$13 Billion for 17 days.

Today;s Tids Issue 4,048

For Rapturous Exultation:

The Olympics are over. My favorite, most exhilarating moment was when Jessie Diggers did what her name implies, reaching down, calling for every ounce of physical strength and mental courage within her body and heart to win the Cross-Country Nordic event from a clear favorite.

Don’t you wish our politicians had the courage of our young athletes.

There is no truth to the rumor that for the 2022 Winter Olympics, China is planning to field a team of AI robots.

It seems now that the biggest reason for President Trump not being interviewed With Mueller is that it would open too many doors to everything, most importantly, Trump’s personal finances. So, if you are wondering why the stalling, that is probably it.

The Question:

In 1798 the first City owned University was established, and it thrives today. Which one is it?

The Headlines:

--Stocks Open Open Higher.

--Ohio River Crests At 69.53 Feet In Cincinnati; Major Quake Halts Life In Padua New Guinea.

--China’s XI Sets Himself Up To Rule For Life.

--SK Prez Wants US To Pave Way For NK Talks.

--Weinstein Company On Brink of Bankruptcy As Sale Talks Fail.

--Buffet: New Tax Law Huge Benefit For Us Business Growth; Berkshire Gins Big Bucks After Tax Law.

--Daca Kid Arrested In Rochester NY After Threatening To Shoot “…All Of Ya B--es” (In High School); Oakland Cal Mayor Warns Illegals Of Planned ICE raid.

Isn’t – “Is the country going the right direction?” -- the worst poll question of all time, or what! It only tends to illustrate the divide in the country, and changes 180 degrees depending on which party is in charge.

Just when intoxicating stories about craft beer dominate the Food and Beverage pages of newspapers, we learn that Generation Z much prefers Liquor and wine.

Back in the early 1900’s, velodromes like the immense cyclodrome in Providence RI, were built and packed with fans watching bicycle riders dash at amazing speeds around banked wooden tracks.. In the fifties bowling alleys were being built on every corner in towns across America. Today, people are saying baseball and football will be with us forever. They are just too popular to fail. I wonder.

I’ll be watching the new Supreme Court Case that could put a damper on many Public Employee Union Activities. As FDR said of the unions which only bargain for more of citizens taxes, “ Unthinkable and intolerable”. Unions, as you may know, gained strength for many reasons mainly to improve working conditions and to receive a fair share of profits created by union workers. The government does not make profits and it creates all of the safe and fair workplace rules. So, not only are Punic Employee unions unthinkable and intolerable, they are also illogical.

Consumer reports has just published it’s best cars report. The Best Car in the world is the Hyundai Genesis while the Tesla is the best American car. Fiat is at the very bottom of the list. Ford and Chevy did not do well among cars but the Ford F150 was best of all trucks. Genesis beat out Audi, BMW, Porsche and Toyota’s Lexus for best overall car. Among the main stream brands, Kia was first followed by Honda and Subaru. The best compact Green car was The Bolt.

I watched the Jennifer Lawrence puff piece on 60 minutes last night. After watching my only hope is that kids across the nation don’t think dropping out of school at 14 is a good idea.

People who are afraid of change will always pay with the exact amount of cash.

The problem with getting a hotel upgrade to a super luxury room suite, is that in the morning you have to leave.

By the way, I have observed that people living in mansions wander around aimlessly, just as do people living in regular average neighborhoods.

Oh yeah, Jennifer Lawrence had a few airhead moments last night and admitted she has basically schooled herself, an herself whose success is largely built on her ability to convey emotions. This makes her an ideal spokesperson for the left -- emotion over knowledge.

From what I have been seeing in Spring Training, the idea of speeding up games doesn’t seem to have caught on with the players.

Duh comment from giddy reporter on Olympics, Department:

“Half the US medal winners were women.” Duh. Half the US population are women.

When Uber was invented, it’s inventor told the world his company would reduce traffic in streets of cities. A new study shows that prediction about was about 180 degrees off. Since ride sharing, people have stopped using public transportation, bicycles and walking. Uber drivers are everywhere and stop anywhere to pick up people. And overall congestion is way up.

The Answer:

Louisville University, now with 15,000 students on a 350 acre campus, was the very first city owned University way back in 1798, 6 years after Kentucky was admitted to the union.

This week began with a super celebration of a super human competition. The extravaganza had many imaginative super moments, but slowed, like many of these over-the-top shows, when pop star performers get involved.

The week ends with a new month that typically promises a glimpse of spring which rarely materializes. But that’s life. Often luxury upgrades are only brief moments.