the trial.

This young woman is far from stupid. She does not strike me as mentally challenged in the slightest. As I wrote when watching her testimony, I thought she came across as petulant, belligerent, and manipulative, with an air of self-entitlement. I think her performance was her way of asserting control over the situation

There are several strange moments during her testimony.  She made comments I wished Zimmerman's lawyers had followed up on such as suggesting other people where using her phone and there was some three way calling.

Which I of course loved.

There is a tedious and overlong (like most things on Salon) review lamenting the absence of joy.  Personally I think it captures the mood of the season rather perfectly.

There's no comfort and joy in FX's excruciating "Christmas Carol"
God help us . . . every one.

A Texas grand jury on Friday indicted a former Fort Worth police officer for murder after fatally shooting a woman who had been babysitting her nephew at home in a case that drew public outcry for police accountability...

...The bodycam video released publicly shows the perspective of an officer outside the home, peering into a window using a flashlight and spotting someone inside standing near a window and telling her, "Put your hands up -- show me your hands." A single shot is fired seconds later.

Jefferson's nephew told authorities that she had taken a handgun from her purse when she heard noises outside and pointed it toward the window, according to an arrest warrant. But police have said she was within her rights to protect herself.

Just watching Conleth Hill (formerly Lord Varys).  It's impressive how he disappears Into the character.

Usually if you see someone who is really good in a role it makes it hard to not see that character every time you see them forever.  As good as Brent Spiner is I still see Data in every role he plays.

He also did a brief Cosby impression.  I would have liked to have seen more of that. However, a Cosby spokesperson wasn't amused.

In a statement released Sunday, Cosby's spokesman Andrew Wyatt criticized Murphy for the jokes, saying it was Cosby who "broke color barriers in the Entertainment Industry" so that Murphy and other comedians like Dave Chappelle and Kevin Hart could perform.
Murphy's jokes were "disparaging," the statement said, adding, "One would think that Mr. Murphy was given his freedom to leave the plantation, so that he could make his own decisions; but he decided to sell himself back to being a Hollywood Slave."

Excessive helicopter noise has also become a major issue in the Hilo area as air tours of Volcanoes Nat'l Park and the Hamakua coast gain in popularity. It's not even 12:00 noon out here and already today, about 15 helicopters have flown overhead at about 300 feet above our house because apparently, the FAA recently shifted the ascent and approach patterns for helicopters flying between Hilo airport and the park. Bureaucratic functionaries have no idea how disruptive that 90/100-dB noise level is to a residential community.

Rita died yesterday.  finally