Reinvention or reversion.

Today;s Tids Issue 3,808

For new Life:

March always gives us promise. Then it takes it way. How many years have we saw March as our hope after a hard, cold winter, only to find mud and more cold driven by fierce winds. But that’s just one negative side of March that comes from living on an ocean. In between the surprise snowflakes and brisk winds that keep you hunched over as you try to take walks on sunny days, there is a new sense of something changing. The longer days, the movement of shadows, the aromas from stirrings of plants beneath; the promise of beer flowing on St. Pats Day and creamy Zepoles for St. Joe. And then towards the end the official last day of Winter and promise of a loverly Spring erupts. Our hearts are gay and our spirits dance madly on fluffy clouds; until of course we hit our first golf ball into the woods. March, the split personality month.

Roses are red. Violets are blue. I’m schizophrenic, and so am I. –Oscar Lavant.

Donald Trump looked the part last night, from the time that he walked down the aisle shaking hands like every other president, to the calm presence at the podium delivering a speech that covered just about everything, ending with a plea to end “Trivial” fights. He had all of the well-placed guests of all races and disciplines, and of course he aroused the emotions of all with the tribute to the wife of the fallen Seal. Several times even the Dems rose in applause. I would have advised showing a little more humanity in his immigrant discussions, especially about the ever sensitive “Dreamers”. You know, like immigrants are people too, and I get it. He was so good last night at looking so different than he has been since he became president, that some serious naysayers, although a little moved by what they had experienced, aren’t buying anything until they see if he can sustain it. I watched several post speech analyses from CNN to Fox to CBS. The immediate reaction from them all was “Good Speech”. But, CBS quickly brought in their team to expound upon negatives. CNN was a little confused because they seem to have liked it more than disliked it. Fox obviously was most favorable but members of their panels from the Dem side still held his feet to the fires of proof. He did look as if he had grown a bit, as well he should, if in fact he has been looking at the needs of all people as stated so often. I believe he may have gotten to the point where he has elevated the arguments to differences in policy and not name calling. We’ll see.

Happy Ash Wednesday, everybody -- from the editors of your daily morning smudge.

The Question:

What are the three best selling super luxury autos?

The Headlines:

--Dow Jumps Past 21,000!

--First Trump Major Speech Generally Well Appreciated (Except For Narrow Minded RI Delegation.).

--Schumer Says He Is Not Biting As Trump’s Speech Too Unlike His Previous Actions.

--Consumer Spending Slowing; Inflation On Increase, Construction  Spending Down As Government Contracts Disappear..

--Obama Signs $60 Million Book Deal; Petition In France Urging Obama To Run For Their President.

--Signet Jewelry Empire (Kay, Zales, Jared) Facing Problems With New Sex Harassment Charges; Stock Is Bing Hit On.

If The Voice has begun anew, can “Dancin’ with the Stars” be far behind? This morning we have the new list of celebrities who will bare their dancing foibles to the world: Gymnast Simone Biles, Nancy Kerrigan, Erika Jayne (Real Housewives of Beverly Hills), Bull rider Bonner Bolton, “Chuchi-Chuchi” Charo, SNL’s Chris Kattan, Baseball’s (Dancin’s First BB Player) David Ross, “Glee” actress Heather Morris, Mr. “T”, Fifth Harmony singer Normani Kordei, NFL runner Rashad Jennings and “Bachelor” Nick Vail. Many of your favorite professional dancing partners will be there too. Biles could be the new favorite considering her teammate Laurie Hernandez took hoe the trophy last year.

Target is changing a key strategy that always seemed to make it a little better department store a step above the rest: “A focus on trendy merchandise.” Yes, the management here has learned that the so-called discriminating buyer is mainly looking for low prices. Their corporate plan objective that also includes having more substantial appearing stores with a level of merchandise that is a bit more provocative than the rest, is not working. There revenue is down and their higher than industry cost of operations is eating into the profits. So, get ready for lower prices, but you may be disappointed with what you see in the aisles and on the shelves.

I was at a meeting yesterday where in one instance a woman was explaining her project and that she only received half of her requested grant. I could tell by the way she started the next sentence that she was about to blame the emergence of Trump for the shortfall. That is, until before she could finish that sentence several knowledgeable people around the table said, “Why, that agency has been doing that for years.” End of Trump bash. It happens every day, bashing without full knowledge.

It is easy when listening to Trump to conclude that he really isn’t Repub or Dem or Conservative; that this man is the nebulous of a new party that crosses traditional lines. The country is changing so much, that what was, really isn’t -- if you divorce yourself form old thinking and look around. Doesn’t mean it’s better, though.

“Selective law enforcement is not fair to anybody”, Department:

A local Democrat state legislator is leading the effort for a new bill that enables finding and deporting illegal immigrants. Tis is to the utter amazement of mostly Dem anti Trump immigration pronouncements. That quote above is from the Dem named Corsi, and I believe it is exactly correct. In fact, the essence of a civilized society.

What is bothering me lately are all of the single occupant car crashes, death resulting, and not necessarily that of the singularly occupied car. You know one of the basic precepts of driving was being able to trust the drivers of other cars, that they were paying attention for the good of themselves and others like me.

Was that a new order of Nuns sitting there in the congressional chambers all in White? What was that all about – purity…in Congress?

I always have a had a problem of using too many commas. But, I’m still young. Maybe I’ll get over it.

Uber’s Kalanick is a peer admired, forward thinking billionaire who doesn’t seem to have grown up much beyond the arrogant, spoiled child stage. I wonder about the future of the super successes like Uber, Air B&B and other app driven services when governments, as they always do, begin regulating them and add real costs to their corporate business plan. There’s a lot afoot in this new wild, wild west.

The Answer:

Number one and two by a lot are Maserati and Rolls Royce. Ferrari also coms in strong. The bottom three are Porsche, Bentley and Lamborghini.

See you all tomorrow, gotta run.