Tuesday Clutter: Michelle Obama, AOC, USPS Crisis, Boston Red Sox, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, Supernatural Returns, the Eagles, and more
08/18/2020
Hi everyone,
Welcome back! How are you? It's Tuesday, and of course that means one thing around here - the weekly trip to the bookstore to check out the new releases! BDH and Little Buddha say no pressure or anything, but they're really hoping I can find them something new to read this week. Yeah, no pressure. Anyway, fingers crossed. It looks like it rained here last night, so I'm not sure if the garden needs to be watered, but we'll check that out later. Now, let's take a peek at the headlines. The guys made coffee, so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Clutter.
The Democratic National Convention kicked off last night as Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris move closer to becoming the party's official ticket. There are many reasons to vote against Donald Trump in November, but we lean towards former first lady Michelle Obama's argument that Trump is the morally wrong choice for the United States. We can and must do better:
"He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us," she said, before invoking Trump's callous' response when asked about lives lost from coronavirus in this country: "It is what it is."
(You can read Michelle Obama's full speech here.)
Michelle Obama launched a direct attack on Donald Trump last night. (pic via tribuneindia.com)
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is one of tonight's convention speakers, but it is dismaying that she was only given one minute to speak. This woman is one of the biggest young progressive leaders in the nation, and she represents the Democratic Party's future. Not giving her more airtime reflects a disconnect between party leaders and the younger and more diverse voters Democrats need for success in November.
While Democrats urge voters to make the right moral decision in November, Republicans plan to have the St. Louis couple who aimed their guns at Black Lives Matter protesters earlier this summer speak at their convention next week. That sounds about right. Patricia and Mark McCloskey were charged with a felony for their actions, but we all know the last thing the MAGA crowd cares about is following the law.
There have been over 170,000 coronavirus-related deaths in the United States, and now Donald Trump is promoting another crackpot treatment, with no evidence that it works. The question that must be asked is, what is Trump's financial stake in Phoenix Biotechnology, the biotech company apparently working on something that involves the oleander plant? There's only one thing that motivates Trump, and it certainly isn't American interests.
A new study indicates there may be a link between the coronavirus and the onset of type 1 diabetes in children, because we didn't already have enough to be concerned about here.
The House is cutting its recess short to deal with the current U.S. Postal Service crisis. There will be a vote next Saturday on a bill to block further changes at the agency, as well as provide $25 billion in emergency funding. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy will testify before a House committee on Monday, and now Donald Trump is trying to pretend he hasn't been attacking the USPS for months. Apparently someone realized what a stupid move this was, even with just his own base. Seems Trump might have forgotten that his voters also need the prescriptions and other benefits they receive through the mail.
The stock market is on the verge of setting a new all-time high as we're still in the middle of a pandemic, but CEO's and other insiders are cashing out. The Clutter investment team thinks this means these guys know this rally isn't sustainable. The team is confident their portfolio still makes sense, but they're encouraging us to take another look at the monthly budget to find possible ways to reduce expenses if things go south again.
Let's get this over with: The Boston Red Sox lost 6-3 to the New York Yankees last night to fall to 6-17 on the "season." The Sox have now lost eight straight games. They can only hope a change of scenery will do them some good, as they start a series against the Philadelphia Phillies at home tonight. Zach Godley will take the mound for Boston. The good news is that the team's luxury tax resets two weeks from today, because that's the only reward fans are getting in 2020.
At least the Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins each won their playoff games last night.
The Washington Football Team is in the news again, and it's not a negative story for once. The team hired Jason Wright to be their president, which makes the 38-year-old former running back the first black team president in NFL history. We wish Wright the best of luck, because dealing with team owner Daniel Snyder isn't something we would wish on anyone.
Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston are part of a star-studded charity table read of Fast Times at Ridgemont High that's taking place this coming Friday. The cast also includes Jimmy Kimmel, Morgan Freeman, Julia Roberts, among others, and yes, Jeff Spicoli himself, Sean Penn will be there. That alone is enough to get us to watch on Facebook Live. The event is a fundraiser for two charities - one that's helping people deal with the pandemic, and one that focuses on criminal justice reform.
Big news, Supernatural fans: The CW announced yesterday that the show's final run of episodes will begin airing on Thursday, October 8. That means the series finale will be on November 19, so you have some time to prepare yourself for the end of the road.
However, that's not all we have for you. Everyone knows that Jared Padalecki is moving on to the Walker, Texas Ranger reboot when Supernatural is finished. Now, it's been announced that Jensen Ackles is joining the cast for season 3 of The Boys, where he'll star as Soldier Boy, the world's first original superhero. We haven't read the comic books that this show is based on, but we have no doubt that Ackles will be a perfect addition to the cast. Now we just have to find out what Misha Collins has lined up for his next gig. Hopefully it's a job that will be easier on his vocal cords.
Three senior producers of The Ellen DeGeneres Show have been fired, as the fallout from the scandal around the show's alleged hostile environment continues to grow. Is this the end of the story, or will accusations continue to come out about the host's alleged behavior?
Two men have been indicted in the 2002 murder of Run DMC's Jam Master Jay. There haven't been a lot of details released yet, but we're interested to hear what took so long, especially when the linked article says one of the men has been under suspicion for the past 13 years.
Wolfgang Van Halen seems to be more focused on fights with trolls on Twitter rather than releasing his debut album. That doesn't feel like a promising sign for the 29-year-old musician's solo career.
Okay kids, that's going to do it for now. It's still only mid-August, but we can't help noticing that fall is approaching, so here's Don Henley and the rest of the Eagles to close things out with, "The Boys of Summer," for today's, "Song of the Day."
Thanks for stopping by, everyone. It's always a treat to see you. Be good, wear your masks, and we'll catch up with you again soon. Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.
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