NATIONAL DRESS UP YOUR PET DAY UPDATES
Which For Most Of The Country Means, Bundle The Critter Up!
-It's cold in most of the United States - especially in Iowa, where they are preparing for the first official act of the 2024 Presidential election: the Iowa Caucuses, expected to be the coldest in history. And things there are ... weird.
-Of course, Ex-President Trump XCI is in the lead, getting anywhere from 48% to 68% of the vote, depending on which network you are watching. And he is apparently working to win, at least to a point - reports are there have been several events cancelled due to (officially) cold weather or mourning for his mother-in-law (suppress laughter) (or unofficially, continued small crowds in small venues), but there is a get-out-the-vote organization working for Trump, with the Trump campaign (or wherever he's getting the money) laying out the money for 1700 white-and-gold-leaf caps with TRUMP CAUCUS CAPTAIN subtly scrawled in front (since caucusing literally involves gathering around people in gyms and living rooms) to try to create a big win.
-There is also negative campaigning, with already-also-rans Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis working to get second place heading into the first actual primary in New Hampshire, and Trump himself going after loudmouth still-in-the-primary Vivek Ramaswamy - this despite Vivek being one of the biggest Trump remoras running in the campaign. Vivek, true to ignoring the dictums that (1) everything Trump touches dies and (2) Trump always demands full loyalty to him but reserves the right to stab anyone and everyone in the back that doesn't have a name that rhymes with Pladimir Vutin, refused to counterattack.
-Trump's fear in relation to Vivek is that his internal polling may have some weaknesses and therefore is being told there are Trump votes among Vivek participants, and that makes sense - NBC and The Hill report polling of Iowa supporters of Nikki Haley shows half of them are more likely to vote for President Biden than Trump this November, and Haley has been attacked as a "birdbrain" by the ever-a-4th-grade "wit" of Trump.
-The entire Iowa caucuses are potentially so uninteresting it may allow ESPN's Philadelphia/Tampa Bay Manning-Cast playoff game to get bigger ratings than coverage of how much Trump wins - er, I mean, the results of the statistically-insignificant Iowa Caucuses.
-In much more serious news, a woman and two children died while trying to cross the Rio Grande River this weekend - and they died in large part (according to reporting) because the Texas National Guard, under orders from Governor Greg Abbott, "physically barred" Border Patrol officers at the scene from attempting to save the migrants. The move continues Abbott's savage anti-immigrant policies, which includes using private airplanes and buses to ship immigrants to cities including New York City and Chicago (creating an immigrant crisis in those cities as a direct result) and continuing to try to stop water crossings by using floats surrounded by razor wire (with the state fighting, so far successfully, to keep the floats in place). The most Democrats have done officially in response, specifically IL Governor J.B. Pritzker, was to plead to Abbott to stop the flow - a plea Abbott, a monster who himself is in a wheelchair, will likely laugh at.
-The note about Democrats only pleading is a bit unfair - in fact, negotiations that started last November to update and bolster border security have been taking place in the Senate, with some terms (in particular a program that would use electronic bracelets to track immigrants known as Family Expedited Removal Management (FERM)) offensive to Biden supporters - appear close to agreement. The problem is that the UltraMAGA House is attempting to manipulate House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Jay-EE-zuz!, LA) to reject any and all such deals in this legislative session, preferring to bolster Abbott's actions and loudly call Biden and Democrats anti-immigration with the rejection. There is even some doubt that another extension of negotiations for spending in the entire government into March will be voted on, with Trump demanding the UltraMAGAts to shut the government down in order to, again, blame Biden and the Democrats for the havoc such a move would follow. Stay tuned this week ...
-This writer wishes the best of health to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who is resting at Walter Reed Medical Center after an operation to treat prostate cancer and an infection that developed kept him hospitalized since around Christmas. You may not have heard of his health scare (his prognosis is reportedly good) - but neither did President Biden until days after the infection and operation developed. Most in the Department of Justice did not hear of Austin's health issues, either, and it is raising concerns about everything from communication to health to transparency throughout the Pentagon, a place with some historical issues with open reporting and reporting that was not supposed to happen happening anyway.
-We close with candy news - because why not? But, again, it may be sad news to many ...
-Ferrara, the Chicago-based candy company, announced this week it is retiring Fruit Stripe Gum. The favorite, which first came to the market from Beech-Nut in 1960, was one of those gums that was so juicy and bright you had to take care not to swallow it as you chewed. (At least this writer had to watch!) Packs are reportedly now getting $30 a package as they leave shelves, so if you want to have a collector's item of the multi-colored stripes and its zebra mascot (whose name is Yipes!), you best get a move on and grab some!
-On this date in 1784, the Continental Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris, in which Britain formally recognized the independence of the United States. On this date in 1942, Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Presidential Proclamation 2357, which created internment camps for Japanese-Americans. On this date in 1943, FDR became the first President to travel by airplane on official government business. On this date in 1970, Diana Ross and the Supremes performed for the final time together. On this date in 1973, the Miami Dolphins ended what is still the only perfect season in NFL history, beating Washington 14-7 to win Super Bowl VII and end with a 14-0 record in a 12-game regular season.
-Notable premieres: TOSCA (1900), THE TODAY SHOW (1952), Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe's marriage (1954), THE BIONIC WOMAN (1976).
-Happy Birthday to Albert Schweitzer, John dos Passos, William Bendix, Harold Russell, Mark Goodson, Andy Rooney, Gerald Arpino, Don Garlits, Allen Toussaint, Jack Jones, Julian Bond, Faye Dunaway, Holland Taylor, Marjoe Gortner, Nina Totenberg, Carl Weathers, T-Bone Burnett, Lawrence Kasdan, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Steven Soderbergh, Mark Addy, Shepard Smith, Emily Watson, Zakk Wylde, LL Cool J, Dave Grohl, Jason Bateman, Byron Leftwich, and Declan Rice.
-Rest in Peace/Rest in Power to Edmond Halley, Lewis Carroll, Humphrey Bogart, Jeanette McDonald, Anais Nin, Peter Finch, Brooks Atkinson, Ray Kroc, Donna Reed, Jerzy Grotowski, Ron O'Neal, Uta Hagen, Shelley Winters, Ricardo Montalban, Conrad Bain, Mae Young, Alan Rickman, and Hugh Wilson.
-Feed the Worms: arguably the second-worst traitor in American history, Benedict Arnold, entered Earth on this date.
-Treacly self-satisfied New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd was born on this date. You decide if she gets a Happy Birthday or if she Feeds the Worms.
-The Number One Album In America on this date ... in 2024, 1989 (TAYLOR'S VERSION) by Taylor Swift ... in 2014, BEYONCE by Beyonce ... in 2004, SPEAKERBOXXX/THE LOVE BELOW by OutKast ... in 1994, DOGGYSTYLE by Snoop Dogg ... in 1984, THRILLER by Michael Jackson ... and in 1974, YOU DON'T MESS AROUND WITH JIM by Jim Croce.