John T. Reed’s news blog

When I moved to Alamo, CA in 1983, I was delighted by the deer, pheasants, quail, raccoons, mallard ducks, and coyotes we would see regularly. The pheasants and quail disappeared shortly afterward apparently by moving up higher on Mount Diablo, a state park. I guess they are people shy. Then we got two new species who are NOT people shy: wild turkeys and bobcats. There were zero wild turkeys in 1983. Now they are ubiquitous. I am not so fond of them. They are not toilet trained. I am alarmed by the bobcats. We recently had three playing in my...

Bears’ offense is interesting tonight. A number of called QB draws against a defense that is not accounting for the QB. Army is vulnerable to that play also. Also a lot of broad misdirection which can work well in youth football.  30 and 31 inside trap plays In high school football, 30 and 31 inside trap are great plays. Fullback takes on 45º step away from the hole then turns 90º back toward the hole. High school linebackers react to the first step and take themselves away from the play or at least have their weight on the wrong foot...

I have been criticizing Army for years for not accounting for the enemy QB on defense. What would I say if they demanded I explain exactly HOW to do that?   The basic answer is on pages 35 to 37 of my book Gap-Air-Mirror Defense. That discussion is about how to stop the off-tackle play, but the same principle applies.   Collingsworth said tonight that the Vikes may have to put a spy on Trubisky. Yeah, that is one possibility, but it is only half the solution. Whomever you choose for spy was doing something else on defense before you made...

U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Kelly, who was appointed by Trump, ordered Trump to reinstate CNN’s Jim Acosta’s White House press. Here is how my fictional Unelected President “Mike Medlock” would respond to that court order at a news conference to be held today. “Good afternoon members of the White House Press Corpse [sic]. I want to personally welcome back Jim Acosta and hand him his court-ordered White House Press Credential. C’mon up here, Jim.” They pause during the handshake so still photos can be taken. Acosta returns to his seat. “Don’t sit down, Jim. Everyone else stand up. When...

Here is a comment from a reader at my Facebook Wall and my response “I think they WANT the dollar to collapse and hyperinflate. Eventually, the hyperinflation would end, and they figure that when it's over, they'll get the kind of government that they want, claiming the old way caused everyone to get screwed, so their way will be the best way moving forward.“I don't understand the impeach Trump rhetoric however. If they want the dollar and economy to crash, I figured they would want a Republican at the helm. The last time the economy crashed that bad, Herbert Hoover...