Lipstick on pigs.

Today's Tids Issue 4,008

For Shedding Light On Truth:

Golf is a game that keeps me quite healthy,

The tension eases away from daily hustles,

But the morning brings me aching muscles,

And the greens fees make me not so wealthy.

Life is about balancing give and take.

The more you look at Elizbeth Warren’s crowning achievement, CFPB, the weirder it gets. This is a quazi-government agency that can bring the power of big Gov against anybody it choses, without any Congressional oversight, and from what I have read, offering little recourse to those alleged to have done us wrong. It looks like an agency of the left, especially when you understand that of the 594 agency employees who donated to political campaigns, 593 gave to Democrats. While I believe we need somebody looking closely at some rascals on Wall Street, this does not look like the fair and balanced agency that can do it for the good of all. It needs a change.

BTW, this morn we see again another substantial accusation against Wells-Fargo for screwing some customer or consumer group out of something. There is a tumor in the belly of that company that just can’t die fast enough.

The inventor of the throat lozenge just died. There will be no coffin at his funeral

The Question:

Name 7 Mark Twain characters. Bonus: Who was Tom Sawyer’s first love?

The Headlines:

--All Markets Up Sharply; Dow Crosses 24,000; Q3 GDP Up 3.3%, Housing Starts Up, Jobless Claims Down; Kroger’s And Costco Report Higher Revenue, Earnings; Techs Rebound.

--Senate Repubs Clear First Hurdle On Tax Bill.

--US Officials Agree That NK’s Missile Launch Is Scary New Development; Haley Calls For Harsh Action Against Kim; Russia Agrees.

--Group Of Chinese Investors Suing Va Gov Terry McAuliffe and Hillery Bro Tony Rodham In What Is Called $120 Million Political, Electric Car Scam; “Green Tech” Failed miserably And Will be Next Complicated Mess I+For Te Immediate Future.

--Trump’s Senseless Tweet Goes Out To The Wrong Theresa May

--All eyes are On Golf Channel As Tiger Woods Attempts Big Comeback Against The Best In The World.

--SUV;’s Steal In The Spotlight At LA Auto Show; New Jeep Wrangler Biggest Treat To Most; Subaru’s Ascent Also Thrills.

You would think that these days the PR firms of America would be actively putting out fires started by clients with hot hands. But, it appears that perhaps the public has figured out that you can’t hide something as obvious as an unwanted hand on a thigh.

Tech stocks may be in play for a while. This year, investors have made a lot of money with them, and some are looking got take profits and move into other sectors with serious upside like Financial companies. While it may pain tech stock holders, it is not a sign that tech is dead, just breathing slowly for a month or two..

Well, The Tids NFL pickers got it mainly right last week with 14-2 record bring the year to 124-52 (70.5%). But…this week will be another story with 8-10 games that are capable of going either way – Panthers-Saints, Skins-Cowboys, Pats-Bills, Texans-Titans, Chiefs-Jets, Lions-Ravens, Rams-Cards, Philly-Seahawks and yes, Steelers Bennies. I think the Saints are showing weaknesses and the Panthers are getting better. Carolina. Dallas looks woeful, and Washington is playing like it can win every Sunday. Atlanta is hot and at home. But I like what Minn is doing. The Pats are injured in key areas and Buffalo is fighting for a playoff spot. This is a tough one, But I’m a homer going with Pats. Tenn is atop the division but not runaway strong. Houston still has some players, but I’ll take Tenn’s QB. The Chiefs look bad and the Jets are playing win a little heart. I go with the NY Green. Two teams still in it for a wild card -- Baltimore has put it together and the Lions are better than a lot. I’ll take the home team Balt. Arizona has given teams fits, but LA Rams are the golden boys right now and should win. Now, Philadelphia is everybody’s pick for the Super Bowl, but the Seahawks still have a little left in their nest by the Puget sound. But not enough to beat the soaring Eagles. Now, Th Steelers should beat Cinncy easy, right? But Cin is at home a beating the Steelers is their favorite thing. But not this Sunday. For the rest I have SF over Chi, GB over TB, Miami over Denver, Jax over Indy, Chargers over Browns and Oakland over the Manning-less Giants.

One of my most common typos is typing the word Jets as Jest. Actually, it works either way for me.

Did you see where Garrison Keillor, the latest celeb accused of improper behavior with women, wrote a column a couple of days ago that ridiculed the idea that fellow Democrat Al Franken should resign. He also said what he did was nothing.

The Top 8 favorite cars at the LA Auto Show in order are Corvette ZR1 Convertible, Wrangler, BMW i8 Roadster, Lincoln Nautilus, Subaru Ascent, Mercedes CLS, Lexus RX L, Infinite QX 50

And, down in Alabama, Moore has retaken the lead, according to the RCP average. They are giving him a +2 advantage. The polling analyzer have four polls showing Moore +5 in three of them and -5 in one.

I’m noticing that in this state that teacher’s unions are drawing hard lines in the sand against doing much of the things that they have done so nicely in the past. I used to have this idea that everything would work better if all policies began at the local level and worked their way up to the national umbrella. But, from what I have been seeing about people lately not even getting along in small communities, I’m not so sure. (Of course, that could be because we have national operations dictating local actions.) I have even had some of my somewhat left leaning friends agree that if we could settle everything at the local level to the relative satisfaction of all, rich or poor, then we would not have to go into debt at the state and federal levels simply to give back to locals something they already had.

Christmas dinner is a time when you can really talk turkey. Unless of course the funny uncle is really a big ham. Regardless, vegetarians will beef about it all.

Have you noticed that the President has not tweeted out his golf score for his recent T-Day match playing with Woods, Dustin Johnson and Brad Faxon.

A lot of people are wondering why companies are acting so fast to get rid of their sexual predators while the government just lets them survive. It’s probably because nowadays advertisers are scared to death of bad vibes that may bias potential buyers against them. And, of course the morale of other employees. So, the company rids itself of the symptomatic disease that may erupt into lost revenue. In the government, there isn’t any money at stake in a place where ethics have been suspect for years. And then of course, the people own the government, and they can get rid of all the miscreants at the polls, if they want to.

BTW, there are democrats, and then there is the Left, just as there are Repubs and there is the right.

A chiropractor is a lumbar jack.

Most of the celebs apologizing after being exposed for unwanted assaults of varying degrees are probably saying they are sorry…they got caught.

The Answer:

Well, the most popular is either Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn. Then we have Jim and Becky Thatcher. You may like Sally and Silas Phipps or perhaps Aunt Polly. But, probably not the whiny Sid Sawyer. Joe Harper is Hucks’ pal. But Injun Joe and the Ragged man are not. Bonus: Amy Lawrence was Tom’s first love, until Becky came along. Amy became Beck’s rival and basically hated her.

Read between the lines, look beneath the glitter.

Fast and inconsistent.

Issue 4,007

For calm in a Bewildering World

It’s nice as you begin getting used to 35 degree temps to come across an occasional 55 degree day that feels like summer all over again. Everything in this world is relative. Too many often get caught up in absolutism.

We have two big headlines this morning: “NK launches ICBM which can Reach any city on USA East Coast”. “Matt Lauer Fired for Inappropriate Sexual Behavior.” Which do you think will get the most talk and news coverage?

Food Shopping Tip: Always be sure to pack sensitive fragile potato chips on top of high density crunchy Cheetos. Never the other way. That is an absolute.

The Question:

Name five leading commercial brands of bacon, and how they rank against each other. Bonus: Name three “gourmet” brands.

The Headlines:

--NK Missile Test Scares US Military Heads; Word Is That The next Big Scare Comes When H-Bomb I Successfully Tested; NK, Says: When We have it, Then We Talk About Negotiations.

--Morning Surprise: Lauer Latest Caught Foolin’ Around With Staff; Garrison Keillor Walks The Plank In the Afternoon; Bill Clinton Accusers Are Back On The Stage; Tweeters Use Lauer Episode To Go After Trump.

-- Man Arrested For Tampa Area Serial Killer Murders.

--Siberia Sets November Low Temperature Of Minus 60 Degrees F.

--Two Silly American Tourists “Moon” Bangkok Temple And Are Arrested; Idiots Put Photos On Social Media.

The Voice is becoming less predictable as last night “Sure to be finalist” Janice Freeman got the boot (Not thrown by JH). This proves again that it isn’t really always about the talent, but the demographics of the audience. I have to say that Adam Cunningham won the “Sing-off” competition, but Janice shouldn’t have been there in the first place.

The way celebs, TV personalities and world leaders are falling to temptation, it won’t be long before there will be no men in positions of power or influence. Crazy.

Speaking of wayward personalities, The Golf media is definitely all atwitter about the return of Tiger Woods as part of a super all-star field for this weekend’s PGA tournament. Tiger is saying he can do it all again, and 8 of the top 10 players in the world will be there to challenge his new found game. TV will be loving the ratings.

Eli Manning deserves better than a heartless benching.

A student at The University of Washington was feeling for her friend who was seriously ill in a hospital over Thanksgiving. She tweeted out that she would donate to St. Jude’s Hospital 25 cents for every favorite and 50 cents for every retweet. She was prepared to spend $1,000 of her own money. But, she didn’t fully realize the power of viral media. Now, she is on the hook for $200K. Double Yikes. Now she has a “Go Fund Me” page. Tweeting can get you in big trouble.

People are calling the firing of Matt Lauer the “Revenge of Anne Curry”.

Criminal conspiracy in plain sight, Department: The city bans the very handy and utile plastic bag and big stores like Wal-Mart charge a nickel for every paper bag! Who’s paying off who?

The Answer:

In a test by The Bacon Scouts of America, a group shamelessly in support of butcher shop bacon, tested five commercial mass produced products. Five brands randomly selceted were tested – Oscar Meyer, Farmland (Smithfield), Hormel Black Label, Wright and a No-name store brand. Farmland won for flavor, Saltiness and Low Shrinkage. In the fourth category, Fat to Meat ratio, No-Name and Wright were clear winners. Note, most of you know that you should always turnover the package to see the fattiness of the strips. (Most brands, especially Oscar, show the best of meatiness on the front) Bonus: The top Gourmet brands of bacon are Nolechek’s Meats, Woods Smoked Meats, RJ’s Meats and Grand Champion Meats.

Put a smile on a friend’s face – add bacon to a sandwich. Vegetarians will excuse themselves so they can smile in private.

Robust Tids Back tomorrow.

Trust in Me. Wink, Wink.

Today's Tids Issue 4,006

For Trust:

I always thought a person’s word and good solid handshake were pretty important aspects of an orderly society. But now it seems it’s, “Well, I didn’t really grasp that hand that firmly”. Or, “Oh, I guess you misunderstood my exact word.” Is everything today all about “wiggle room”? “Well, I didn’t really mean exactly that.” Today, laws are not simply black and white, but meant to be interpreted, or even worse, “they don’t apply to me because of extenuating circumstances”. Yes, Freedoms for all is a great thing, as long as trustworthiness and responsibility go along with it. Yet somehow today, being honest, trustworthy is considered by some as being naïve.

My sister bought this driving app, but it kept on crashing. Oh no…how irresponsible is that!

This consumer protection agency squabble is an interesting paradox. I’m basically for free markets, a “buyer beware” kind of guy, but every time I think markets can and will police themselves, Wells-Fargo steps up and does something disgusting to customers. But that doesn’t let the old Cordray led agency off the hook. They only fined W-F $100 Million. They should have sent the CEO, selected board members and all higher officials to jail. Somehow, we got to get the message across that slaps on the wrists aren’t going to stop nefarious practices. And yes, in this age’s mega money society, $100 Mil is a slap on the wrist. Somebody has to stop these institutions of “Trust” from messing around with people’s savings and over charging businesses. I still would hope it could be the industry itself. But my ears and eyes are telling me something different.

Shareholders with a conscience could punish the evil doers by selling their stocks. But, I doubt if that aspect of a “market driven Economy” would work either.

My big question is why would an NFL player ever wear a chain around his neck while playing football? Aside from starting childish fights, it sounds basically dangerous to your neck.

The Question:

How many of you can name Meghan Markle’s Ten Best Movies?

The Headlines:

--Markets Plodding Forward and Upward; Cyber Monday Explodes To $6.59 Billion; Softbank Offers To Buy Uber Shares At 30% Discount..

--Repub Senators Taking Stands Against Current Proposed Tax Law To Squeeze Out More Benefits For Small Businesses.

--Trump Going To Hill To Hard Sell Agenda.

--Leandra English Cordrey Selected Deputy Director Of Consumer Watch Dog Group CFPB Sues Trump After He Appoints Mick Mulvaney.

--More Serious Charges Leveled Against Weinstein, This Time It Is Under “Federal Sex Trafficking” Laws.

--South Korea Says NK May Be Able To Announce Full Nuclear Weapon Capability By Next Year.

--Illinois Congress man (D) Luis Gutierrez To retire.

More people than I could ever imagine seem to plan their lives around pop music concert dates.

Last night on The Voice I thoroughly enjoyed Chloe Kohanski and Red Marlow, and appreciated Addison Agen even though I didn’t particularly like the song; I also enjoyed Davon Fleming and thought Noah was pretty good. Brook got judges raves but I thought she was just plain loud. Janice Freeman who has a great voice got lost in the band somewhere. I liked Adam better than usual and also Ashland who kept me smiling quite a bit. I think Sha’Ann can sing and had good moments but something soft can equally light up the stage as the typical shouts at the end. Kiesha, who I generally like, may have hurt herself jazzing up a nice Faith Hill tune. But she is polished for sure. So, It’s up to the voters. I’m thinking that Adam and Kiesha and perhaps Ashland or Shi’Ann, could be on the bottom. It’s just a matter of somebody having to go now…whether you like it or not. Right now, based on ITune’s overall sales, it looks like a race between Chloe and Addison to the finish.

For last night’s ITunes The Voice rankings, Chloe’s Total Eclipse of the Heart was number one of all songs sold through ITunes last evening. #2 on the charts was for Addison. Also in the Top Ten was Red Marlow at #10. After Red, Noah came in at 16, Davon at 17, Brook at 27, Keisha at 28. Then we had Chloe and Addison’s earlier efforts picking up sales. In fact, Chloe had 4 in the top 100, Addison 2 and Keisha 2. Also in the Top 100 were Ashland (68), Janice (72), Adam (80) and Shi’Ann (92).

The PC Police are all over everything that is considered even mildly offensive to the smallest of minorities. But, I don’t remember any outrage from the same American Nannies when half of the US population was deemed “Deplorables”. And those still suffering from severe Hillary-Lossitis still harken back on that deplorable remark to look down on good old, plain laid-back Americans.

God, Donald…think man, think.

Tech Junk! Actually, it’s not junk at all but most often perfectly usable phones, tablets et.al., sitting in backs of drawers as the ravenous American consumer appetite constantly seeks the new and maybe not better. The average American spends $531.43 on new technology every year. And most of the old stuff is just left gathering dust.

My regular Golf course closes for the season at the end of this week until next April. Finding warmth, has been a big problem this year. I generally feel that 45 degrees and up are doable days. But, a toasty 45 is early in the morn has been elusive this year. But we will find a way. It is the most important thing I’m doing this week! Yes, life is tough.

The Answer:

I couldn’t name one. Actually, she had better luck on TV where she was well known for “Fringe” and “Suits”. Her top ten movies in order are The Apostles, A Lot Like Love, The Candidate, Horrible Bosses, The Boys and Girls Guide To Getting Down, Remember Me, Dysfunctional Friends, Good Behavior, Get Him To The Greek, Deceit and #11, Random Encounters. Many of her films were TV Movies.

I never promised the Tids would be good, I just said I’d get it there. Trust me!

The Red, White and Blue stand for freedom until they are flashing behind you!

Incongruities upon incongruities.

Today's Tids Issue 4,005

For Sense:

The Christmas song words “I Wonder as I Wander…” speaks beautifully of one of the world’s great and joyful mysteries. Yet, the melody with words taking on a new meaning haunt me as I look across a world in conflict, which I find hard to understand; when all humans are the progenies of love.

On Friday evening, the cacophony of ship’s horns echoing across the harbor reminded us all here that Santa was sailing into town. It was a beautiful sound.

Here’s a thought for you: What is the biggest problem in our colleges – filling up football stadiums or finding ways to pay for the severely rising cost of the education? Musing more about the huge amount of money owed on unfulfilled contract for failing, fired coaches, I’m thinking why aren’t contracts written to say to coaches that if you are fired for non-performance, the remainder of the unpaid salary on your contract will be placed in a pool to help “Students” with out-of-control tuition and interminable loans. Maybe the coaches could write it off as a tax deduction. Hell, we give tax deductions for everything else, why not for the high cost of education.

I think it is pretty cool how the Chinese created a language entirely out of tattoos.

When will NFL teams learn that just because a thug can play good football, it doesn’t mean that he is good for a team. Thuggery will over time produce more losses than wins, and start to make fans turn away.

The Question:

In 1789, George Washington Set Aside a National Day of Thanksgiving. What was the reason for it? Bonus: How many people in TV’s Mayberry were married?

The Headlines:

--Cyber Sales Up 18%; Brick And Mortar Sales Down 4%[ Dow Should Open Higher On Cyber Monday.

--100K Evacuated In Bali As Lava Pools Up In Crater.

--Saudi Crown Prince Stepping Up As Middle East Leader On Human Rights And Anti ISIS Efforts.

--Battle Looming Between Trump And Ex-Consumer Watchdog Cordray Over Future Leadership Of Consumer Financial Regulation Group.

--Conyers Step Down As Leader Of Dems In Judiciary Post; Franken Says It Is Biz As Usual; Comedian Says He Doesn’t Know If More Accusers Will Come Forward (?).

--Prince Harry Is Engaged To Meghan Markle; Markle Is America Actress Of Black Mother and White Father.

--Time Inc. Sold To Meredith For $2.8Bil; Backed By Koch Brothers.

Could George Gershwin have been listening to the opening sounds of Ottorino Respighi’s Pina Di Roma when he started writing American in Paris?

Another sign of the way our traditional world is changing – the Generation “Z” (I guess that is the current youngest group) is more interested in DIY stars. Those are the amateurs who make it big on public forums like You Tube. They are saying, “We have our own”, and don’t seem to care as much about the industry grind em’ out, packaged and promoted stars.

The other day a very bright younger person asked me how I would solve the huge problem of declining average wages. Well, I scratched my head and hemmed and hawed and finally said. “I have no idea”. This is an endemic problem which is mainly the result of global equilibrium. All manufacturers who are moving forward are basically global, and the lowest common denominator of wages is driving location decisions. One of the keys, we both agreed on, is skill. And, we are talking high skills that require intense education. Companies that are growing, and more importantly staying in America are creating non-commodity products that require advanced employee skill sets. They will get paid. Basically, for the future, we are saying that learning in school beginning in the first grade and intensifying throughout high school will mean the difference between getting paid properly or being displaced by robots. I have to say, though, real economic wage growth (As opposed to forced minimum wage increases) is a significant conundrum. which will affect future generations. More heads than this old gray one will be scratched.

The police authorities have named the group of older women robbing banks -- the Grandmafia. (Thanks to MacNelly and Brookins).

Shopping is overrated. I guess that makes me an unfrenzied, anti-American.

As I look around, that new “Cold Shoulder” look is proving to me once again that there are a lot of people who should just simply avoid designer trendiness for designer trendiness sake.

The college bowl game picture just got fuzzier. Clemson, Last year’s national champ, with solid win over super rival South Carolina put themselves back atop the bowl picture. They should beat Miami in the ACC championship game. (Miami’s undefeated season was interrupted Friday by Pitt.) Wisconsin looked great in winning and staying undefeated. They must beat Ohio State next weekend to make the top four, or else be overlooked by OSU sycophants on the selection committee. Oklahoma is also looking more like a lock. Then we have Auburn who in the past three weeks have beaten the two Number one’s at the time – Georgia and Alabama. Auburn plays Georgia next week for the SEC championship. Wow, what a Saturday next week will be – Auburn-Georgia, Clemson-Miami and OSU and Wisconsin. And then out of nowhere, the Sooners will be upset by TCU, and open the door for another committee favorite.

Now I know one solid reason why Bitcoin still exists, and why it is up over 900%!. It is the main currency medium used by Corporations to pay off cyber thieves, extortionist hackers and data kidnappers.

Um-Pah, Department:

Saturday at Boston’s Faneuil Hall, 150 Tuba players put on a Christmas Music concert. How cool is that!

Tesla and Uber seem to have this business premise that some basic rules of decency don’t apply to them. Tesla, which is doing some cool stuff is going through their cash at the rate of $480,000/Hour! Last week they signed an agreement to build cars in China, while laying off 700 American workers for underperformance – with no advanced warning. Uber continues to surprise legal authorities with disingenuous tactics like the latest of not warning about the hacking of some data from 57 Million people

NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder is the latest example of where the assemblage of a bunch of superstars does not make the result a “team”.

Something wrong with this Picture, Department:

Jeff Bezos wealth went up $36 billion to $100 Bil in just one day. Amazon’s appearance of revenue zoomed on Friday, and a couple of keystrokes at the emotionally driven Nasdaq added to his enormous wealth. This for his company that barely has plans for making profits. BTW, Bezos passed Bill Gates who now is second with a mere $86 billion. But, analysts say that Gates, unlike Bezos, contributes billions to world charities. They add that if you were to factor in Gates charitable contributions, his worth would be about $150 Billion! There’s more to life than one-day spurts.

I think I’m already getting tired of the promotions and publicity for the return of Tiger Woods.

About one or two years ago Applebee’s must have gotten caught up in the health food frenzy as all of their ads featured greenery upon greenery. I have a feeling it didn’t sit well with their core audiences because they are now heavily back to promoting food that the majority of people would actually like to eat -- steaks with great toppings and creative potato dishes. The market always speaks, and smart companies follow their needs.

I don’t think of myself as overweight, just easier to see.

The Answer:

Washington wanted to give Thanks for the adoption of the US Constitution. Bonus: Only one, Otis, the town drunk, was married. The rest of the happy crew -- Andy, Barney, Aunt Bee, Floyd, Howard, Gomer, Goober, Sam, Earnest T. Bass, Helen, Clara, Thelma and, of course, Opie were single.

One of the nicest sensations of this time of year is walking through a Christmas tree displays and inhaling the wonderful aromas of fresh cut Pine. Exhilarating!

Makes me feel like this finale to Respighi’s Pines of Rome:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMeXzqTfNcY

It should be perfect, but…

Today's Tids Issue 4,004

For thinking of those I do not know:

What a week. It began with the excitement of the 4,000^th Tids, and ended ever so beautifully with a comfortable and loving Thanksgiving Day. In fact, my mind has become so thoroughly mollified, that I may not be able to rise above some bad puns. Well, it’s better than left-over cranberry sauce. Read the Tids. Take your chances.

Why don’t some couples go to the gym? Because, some relationships don’t work out.

It looks like Zimbabwe is in good hands following the resignation of tyrannical dictator Mugabe. Yeah, sure -- the wizened leaders of the economically deteriorating country have anointed Emmerson Mnangagwa as their new President. He is known as “The Crocodile”. Yikes! In fact, he was the all-powerful enforcer, the right-hand man for Mugabe; in charge of spying and Chief Security Official when mass murders and unimaginable atrocities occurred during the post take-over period. God help the Zimbabweans.

The Question:

Who are these people: Billy Connolly, Denise Kirby, Garret Dillahunt, Scott, Krinsky and Stephen Merchant?

The Headlines:

--Over 200 Killed, 140 Wounded In Islamic Attack On Egypt Mosque.

--Signs Say Former NSA Chief Flynn May be Talking To Mueller About Deal For Info.

--Black Friday Sales Off To Brisk Start; Online Up Again, Amazon Crushing It; 2,500 In Line At Mall Of America; Stock Markets Looking Good In Early Trading.

--South Africa Court Doubles Pistorius Sentence.

--US Ceases Search For 3 Missing Sailors In Philippines Seas; Explosion Heard Near Where Argentine Sub Disappeared May Indicate End.

--Saudi Crown Prince Says Iran Supreme Leader The New Hitler.

--Uber’s New CEO said To Have Known Of Data Breach 32 Months Before Telling Public; CEO Says Investigation Needed Before Explaining To Public.

A dollar isn’t a dollar anymore, Department:

College football observers say there is a good chance that the coaches of UCLA (Already gone), Nebraska, Arkansas, Texas A&M, North Carolina, Texas Tach, Arizona State and Kansas will probably dismiss their football coaches. The coaches of those 8 schools will be owed $62.6 Million on their unfulfilled contracts! The universities will be paying tons of dough for nothing…on top of contracts for new coaches, which will surely be also out of sight. AD’s must not have taken a course on judicial fiscal management. This is more wasteful than most governments.

Did you hear about the shoemaker’s apprentice who gave his awl?

A reader, an historically “Laissez- faire” guy, writes to tell me that he believes that “the change to net neutrality will not show effects immediately, but over time we will feel restrictions on what we can see and what we pay to see anything. The big providers will direct our searching and viewing, and limit us to what they choose to offer.” It sounds to me like big government is allowing big business to smother the consumer. But, let’s face it, the Internet today is really just another huge advertising medium and retail outlet. People already are directed and controlled to spend inordinate amounts of time and money doing basically nothing. Some psychologists are saying that the internet as it is today is the biggest cause for the growing depression in people worldwide. Convenience is obliterating chances for social interaction.

And, we haven’t even gotten to what could be the next national degenerating mania – on-line gambling and sports betting. The “Mo” is building and it is just one Supreme Court decision away from becoming the new American pastime.

Yesterday, I asked a younger guy, an Artificial Intelligence, Computer science whiz bang, what he thought of Net Neutrality. He answered, that it confused the hell out of him and thinking about it gives him headaches.

A so-called impartial Washington Post reporter, Janell Ross, was an active participant in a meeting of the” largest contributors, most liberal influencers” of the left wing of the Democrat party – “The Democracy Alliance”. Featured among many wealthy donors, some congress people and info contributors like Ross, was George Soros who outlined the future of the progressive agenda. What makes Ross interesting is not only did an “Unbiased” journalist cross the line participating in a political effort, but she hid it from her Washington Post employers. The meeting was originally designed to be a secret, but a Washington newspaper, The Beacon, uncovered the list of attendees and contributors. Further examination of Ross, who bills herself as fair and middle of the road ethical journalist, found that her past writings are significantly anti right.

The flip side of a contagious gum disease is an infectious smile.

But maybe the threat of a select few giants creating a monopoly that would govern and control our internet habits is not so dangerous after all. In the package delivery business, three giants control it all – UPS, FedEx and USPS. This week, UPS announced that they will apply surcharges to deliveries just before Christmas and round Back Friday. Guess what, some of the biggest eCommerce giants said, Forget about UPS, I’m giving all my business to USPS and FedEx. Competition does still work for the benefit of consumers.

In addition to Alabama-Auburn tomorrow, you can watch high paid caches in action as Clemson plays South Carolina in what looks like a key, meaningful match-up too. Many will also watch Notre dame-Stanford, but it doesn’t mean much as far as the Playoff picture goes. And then there is the huge Midwest battle featuring the Ohio Sates Buckeyes and against the Michigan Wolverines. This could actually be a pretty good game. But, I still go with Michigan, because the marching song just can’t be beat.

Colin Kapernick is no Jackie Robinson.

The sports world awaits the ESPN announcement expected momentarily about the release of perhaps more than 100 personalities, many of whom were associated with the network’s former top ranked Sports Center”. The CEO of the big Disney unit may be holding back on destroying the careers of these employees because he is in the midst of signing a giant contract for himself. You can’t make this greed stuff up.

The Answer:

Ok, here we go: Billy Connolly is a very good British comedic Actor originally given a boost as a lead-in to Elton John concerts and then scored big playing with Monte Python. He has been in many movies but was best noted for is role as John Brown in the Judi Dench film Mrs. Brown, for which won a SAG award for best supporting actor; If you are familiar with Charlotte’s Web, then you know Denise Kirby; Garret Dillahunt is another of those classic character actors you see in many films and TV shows. He was big and scary as Ty Walker in the 6th season of the wonderful “Justified” series, and very well known as Burt Chance on Raising Hope; I was one of those big fans of “Chuck”, and Scott Krinsky kept the laughs going with his antics; Stephen Merchant has long been a partner with Ricky Gervais, jointly co-hosting their show with RG’s name? He co-wrote and co-produced the BBC comedy, “The Office. It was brought to the USA and he and Gervais accepted the Golden Globe for Best Television Series.

If there is one thing I have learned from being a member of this open to all newly connected world global community, it is that what I and others are doing has little relationship to what maybe happening to billions of other good honest humans. For instance, this morning I’m just enjoying simplicity, blue skies and a nice nip in the air; pounding my head on the desk looking for an idea. And across the Atlantic ocean,100’s were murdered while praying hopefully in a Mosque. Just wants make you sob, doesn’t it?

Have a good weekend, E-v-e-r-y-b-o-d-y!!

Feel it.

Today's Tids Issue 4,003

For inspiration:

Roger Williams First Baptist Church in America still stands proudly, beautifully in the center of Downtown Providence. This morning on the signboard in front, it read: “Tweet unto others as you would have others tweet unto you.”

Happy Thanksgiving, E-v-e-r-y-b-o-d-y!

A little music to lift you up in thanks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDdb65l-49E

The bestest gift.

Today's Tids Issue 4,002

For Special Love:

Isn’t remarkable in some way

That the almost perfect Holiday

Doesn’t really do anything…

No partridge, no five gold rings.

Yes, a day when folks do not expect

But take the time just to reflect

On the purity, power of simple love

All the gifts we see from up above.

Yes, it is a day when we celebrate,

Loving each other; now ain’t that great!

Today marks 54 years since the Kennedy assassination. It was a sad, sad day in America regardless of whether or not you liked him. Irrespective of opposition sniping, JFK was always a positive image for the country, and nobody ever held a better press conference than he did.

The Ellen show is a little like watching the Politicians at work. This pretty below average show about nothing in particular caters to a maniacal audience who scream and stomp on cue at every motion or utterance by the host. But from what I can see, they really go berserk because they get free stuff. It’s not whether or not you are bad or good, it’s only about what you give away for nothing.

In case you missed it, Hillary’s latest excuse for her loss is none other than Barack Obama. Will she ever go away?

The Question:

David Cassidy, who died last night at 67, was a heartthrob for many teen girls in the 1970’s. What else was Cassidy known for. Name three other members of the Partridge Family Cast. Bonus: A provocative classical work by Maurice Ravel became a popularly recognized tune after a movie made it famous. Name the movie, the name of the Ravel work and the stars of the movie.

The Headlines:

--US Navy Transport Crashes After Takeoff from Aircraft Carrier; 8 Of 11 Recued By Japanese Navy.

--US Stocks Lower Approaching Holidays; New Jobless Claims Fall; Meg Whitman Stepping Down From HP.

--Fisker Company Reveals Development Of New Safer Electric Car Battery That Will Go 500 Miles After Just One Minute Charging Time

--US, Intel Warns Of Hacking Vulnerabilities In Chip Used For Business Computing,

--Uber Said To Have Covered Up Data Breach That Affected 57 Million Consumers And Drivers.

--Trump Appears To Come Out In Support Of Moore.

--New Raycom News Senate Poll has Moore Ahead Of Jones 47-45 In Alabama Race; Moral Observers Befuddled.

Has there been a bigger surprise on The Voice than last night’s elimination of Jon Mero in the first voter session after live shows. Mero came up very strong on ITunes sales and Sha’Ann was at the bottom in that category and in a couple of test votes. Maybe some of the new voting gimmicks added this year are skewing the results.  Maybe knowing how to grasp the complexities of voting technology has become more important than any other measure.

Still in the entertainment world, I personally believe that Constance Wu who plays Jessica Huang on “Fresh Off the Boat” should at the very least be nominated for an Emmy. MI smile every time she walks into the screen.

The old Pickers came up a little lame last week. Now at 110-50, our percentage declined a bit to 68.75%.  But, tomorrow begins another week with a three-game thanksgiving feast starting with Vikes-Lions and followed by Chargers-Cowboys and Giants-Redskins. The Vikes are playing very well, but the Lions sometimes wake-up on T-Day. I’ll still take the Vikes. Lately, the Cowboys look woeful and the Chargers are, well, charging lately. Tough pick, here but home field without Ezekiel has not been working for the Jones-Boys . I’ll take San Diego, or is that LA. The Giants-Skins game has always been a huge rivalry. Washington has played well losing and the Giants playing poorly eked one out last week. I’ll go with Washington. I’m picking the Bennies over Browns in the cross state rival game and Panthers over the Jets. The Falcons are rising and should beat TB, while the c]Colts remain a mystery and Tenn is in the race. Titans, here. I like the Pats over the Dolphins and Eagles over Bears. Two teams that appear to be fading equally are the Bills and Chiefs. I have to figure the Chiefs will wake up at home, even as Tyrod plays hard to reassure his starting job. The Seahawks have go to beat the Niners, right? And Denver is proving that they don’t have it and Oakland may. The Steelers will continue their march against the Pack and The Ravens are looking more like a sure thing at least Wild card team and will continue over Houston. Now we have left two pretty tough Picks LA Rams versus the Saints and Jags versus the Cards. I got to go Jags and I’m thinking that NO is ready to lose one and LA wants to come back after last week’s embarrassment at Minnesota. LAR to regain form.

I didn’t understand what the Net-Neutrality discussion was all about when Obama instituted.it. I don’t believe I saw anything disastrous happening when it went into action, whatever it is. And now they are going to reverse Obama and I still don’t know what will happen to me. Maybe nothing, which is exactly what happened after the original reversal. It is just another political football that will deflate when the battle is over. This is why I generally don’t get too excited about anything anymore.

A group of people who appear to be exactly the same could all have distinctively different music tastes.

Nobody can figure which way to go on this Harassment steamroller. Last night sexual harasser Letterman received an award from with lavished praise from PBS, who just fired Rose for the same.

That news about the Fisker Battery could dramatically change the auto industry in 4-5 years. It will also have a profound effect of all battery reliant tech appliances. There is always somebody working to improve technology that will blow your mind. In today’s world we should never say no, can’t be done.

You have to wonder if Hillary is getting so many on air interviews because this is just about the only public figure who has never sexually harassed anybody. Hey wait a minute, she represents what this movement against continuing harassment is all about – she besmirched the victims.

Will she ever go away?

The Answer;

David had a mixed career after his Partridge success, but one of his more popular stints was on The Apprentice. Yes, that Apprentice. The partridge Family TV series featured David along with Shirley Jones, Susan Dey, Danny Bonaduce, Suzanne Crough, Brian Foster and Rick Segal. Bonus: The Ravel piece was “Bolero” and the movie was Ten, starring Dudley Moore and Bo Derek.

Well, be careful and don’t get caught in the traffic…and enjoy the most peaceful day of all. And thanks for occasionally reading this thing. Love you all.

Open for Business.

Today's Tids Issue 4,001

For Humility:

There is nothing I like better than walking, no struggling forward against strong winds. Within a day quietly cool, but not yet frozen. It’s what is perfect still upon these northern shores, breezy day off ocean swells.. I would never yearn to be where I am not. Because in what I have, there is much to be discovered each day. Today I found it in the wind.

RI has just been deemed the state among the 6 New England states with the highest poverty level. This shouldn’t be a surprise because it is well known for having the most generous give-away programs? Nah, it must be something more devious than that. Politicians don’t like simple solutions to emotional appearing problems.

The gathering experts are beginning to see 2018 as a good year for stocks! That’s good for all, especially the many restauranteurs that live off of Retiree’s savings. The consensus target for the end of 2018, at least on this November day ahead of Thanksgiving, is 29,500. Of course, that means that around October of next year headlines will be drumming to the beat: Can we make “30,000” before December 31. I doubt if it will be that simple.

The Question:

A national survey asked Americans, “If the government were to move out of Washington DC, which city do you think would be the best choice? The cities offered for choice were NY, Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Detroit, Dallas, Seattle and Denver. “Other” was another choice. How do you thing the cities ranked?

The Headlines:

--Stock Markets Ride On Tech And Healthcare; Today It Is Positive And The Market Is Stronger.

--The Instability Of The German Politics And Severely Weakened Merkle Has EU Worrying About The Certainty Of The Economic Union.

--Mugabe Gets The Message, Finally Resigns.

--Alabama Dem Senate Candidate Jones Quotes Ivanka Trump In Ad Against Moore.

--Dem Conyers Named As Latest Congressional Sex Harasser.

--Trump Pardons Turkeys.

--Blues States Worry That Top Earners May Leave If Tax Reform Goes Through.

--CBS Fires Charlies Rose.

--FCC Chairman Moves To Dismantle Obama Net Neutrality Rules.

How dismal does “4,001” look. After a moment of glory yesterday at 4,000, we are back to step one. Depressing. 999 to go. Oppressive. But, I guess that’s life. New beginnings all of the time.

A pretty good night of singing on The Voice last night. Addison, Kiesha, Janice and Jon Mero seem to be the class of good singers. I personally like Red, but he is a little limited. But he is finny and a good listen. I’d like to see him stay awhile. The favorite among the broader audience seems to be Chloe, and she was rated quite favorably for her last night’s effort. In fact, among one critic’s rating it was she, Janice, Addison and Jon Mero who received “A” or above grades. Brook, who was touted by overly gleeful judges early as having “Stole the show”, put me to sleep. As did the very good singer Davon Fleming. I thought Noah, another who got raves from the judges, was a little off at times, but he will captivate the young girl voters, a very large group. I like Kiesha a lot and will always watch Addison and Red. Who goes home? I’m looking at – Shi’Ann, Adam or Ashland. I think it could be Ashland or Shi’Ann.

ITunes Charting begins now with the live shows. First among The Voice contestants at #9 was Addison. Next was Chloe #20, Janice #22, Noah #42, Jon Mero #44, Kiesha #53, Brook #61, Chloe (Again) #65, Adam #91, Chloe (Again #92, Davon #96, Red #99 and Ashland #104

How many Republican Congress people do you think feel guilty about sticking it to all of the very blue coastal states in the Tax reform program? I live in what may be the bluest of the Blues, and they can barely spell Republican here, much less find one.

Trump Pardoned the Turkeys because they don’t Tweet back.

My favorite conservative leaning opinionator Neil Cavuto tells Trump to stop begging for compliments and be who you are, The President of the United Sates and leader of the Free World. He said, why do you constantly need more than that? Lead form the top. And…let the pieces fall beneath you.

My mind was working much better before the wind blew it out my ears.

Fox News is giving rascally, knowledgeable, conservative lawyer Mark Levin a Weekly Weekend Program titled “Life, Liberty & Levin. Levin tells it like it is.  

The question: Will Levin be able to keep up with Judge Jeanine Pirro! 119 Mph to see mom! Yikes.

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania has been named the “Best City in which to retire” The next four are Boston, Los Angeles, Denver and Providence RI. Rounding out the top ten we have Minneapolis, Tampa/St. Pete, Phoenix, Austin and Dallas. It isn’t about warmth anymore. It’s about healthcare, culture and crime. The worst city is Riverside/San Bernardino CA. The rest of the worst are Memphis, Louisville, Buffalo and Indianapolis.

Is discovery, dead? – Department:

Did you see where world tourist area regions and cities across the world have had it with tourists. “We are being overrun!”, say citizens of Spain, Germany Italy and formerly special, hidden away places in Asia. A well-known international hiker says going to the Andes is like walking on Times Square on New Year’s eve. You just can’t see the wonders any more for the heads popping up in front of you. It will only get worse as Boomers start putting on their traveling shoes. Remember when it used to be lonely atop Mount Everest, too?

The Answer:

New York (17%) edged out…Kansas City (15)! Yes, USA could be up to date in Kansas City. The rest in order were Chicago (9), Dallas (8), Denver and Boston (7), Seattle (5), Detroit (3), LV (2) and LA (1). 26% said other.

Thanks to all of you for taking a minute or two out if this busy week’s schedule to ingest a bit of the Tidlets. Sorry, no cranberry sauce added.