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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

City of Darkness by Ben Bova. An easy, quick read, with a very speedy end that I did not fully anticipate, especially the racial overtones and the exit of the love interest. Ben Bova, "One of Science Fictions greatest talents," according to his bio in the book. Cover by James Warhola.

Cover of City of Darkness, by Ben Bova. Cover illustration by James Warhola. A youth runs down a NYC street, chased by three distant figures. He is running past the lion in front of the New York public library, and the Empire State building is in the background. Above it all is a dome which covers the entire city. Trash is on the street. Dystopian!!!

Front and back cover for City of Darkness by Ben Bova. Cover by James Warhola. The back has a teaser for the book. Overall, the story was formulaic in many ways - young man thrown into a desperate situation finds his inner strength and battles violently with opponents while developing a romance interest with the prettiest woman in the area. The racial and socioeconomic aspects of the tale were a good twist, reflective of the turmoil of the early-mid 1970s.

Copyright page for City of Darkness by Ben Bova. Cover by James Warhola. Copyright 1976 by Ben Bova. A Berkley Book. Printed in the United States of America.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

A Book Dragon by Donn Kushner. Another one from my library that I didn't recall the plot. I did remember the neat illustrations included throughout. It is a good story. The author doesn't shy away from justifiable homicide. I will probably try to find additional Kushner works for this winter

Cover for A Book Dragon by Donn Kushner. Copyright 1987. Cover art by James Warhola. Avon Books. A green dragon sitting in a dark room full of books, reading an illuminated tome by candlelight. The dragon is about the size of a large goose (the dragon's ability to alter its size is a central plot theme).

Copyright page for A Book Dragon by Donn Kushner. Copyright 1987. Avon Books. First Avon printing March 1991. Printed in USA. The opposing page has a small sun/moon drawing below the dedication: "For Eva."

Cover and back page of A Book Dragon by Donn Kushner. Copyright 1987. Cover art by James Warhola. The cover show a green dragon sitting in a dark room full of books, reading an illuminated tome by candlelight. The dragon is about the size of a large goose. The back is a review from Kirkus Reviews, and a summary of the story line.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Upstate New Your is an Entenmann's crumb coffee cake desert. Not the crumb cake doughnuts. Not the individual size cakeettes. The full size ones. Can't find them anywhere around Oneonta NY. What is going on?

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

The AT&T adds on the NYT app are really annoying. @nytimes.com

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

@reprileyny.bsky.social where do you stand on this? The Iran war is why fuel costs are rocketing up - your core campaign issue. Get rid of Hegseth!

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Anonymous @youranoncentral.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Thomas Massie invoked House privilege on 15 September 2026 to force a vote on eight articles impeaching Pete Hegseth over the Iran war and civilian mass killings. www.yacnews.com/massie-force...

yacnews.com

Massie forces impeachment vote on Hegseth for high crimes and misdemeanors

Thomas Massie invoked House privilege on 15 September 2026 to force a vote on eight articles impeaching Pete Hegseth over the Iran war and civilian mass killings.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed remains in custody at GTMO. He planned the 11 September 2001 attacks. He should be executed now - actually decades ago.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Tony Randall as Hercule Poirot was not my favorite. It was played as a Pink Pantheresque slap stick comedy in this 1965 film. No no no...Hercule would not be amused.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Finished two S.M. Stirling books. Supposed homages to ER Burroughs: The Sky People and In The Courts of the Crimson Kings. They were okay. Lots of action. Alternate history. I can't believe the main protagonists would have such freedom of action. I won't get the newly published third in the series.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Can anyone translate this to English? Written by a committee?

Image of a confusing EZ Pass email.

Dear Customer,

Your E‑ZPass account is automatically evaluated 35 days after your first tag use, and every 90 days thereafter.
If your monthly use is consistently above or below your rebill amount, E-ZPass will adjust your prepaid amount to approximate a one-month level of use or a minimum of $25, whichever is greater.
Summer travel may increase rebill amounts so make sure to review and manage your account.

Sincerely,

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Fascist Dem Tracker @fascistdemtracker.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

And the yeas/present votes are:

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Grudgie the Whale @grudgie.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

If Trump made an EO. renaming Google CEO “Trump’s Bitch” would they change his LinkedIn profile and all his business cards?

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Walkinshaw gets it. Maybe our best congressperson!

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AlyceMiller @alycemiller.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Spider-Man should run for speaker of the house

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delcodemsbluesky.bsky.social @delcodemsbluesky.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

THIS Sunday in Margaretville!! It's the annual #soapboxsocial, where participants get to have their say, and meet with like-minded friends in our Catskill Community! dcnydems.org/soapbox-soci... Everything you need to know is on this link...💙

dcnydems.org

Soapbox Social August 23

Dems, Candidates, Live Music and Free Ice Cream! Free admission. Family friendly. Dems, Progressives, Independents and Dem curious from Delaware County and neighboring counties welcome.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Windows modules installer worker is the worst. What a constant irritant. Hogs the disk space every time. This is the best we can do in 2026? Really?

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Arbaz Kakkar5 @arbazkakkar5.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Iran should demand the release of the Epstein files too while they are at it.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Yep, DIA got this one right...and Trump and Hegseth got it really wrong. And are STILL getting it wrong. Thank you Lt. Gen. Kruse for your service!

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Great name for a band: Snopro and the Amish. Inspired by real life events.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

"WE" by Yevgeny Zamyatin written in 1920-21 is a great early Soviet Union work of science fiction. A social commentary on life where people are automaton cogs for the machinery of the state. Describing the world through prisms of mathematics and engineering is genius; the ending is priceless.

"WE" by Yevgeny Zamyatin, written in 1920-1921. 2006 translation by Natasha S. Randall. Front cover. Includes a photograph of a woman's eye and upper face in the upper left corner, presumably of I-330, one of the main characters.

"WE" by Yevgeny Zamyatin, written in 1920-1921. 2006 translation by Natasha S. Randall. Front and back covers. Includes a photograph of a woman's eye and upper face in the upper left corner, presumably of I-330, one of the main characters. The back has reviews from George Orwell!! and Publishers Weekly. Also brief bios for the translator and Bruce Sterling who wrote the introduction.

Copyright page for "WE" by Yevgeny Zamyatin, written in 1920-1921. 2006 translation by Natasha S. Randall. 2006 Modern Library Paperback Edition. This is an excellent work of fiction!! Not the usual completely depressing Russian fare.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Has Andrew Cuomo moved to Florida yet? He promised he would.

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Bronze Age Babies @bronzeagebabies.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Perfect photo to bookend my day - we visited the Obama Presidential Center today, and seeing Brand New Day this evening.

President Obama feigning injury after being webbed by “Spider-Kid”.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Good riddance to Adam O’Neal who resigned today. The editorial section, under his leadership, was simplistic, illogical, and poorly written. We cancelled our subscription; WAPO editorials were the final straw. Like the one defending Trump destroying the East Wing.

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Tim Williams Art @timwilliamsart.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Beshear should schedule the special election to replace Mitch McConnell. MAKE THEM prove that he is alive and fit to finish out his term. Force their hand. God, have you people learned ANYTHING? You can't play nice with these people. They laugh at that.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

@reprileyny.bsky.social thank you for voting against additional funding for ICE, and demanding an immediate, independent investigation into these deaths. This is a real issue!

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clark. Sixth printing, 1964. Yet another book from my library that I read in the past with minimal recollection. It was okay. I was impressed by how many others who saw me reading were familiar with it. I guess it was big back in the day? Maybe the devil references?

Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clark. Sixth printing, 1964. Font and back cover. The back cover has excerpts of book reviews from the L.A. Times, etc. It also has other books available from Ballantine Books. The front cover is described in another image description later.

Copyright page from Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clark. Sixth printing, 1964, by Ballantine Books.

Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clark. Sixth printing, 1964, book cover. The top half is the title and a review quote by Gilbert Highet, "Known as a "populizer" of classical texts and a public intellectual." The bottom half has a minimalist rendering of I don't know what. Maybe a spaceport? Or cactus? It has a red background with an orange sun and also a blue and green "suns." Maybe it shows the Overlords' home planet?

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

I have some books that I read decades ago and have little or no recollection of. The Black Corridor by Michael Moorcock is one of those books. I re-read it this week. It was good, but I had to think about the ending to figure out what was really happening.

The Black Corridor by Michael Moorcock dust cover. It has a stained glass type image showing a man in apparent pain holding his head. There are other faces in the background.

The Black Corridor by Michael Moorcock book cover sans dust cover. It is blue with the title and author name on the spine.

The Black Corridor by Michael Moorcock copyright page, copyright 1969. An Ace Book. Also the dedication page - "For Hilary, without whom .."

The Black Corridor by Michael Moorcock dust cover, front and back.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

What say you Rep. Riley? @reprileyny.bsky.social Have not seen anything from you on Bluesky in 4 months.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Tarzan and the Leopard Men. Eighteenth in the Edgar Rice Burroughs series. I finished it last night; it took a while to read this short book because it was mediocre. Tarzan takes several beatings and detentions, which is unusual for the King of the Apes. Copyright 1935.

Tarzan and the Leopard Men, copyright 1935, second printing 1970 by Ballantine Books. Cover art by Robert Abbett. Shows a Johnny Weissmuller-like man kneeling next to a black panther, both drinking out of a small stream. Which has nothing to do with anything in the book. The background is green undefined jungle foliage, with a red fern-like plant centered on the cover, behind Tarzan and the panther.

Tarzan and the Leopard Men, copyright 1935, second printing 1970 by Ballantine Books, front and back cover. The back has a short summary of the book up top, with an advertisement featuring five other Tarzan Ballantine book covers below.

Tarzan and the Leopard Men, copyright 1935, second printing 1970 by Ballantine Books. Copyright page and table of contents.

Tarzan and the Leopard Men, copyright 1935, second printing 1970 by Ballantine Books. Title page opposite a listing of all ERB books available from Ballantine.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Attended the Cherry Valley Outdoor Games this morning. It is a three day event featuring lumberjack competitions. It was kind of a slow start, but I expect Saturday and Sunday will have more vendors and crowds.

Cherry Valley Outdoor Games main stage from a distance. A large inflatable slide and concession tents, along with the elevated sound control booth block the view.

Cherry Valley Outdoor Games main competition stage on the morning of 19 June. It was in the sixties and partially cloudy. The stage has numerous sponsorship signs. The field in front of the stage was very green and largely empty. Guys on the stage were preparing for the next event, which was chopping through a log while standing on it. An American flag flies above the stage, in front of a tree covered ridge line. A beautiful day.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

I am not impressed with Conduent Business Services, the manager of EZPass. Their website is giving an error message at the very last step of creating an account. Apparently this is not unusual, based on a quick internet search.

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Doodles Rule @gingerandjacky.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Why aren't reporters lifting the tarp enough to get a few pictures? I certainly would if I was there! Post them immediately!

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

This is a very interesting, if dated, article. I suspected, but previously did not know the connection between Fleischmanns, NY, the yeast, and the vodka. www.myjewishlearning.com/the-nosher/h...

myjewishlearning.com

How Fleischmann's Yeast Built the Jewish Catskills | The Nosher

Many home cooks this past year, in an Insta-inspired spirit, upped their challah-baking game with new braiding patterns, interesting flavors ...

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Boost Mobile is sketchy. Some bait and switch...watch them close!!!

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

Tarzan and the Lion Man, seventeenth in the Edgar Rice Burroughs series - just finished it. It is probably the worst so far. Focuses on Hollywood's shortcomings and Tarzan is not really present until the second half. The hidden colony of English speaking apes was enjoyable. First published in 1934.

Tarzan and the Lion Man, 1934, Edgar Rice Burroughs. Cover art by Frazetta (awesome as usual). Cover, spine, back cover, and title pages. This is not the best in the series, by far. Quite racist language in many places.

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Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock @warnock.senate.gov · 06/06/2026

82 years ago, the beaches of Normandy were stormed by thousands of brave servicemembers to wipe fascism from the face of the earth. May we honor their courage and the sacrifice they made in defense of our freedoms.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

How is the investigation into federal human rights violations at Delaney Hall Detention Center going? Be on the right side of history.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

While dark and confusing-many complicated plotlines-it makes you think about AI and robots.

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John Salts @johnsalts.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

I started watching the Battlestar Gallactica 2004 series remake. I had never before seen it. At first I thought I was watching episodes of the 1978 series, which I was familiar with. After 5 or 6 episodes I am giving up on 2004, and hope I can find 1978 some day. The 2004 series is dark.

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