What are we going to do with today that we didn’t do yesterday? To be honest, I don’t know. I’m still congested, running the slightest fever, and feeling like shit on a stick. The kids did get up and off to school. I can verify that they’re both dressed. Beyond that, we didn’t talk much. Belvedere wants me to go back to bed. He presents an alluring argument: snuggles. I’m likely to accept his offer.
The biggest news locally this morning is that Terre Haute school janitor, Richard Goodall, won America’s Got Talent last night. His final performance on the show was a recap of his audition song, “Don’t Stop Believing” but this time with members of Journey accompanying him. Whether he’ll return to his janitorial job, he hasn’t said. At 54 years old, breaking into a music career would be difficult even with all the attention of the show. All of Indiana is claiming him as their winner, though, and I’m sure the newlywed couldn’t be happier.
Another big story that’s resonating broadly is former QB Brett Favre’s almost off-handed admission yesterday that he has Parkinson’s Disease. The cause of Parkinson’s is unknown, making it inappropriate to blame Favre’s ailment on his football career, but it’s difficult to imagine that all those years of rough treatment at the hands of defensive linemen didn’t have some negative impact. This will almost certainly spur more concerning discussions about the long-term effects of concussions in football.
The Department of Justice sued Visa, alleging that the card issuer monopolizes debit card markets. This is going to be a tough charge for Visa to dodge. They have such a huge majority of debit cards that some stores, such as Costco, have made Visa their exclusive form of credit card payment. The net effect for consumers is likely to be an increase in card fees in response to whatever fine the company has to pay.
In a massive overstep of power and misinterpretation of the First Amendment, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor, of Bismarck, North Dakota, granted a preliminary injunction Monday, ruling that the Catholic Benefits Association and the Diocese of Bismarck were likely to succeed in proving that a final rule adopted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in April violated their freedom of religion. The regulations are meant to enforce the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. This is an unmitigated disaster. To claim that religious beliefs are more important than basic human rights is unconscionable. Yet, here we are. Protests should be forthcoming.
There’s not really anything else that motivates me enough to include this morning. There are too many stories where the status quo simply continues from one day to the next. Until someone, somewhere, actually does something to change those situations, there’s not much point prattling on about them.
By the way, deadlines for registering to vote in this year’s election are coming up fast in several states. I can’t imagine that anyone reading this isn’t registered, but if you’re not, get to it.
The dogs have left me just enough space to squeeze into bed between them. Frank keeps turning off my desk lamp. I think that’s a pretty good sign of what I need to do. I’m going back to bed.
What are we going to do with today that we didn’t do yesterday? To be honest, I don’t know. I’m still congested, running the slightest fever, and feeling like shit on a stick. The kids did get up and off to school. I can verify that they’re both dressed. Beyond that, we didn’t talk much. Belvedere wants me to go back to bed. He presents an alluring argument: snuggles. I’m likely to accept his offer.
The biggest news locally this morning is that Terre Haute school janitor, Richard Goodall, won America’s Got Talent last night. His final performance on the show was a recap of his audition song, “Don’t Stop Believing” but this time with members of Journey accompanying him. Whether he’ll return to his janitorial job, he hasn’t said. At 54 years old, breaking into a music career would be difficult even with all the attention of the show. All of Indiana is claiming him as their winner, though, and I’m sure the newlywed couldn’t be happier.
Another big story that’s resonating broadly is former QB Brett Favre’s almost off-handed admission yesterday that he has Parkinson’s Disease. The cause of Parkinson’s is unknown, making it inappropriate to blame Favre’s ailment on his football career, but it’s difficult to imagine that all those years of rough treatment at the hands of defensive linemen didn’t have some negative impact. This will almost certainly spur more concerning discussions about the long-term effects of concussions in football.
The Department of Justice sued Visa, alleging that the card issuer monopolizes debit card markets. This is going to be a tough charge for Visa to dodge. They have such a huge majority of debit cards that some stores, such as Costco, have made Visa their exclusive form of credit card payment. The net effect for consumers is likely to be an increase in card fees in response to whatever fine the company has to pay.
In a massive overstep of power and misinterpretation of the First Amendment, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor, of Bismarck, North Dakota, granted a preliminary injunction Monday, ruling that the Catholic Benefits Association and the Diocese of Bismarck were likely to succeed in proving that a final rule adopted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in April violated their freedom of religion. The regulations are meant to enforce the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. This is an unmitigated disaster. To claim that religious beliefs are more important than basic human rights is unconscionable. Yet, here we are. Protests should be forthcoming.
Hurricane warnings were issued in Florida as Tropical Storm Helene intensified. Don’t count this hurricane season as done just yet.
There’s not really anything else that motivates me enough to include this morning. There are too many stories where the status quo simply continues from one day to the next. Until someone, somewhere, actually does something to change those situations, there’s not much point prattling on about them.
By the way, deadlines for registering to vote in this year’s election are coming up fast in several states. I can’t imagine that anyone reading this isn’t registered, but if you’re not, get to it.
The dogs have left me just enough space to squeeze into bed between them. Frank keeps turning off my desk lamp. I think that’s a pretty good sign of what I need to do. I’m going back to bed.
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