Bias is Bias.

Today's Tids Issue 4,538

Sins of Selectivity: 

No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens. –Abe Lincoln.

Yesterday Americans learned that highly regarded credentials do not obscure inherent bias.

Just at the time when golf starts appearing again in sports pages, the courses in the north begin closing for the season. That just makes watching or reading about golf that much more painful.

“If A is success in life, then A is equal to X plus Y plus Z. Work is X, Play Is Y and Z – is keeping your mouth shut.”  --Albert Einstein

The Question:

What was Little Richard’s greatest hit?

The Headlines:

--Stocks Open Lower And Stay Sluggish After Conflicting Comments On Trade.

--Pelosi Calls On House To Draft Impeachment Charges; Latest Sign That Impeachment Is On Fast Track.

--GM To Join LG In EV Battery Manufacturing Venture In US; GM CEO Bauer Says Layoffs At Hamtramck Plant Is Preparation For All Electric Future.

--Supply Management Index On Service Sector Activity Drops To 53.9 From 54.7 (50.0 is Economic Line In Sand); Significant Slowing In Payroll Gowri Also Adds To Signs Of Slowing Economy; Both Signs That Trade War Is Dampening Economy..

--In Hearings; Karlans Bad Joke Takes Spotlight Off Of Opinions From Testimony From Dem 3; 3 Dem Expert Law Witnesses Agree That Trump Charges Rise to Impeachment; Jonathon Turley Says Dem Evidence Woefully Inadequate”; Turley Seen As Mostly Against Casual Impeachment For Any President.

--France Hit By Massive Strike Over Pensions.

--Buttigieg Black Support Rally Interrupted By Black Lives Matter Protestors.

--Hillary Tells Howard Stern, “I Actually Like Men.”

--3 Leading Obama Officials Jump On Pete’s Bandwagon; Reggie Love, Austan Goolsbee and Linda Douglass All Say Buttigieg Is Ok.

In one of those doctors’ columns yesterday, a guy complained that he repeatedly gets colds and flu like symptoms. He says he does everything right – taking “Vitamin C, Garlic and Oil of Oregano.” He says, “The only thing that I can think of that couold have caused this susceptibility must have been “Stressful Childhood”. The doctor replies, “The flu is a serious virus. Get a flu shot.” I think that says it all about a lot of things that seem incoherent today.

The ole’ NFL pickers had a decent week that kept our heads above water. We are now at 126-63-1 (67%). This could be one of the toughest picking weeks of the year – it’s either undeceiving teams against similar underachieving teams, bad teams against bad teams or the best teams against the best teams. Lot’s of games that could go either way. Tonight, is a classic underachieving matchup -- Dallas against Chicago in Chi. I have to pick Dallas, but I’m not comfortable with that. Actually, there were a couple of games I could pick easily – Green Bay over the Skins for sure and perhaps Minn over Detroit and Cleveland over instate rival Cinn (Who awoke last week. Are they still there?) TB has been showing up better lately and Indy has shown us some flaws so I go TB. I like Houston to take care of Den which is better than its record. I’ll take hapless Atlanta over hapless Carolina. Mami is coming to life and the Jets flopped against Cinn. Who knows? I’ll go home team Jets. Some other “who knows” are Jax vs LAC and I’ll take the Chargers; Pitt versus Arizona and I’ll take the Steelers; Giants against Iggles and I’ll take Iggles.

Ok, now for the big, most meaningful contests. First is San Fran at New Orleans. SF should be better there than last week in the rains. But NO is tough at home. This is tough, but I’ll pick The Saints. How about Mighty Baltimore against the resourceful, now 9-3 Bills. Skeptics are waking up to the Bills, but I think the Ravens are looking like a machine. I have to stay with them. Tennessee is looking much better, but Oakland has shown it can be tough and they are at home. I like The Titans. Seattle and LA Rams is part of that big battle for the NFC West that also includes SF. The Rams showed up last week, but I still like Seattle. And then there is KC and their speed against an increasingly sluggish looking Patriots.  Don’t think KC is as good as they were last year, which gives my beloveds a chance. This will be the week that the offense surprises. That was a tough line up of games.

Scott Adams makes me laugh every morning. The Dilbert strip just hits it every day. But Adams said he lost 30% of his income and 75% of his friends when he announced he supported Donald Trump. Friends? He says he sees people today who are fearful of speaking out loud about their loyalties. And, he blames Social media and the “Clickbait" Business model that rewards sensationalism over fact-based reporting. And, he has solutions too. Societies change over time and we certainly are in one of those significant changeovers today. In the past, he goes on, we have always adjusted, issued new rules of manners, and we need to do it now. First, he says we need the “48 Hour” rule” enabling people to retract stupidity without being held in cultural outcast prison forever. And we need to accept apologies. And he likes the “20 year” rule which states “That everyone should be automatically forgiven for any mistakes they made more than two decades ago” (Except of course certain serious crimes). A big problem today is that mindless remarks and embarrassing gaffs that used to fade away live forever on social media. People do get kinder and wiser, but in this new era black stains seem to follow relentlessly.

“I was such an ugly kid. When I played in the sandbox the cat kept trying to cover me up.” Rodney Dangerfield.

I wonder if Rodney ever tweeted that he found his humor insulting.

A New York Times self-professed Progressive columnist, Nicolas Kristof, says that “we journalists are a bit like vultures feasting on war, scandal and disaster.  He says, “Yes, that reflects a selection biason how we report the news. We cover planes crashing but not planes that take off.” Selection bias happens every day in reporting on this current administration. The journalists seem to fear pointing out things that he does well, lest it brightens the dark picture they are painting.

The bottom five in the NFL power ratings going into week 14 are  # 32 Washington, Cinncy, Giants, Miami and Jets. The Top Ten are  Baltimore, San Fran, Seattle, New Orleans, New England, Kansas City, Green Bay, Minnesota, Houston and Buffalo.

People throughout history have always been offended by something. Modern technology just lets everybody else know it. And frankly, it just doesn’t’ contribute much of anything to the possibility of harmony.

The Answer:

Little became a household name (Except to parents) in 1955 with “Tutti-Frutti”..  Other isn is top list are, “Long Tall Sally” “Good Golly Miss Molly”,  Slippin’  and Slidin’,  “Rip it Up”, “Lucille”, and “Jenny, Jenny” and “The Girl can’t help It”.

Laughter is like a windshield wiper. It won’t stop the rain but it will allow you to keep going.