Just like Old times.

Today's Tids Issue 3,916

For Believing:

There’s a tale that never gets old. It could be about a family or a young married couple or a couple of loving partners, all who travel the world and across this great land. They absorb the sights and vistas and savor regional and national food treats. And, then it is over. They all pack up and say good bye to their new visual and digestible indulgences. Then they walk back into their homes and smile broadly feeling the feeling, knowing, “There is no place like home”.

The military is not an equal opportunity employer.

One the Tids long time and loyal readers, a good friend, wrote me yesterday saying he thought I was  a little hard on Trump. It isn’t that he is in love with the man per se, but he thanks Trump every day for stopping the Hillary express and the possible continuation of the Obama policies. He is certainly right about that, and how important to us all it was to have this chance to change direction. I think he is right about that, and he is right that Trump has the energy and the drive to get things done. He has put into place many regulations that have softened the governments stranglehold on individual and business decision making. He is hard guy to like and is certainly his own momentum killer, but he is The President of the United States, and we need that office to be strong for the good of our position in the world. Let’s hope that Kelly is the man that can focus the talents within that President.

Stephen Fry: “You don’t have to remind me of my age. I have a bladder to do that for me.”

The Question:

Who was the first comedienne to have a straight man?

The Headlines:

--Apple Revenue Surprise Pushes Dow Above 22,000; Dow Eases Back At Noon; Oil Back Over $52.

--Trump Signs Anti-Russia Sanctions Bill.

--Senators And Trump Push For New Merit Based Legal Immigration Over-Haul.

--Senate Repubs Drifting Away from Trump.

--Trump Supporters Still There As War Chest Swells By $75 Mil In First Six Months: Obama Raised Half That Much.

--Insurance Companies Looking For Massive Premium Increases.

--Leaks Rise To Roaring Stream Of Anti Admin Insults 24 Hours After Kelley Takes the Chief Of Staff Seat.

When you see the excitement of a walk off hit or home run; when players rush to congratulate their hero, now leaping and looking up to the heavens, then you realize that this game has plenty of life left in it. There is no more exciting sports moment than a winning hit in the bottom of the last inning.

The young adults of America love Airbnb; it’s cool and convenient. But homeowners on streets with Airbnb’s, not so much. Some of the negative problems are the result absentee landlords who don’t care, renting out to short termers who don’t care about anything than their “right” to have fun. That is why cities from Barcelona to San Fran (Home of Airbnb) are cracking down on the rental home owners. Regular taxpaying citizens in homes from Scotland to Reykjavik can’t sit comfortably in their own homes when some groups of marauding weekenders move in next door. It has become a big problem and that is why so many cities from New York to Berlin are putting in place new short term rental laws. The problem with unruly noisy weekend neighbor’s is they just don’t care about the person next door. And they treat Noise violation citations the same way out-of-staters treat parking tickets. The vast majority of Airbnb’ers just want to have a pleasant place to sleep and live. But, unfortunately rabble rousers ruin it for all.

There’s something about subtraction that just doesn’t add up.

I was at a little music concert behind a farm stand last night. It was pretty crowded on the green lawn, blankets strewn, folding chairs drawn into chattable circles. Some People noshed on sandwiches or special treat as the music played on…”Good Night little Susie…” Others would be going inside the store at the farm stand to buy their meals, or a piece of their very expensive homemade pies. The sun was getting low and the temperature dropped. But, the warmth never fled, because what was most prominent were all the kids, mainly from a year or two or three to young teens. The boys were climbing trees, while others were kicking a ball with parents, racing each other up the street, riding scooters down the street; the young girls dressed in long dresses just walked up and around and back down; walking and talking and perhaps looking to see if that special boy was there. And what I noticed most, these kids of all ages and many types were exactly like the kids I grew up with many moons ago. Isn’t it comforting to know that beyond the headlines, there is just a lot of goodness going on.

You know how we have seen the lowering of standards in America to help a person’s self-esteem, or give a segment a chance. When you lower in the standards in the military you lose wars.

You know, if we elect a president and within minutes of his or her inauguration some faction begins an assault on the presidency with the objective of removing him or her from the office, then we are just another Venezuela, or worse.

When I see a wounded warrior on artificial limbs, I have to think of the brave medic who rushed to his or her side to save the fallen soldier from dying, to give him that chance to walk and breathe and love again.

Human interaction is pretty much the same, but retailing certainly isn’t. It is expected as of today 6,300 retail stores will close in 2017. That’s a lot of jobs lost, malls vacant and perhaps future retail construction jobs diminished. So, should we expect a boon in warehouse construction, and in the manufacturing of conveyor and packaging systems? Probably. One thing goes and another takes its place. You just have to know when to get off and when to get on.

I see where Trump called the White House “a real dump”. At least that’s what he has been purported to have said to a group of friends while at his Bedminster Country Club. I don’t have high regard for his taste in design, considering he seems to believe that gaudy Pink and Gold buildings are attractive. Yup, The White House is ok with me.

I always thought that Gracie Allen was the funniest comedienne of all time. One time when she considered running for President she said her slogan would be: “Everybody knows that a woman is better than a man when it comes to introducing bills to the house.”

The Answer:

Of course, by now you should know the answer -- it is the funniest woman ever, Gracie Allen. When Gracie retired from the Burns and Allen TV show, the show floundered. George became revered as the great old story teller, but it was Gracie who go him to where he was.

Where the hearts of humans are involved, the world hasn’t really changed that month.