Monday Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations

One thing about the modern Democratic Party that I don't understand is how the party leaders have seemingly chosen to favor teachers' unions over the labor and police unions. You would think the latter would represent a greater membership and more votes but I guess less of a chance to prove woke bona fides. Not a good strategy... Just a reminder that Roger Goodell and the NFL would like you to forget the forced firing of Jon Gruden, the investigation of the toxic workplace at the Washington Football Team, and the billion dollar lawsuit from the City of Saint Louis... It has been pointed out by most articles on last Tuesday's election that Terry McAuliffe was associated with the Clintons and that his defeat signals the final nail in the Clinton era. However, unlike the Clintons, Barack Obama directly campaigned for McAuliffe. What does that say about Obama's influence these days?... Georgia's football team is giving off the same vibes as the LSU team a couple years ago under Joe Burrow. Big difference is Georgia is doing this with an historic defense while LSU had an historic offense... Mackerel Smack would be a good name for a band (or perhaps Smack Mackerel would be a better name)... Do you have any idea what the worldwide demand of a movie called The Muppets Do Dallas would be if they used the original script and plot? Huge! Bigger than Avatar... Wonder if there's a single owner of a Tesla vehicle who doesn't also follow Elon Musk on Twitter?... If the Republicans take back the House of Representatives and the Senate in 2022 and the Presidency in 2024 - could the Democratic Party itself be facing RICO charges in 2025?... "Venture capital" was originally called "adventure capital" which is so much better in my opinion (Adventure Capital would also be a good name for a band)... What's today's equivalent of the hippy or counter culture? Serious question... Think it should be mandated that all high school English classes must include the teaching of both Orwell's 1984 and Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter.  The former to teach the signs of living under totalitarian government and the latter to teach about how wrong social shaming can be. Hope future generations do better at getting the meanings of those books better than the past few (including my own)...  Stoic philosopher William Irvine has what he terms "anti-mentors." These are people you don't want to emulate or have them praise your work. You could argue that JK Rowling may have had this in mind with her "dementors" - creatures who suck the good out of everything. You don’t want any dementors in your life... As always if this column has made you smile or think - don't be afraid to hit the like button. Also please subscribe and share with your friends. Thanks in advance...