We have always been at war with Eastasia*

U.S. needs to work with Europe to slow China’s innovation rate, Raimondo says

*Yes you have heard that line before / It's from Orwell's 1984.

And take the Cubs with you

Go, Bears! No, really, just go. Saying goodbye to the team isn’t so hard to do.

Wherever the Bears play, they’ll still be the source of endless exasperation, unfounded optimism, sporadic excitement, occasional inspiration — and three wasted hours on fall weekends.

But they can't call themselves Monsters of the Midway if they're playing in the 'burbs.

And if they build themselves one of those fancy-schmantzy stadiums with a roof on it, Bears fans will have to go to Wisconsin for their annual frostbite.

Unless, of course the Packers…. 

Wait. Green Bay doesn't have suburbs, does it? 

(Chicago's Soldier Field is 900 miles away from where I live, so they can play in a big TV studio* for all I care, myself. But still.)

(*Like last year.)

Wait…you ate the champ?

Catfish eaten before being verified can’t qualify for record

Connecticut Fish and Wildlife wrote in a Facebook post on Monday that because it was not able to examine the actual fish, authorities cannot confirm it was a white catfish.

These guys…

…the closest fast food joint to where I live, can't get enough help to keep their dining room open. It's been drive-thru only for a week now.

The very best of news

Congress passes bill to avert partial government shutdown

The end of the world has been partially postponed until December 3.

Have a nice day.

Maybe we need some brighter bulbs in the DC chandelier

“The idea that you're going to have a Democratic-driven [social] infrastructure package that doesn't take a pound of flesh out of the pharma sector, to me, is laughable,” a Republican health care lobbyist told POLITICO. “But how big a pound of flesh that will be is a function of how powerful the pharma sector is.”

I'm for smaller pounds myself but that's another matter altogether.

[From a Politico story in Apple News https://apple.news/A-vaT7eCzRbetTqx5bA5qaQ]

Picky, picky

Don’t Believe Democrats When They Say a $3.5T Bill Costs Nothing.

The fact is that spending money is by definition spending money.

In your eye, beholder

Danish artist makes off with pile of cash intended to be art

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A Danish artist who was was given a pile of money by a museum with which to create a piece of artwork, submitted two empty canvases — titled “Take the Money and Run.”

The longest year

The AP Interview: Capitol Police chief sees rising threats

He predicts authorities will respond to close to 9,000 threats against members of Congress in 2021 — more than 4,100 had been reported from January to March.

Next time they do this show…

 …it'll have to be "The Amazon Truck."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8LHlJSBkg0

[AUDIO]

If this doesn't give you pause…

It'll at least keep you awake.

Aggravated Mopery

Climate Protesters Arrested After Chaining Themselves To Boat Outside Gov. Charlie Baker’s Swampscott Home

Six people who were chained to the boat and a seventh who was on top of it were all arrested. There’s no word yet on what the charges will be.

An unforced walk

 I was halfway to the end of the block, on my way to the store (yes, the store) when I realized I didn't have a mask with me (yes, that, again). Without one, I couldn't go into the store, or into anywhere else. But I couldn't bring myself to just turn around and go back home so I walked around the block first. 

Somehow, it seems more difficult this time. There is no state-wide ruling on wearing masks, but just about every city of any size in the state has come up with its own. Who knows if they're alike.

There is also a great deal of confusion about booster shots—who gets what when, and why. I was advised by my clinic, however, that the best time to get a flu shot is during the first and or second week in October. So there's that.

In any event we will muddle through. We are, here, if nothing else, well behaved.

We are also not sick.

It's not just "them"

How the US vaccine effort derailed and why we shouldn’t be surprised

"Americans with healthy behaviors or those who are white, insured, college-educated, or in upper-income groups appear to be in worse health than similar groups in comparison countries."

[This story also features a picture of the Gadsden flag described, in a caption, as "a yellow flag with a snake."]

Rowdy Norwegians

Rowdy celebrations erupt in Norway as COVID restrictions end

Rowdy celebrations by hundreds of citizens across Norway started Saturday afternoon and lasted until the early hours of Sunday. Police said unrest was reported in several places, including in the southern city of Bergen and the central city of Trondheim, but the situation was the worst in Oslo.

Now there's something we haven't thought about since, well, the Vikings, I guess. 

The running of the bulls is once a year…

The Government Gave Free PPP Money to Public Companies Despite Warning Them Not to Apply

But the SBA declined to provide evidence of how it is evaluating whether public applicants were honest when they said their loans were “necessary.” Experts say that’s because lawmakers offered no specifics on what they meant by “necessary” from the outset, leaving the program’s administrators with no objective basis on which to demand repayment.

…but the passing of the buck is forever.