Hi everyone,

How are you?  Our crew is doing fine at the moment.  Unfortunately, I struck out at the bookstore yesterday.  We still have the option of buying the final installment in the trilogy that BDH and Little Buddha were reading a few weeks ago.  However,  I'd like to hold off on that one for a little while longer.  Oh well, maybe we'll find something next week.

The guys just gave me the newest to-do list, and it starts with checking out the headlines with all of you, so let's get to work.  There's a fresh pot of coffee on the counter, so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Wednesday Clutter.

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Former first lady Michelle Obama electrified the crowd at the Democratic National Convention last night.  One of the most popular figures in the Democratic Party, Michelle Obama spoke of the excitement and optimism of a future Harris - Walz administration while also systematically dismantling Donald Trump.  It's easy to understand why so many have wondered if she might run for president herself someday. 

Her speech, followed by her husband's, showed this nomination is a changing of the guard for Democrats.  Vice President Kamala Harris has the potential to break the glass ceiling while also reshaping this country's political landscape.  These times call for a new approach that escapes once and for all from the strategies of the 20th century.   However, that will all be moot if Vice President Harris and Governor Tim Walz fall short in November.  Their momentum is significant, and still growing, but this race isn't over yet.  Nothing can be taken for granted.

Michelle Obama crushed it on Tuesday night.  (pic via uk.news.yahoo.com)

Former Trump press secretary Stephanie Grisham appeared at the convention last night, and she pulled no punches about her former boss, saying,

"(W)hen the cameras were off … Trump mocks his supporters. He calls them basement dwellers. On a hospital visit one time when people were dying in the ICU, he was mad that the cameras were not watching him.”

Grisham went on to endorse the Harris - Walz ticket.  This is a woman who was a true Trump believer, but after seeing him in action, seeing the complete lack of basic human decency, said, "No thanks.  I'll take the Democrats." 

Most people didn't know much/anything about Governor Tim Walz and Senator JD Vance before the past few weeks.  However, Governor Walz has a significantly higher approval rating than his Republican counterpart so far, which is likely due to the fact that he's not some weirdo who seems to loathe women with every inch of his being.

Montana will now become the 8th state to vote on protecting abortion rights in November.  We're seeing it time and time again since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade:  Americans want Republicans to mind their own business and stop trying to control private health care decisions.  The concept of freedom is meaningless if it doesn't include bodily autonomy.  The extremist anti-choice movement is out of touch with the majority of Americans, and folks are pushing back.

BDH and Little Buddha want to make sure you know about Dr. Brian Rambarran, a man who flies his own plane to transport rescue dogs.  Trust the guys, you'll want to click on the link, if only just to see the first picture.  Cheers, Doctor Rambarran.

The latest interest rate prediction is three quarter-point cuts between now and the end of the year.  We wouldn't say economists have a great track record with these sorts of guesses, but it's always interesting to know what people are thinking.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Elon Musk's $44 billion acquisition of Twitter is, "the worst merger-finance deal for banks since the 2008-2009 financial crisis."  That's a shame.  We're not feeling much sympathy for anyone involved in this purchase.  Musk has done a terrible job with the platform since buying it in October 22, turning it into a soap box for Nazis and right-wing conspiracy theories.  He's driven advertisers away and is now resorting to suing them for their exits.  He, and everyone else with a financial stake in this deal, deserves to take a major hit on it.

Today's errands should bring us near the local Target store.  Maybe it's time to take a quick peek and see if any of the company's price cuts this summer might be helpful for us.  Can't immediately think of anything we need, but our crew does love a bargain.  A little browsing couldn't hurt, right?

A new study says eating just two slices of ham a day can increase your risk for type 2 diabetes by 15%.  It's long been established that processed foods and red meat are bad for you, but it's pretty jarring than you can risk your health by that much with so little effort.  We are more of a chicken/turkey office anyway, but keep an eye on your diets, folks.  We want you to stay with us for a long time to come.

The Boston Red Sox beat the Houston Astros 6-5 last night, led by outfielder Jarren Duran, who went 4 for 4 with a double, home run, two RBIs, and three runs.  Duran's stellar night saved Boston starter Nick Pivetta, who immediately lost an early 3-0 lead in the first inning of the game.  Pivetta's final line was five earned runs over just five innings, as the Sox continue to try to figure out how to keep their pitching from completely collapsing in the last few weeks of the season. 

The win means the Sox are back to 3 1/2 games behind the Kansas City Royals for the third AL Wild Card spot.  Give these guys all the credit in the world - they're playing meaningful baseball games in the back half of August.  Not a lot of people would have predicted that would happen this year.

Next up:  Cooper Criswell takes the mound for Boston this afternoon as they try to win this series against the Astros.

NFL teams are supposed to be cutting down their rosters soon, but the New England Patriots went in the other direction yesterday, claiming wide receiver Matt Landers off waivers and signing defenders Kobe Jones and Christian McCarroll.  These moves all feel like the Patriots are still just looking for more bodies right now, so we're not expecting much from any of these guys.   The current official over/under on New England wins is 4.5 this season, and we still can't figure out which side of that bet we'd take.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa recently called former head coach Brian Flores, "a terrible person" who did nothing but tear him down in his first two years in the NFL.  Flores, who is now the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator, appeared to take responsibility for his actions during a press conference yesterday, saying,

"I'm always going to correct. I'm always going to have a high standard. And I think, look, I've done a lot of reflecting on the situation, reflecting on the situation and communication. I think there's things that I could do better for sure, and I've grown in that way, and I've tried to apply the things that I could do better and the things that I've learned over the last two, three years."

From an outsider's perspective, it seems like this story reflects an overall evolution in coaching in the NFL.  You can't really get away with the old-school/coach-as-dictator approach anymore (which is a good thing.)  That "tough love" notion really doesn't it cut it these days, and more players feel comfortable standing up for themselves now.  Hopefully Tagovailoa and Flores will be able to have a face-to-face conversation about their poor relationship at some point.

Jennifer Lopez reportedly filed for divorce from Ben Affleck yesterday after being married for exactly two years.  We will all get through these tough times together, gang. 

We'll start getting more use out of our Disney+/Hulu bundle again soon, with the new season of Only Murders in the Building starting on Hulu on August 27, and Agatha All Along premiering on Disney+ on September 18.  Here's a list of everything coming to the two streaming platforms in September.  Is there anything else you think we need to watch? 

So, we just stumbled across this trailer for the new movie, The Wild Robot, and holy cuteness, Batman.  BDH and Little Buddha already asked if we can watch it when it eventually comes to Disney+.  See for yourself:

Michael Keaton played Batman in the shelved Batgirl movie, but he's not upset that the completed movie was killed for a tax write-off.  The man got paid, and that's the important thing for him.

Actress Katherine Renee Kane's statement about her upcoming departure from FBI is short.  All she had to say was, "It was time to look towards new creative endeavors. I’m excited for the future and wish the show all the best."  This sounds like a bad departure.  Until someone says otherwise, our money is on the actress being unhappy that Special Agent Tiffany Wallace was basically the only primary character on the show without a personal life. 

TVLine.com talked to Kyle Schmid about turning into Mike Franks for the new NCIS: Origins series.  We're looking forward to seeing this show, which premieres on CBS on October 14.  There's a lot of interesting ground to cover in Leroy Jethro Gibbs' early days as an agent.

The cast has started reading the scripts for the upcoming Doctor Who spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea.  The five-part miniseries will feature the Sea Devils, characters who don't exactly pull us in front of the TV.  However, we have to see anything and everything Doctor Who boss Russell T. Davies has in mind for an expanded Whoniverse.  The miniseries will be directed by Dylan Holmes-Williams, who was in charge of this season's "73 Yards" and "Dot and Bubble" episodes.  We enjoyed both of those, so maybe we'll enjoy this.  Who knows?

The trailer is out for for Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal, which comes to Paramount+ on September 17.  We love all things hair metal.  If we already had the streaming service, we'd be all over this miniseries, even if we've probably already heard most of these stories countless times:

Oh, we don't care for this at all:  Rock 92.9 is being replaced by Bloomberg Radio on September 3, while the music gets bumped to 106.1 FM.  Hopefully we get the new station in the car, because Rock 92.9 always provides a fun soundtrack for road trips.  On the flip side, the Clutter investment team might learn some new things from Bloomberg.  However, everyone on our staff would rather listen to AC/DC while we drive.

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  Here's Taylor Swift to close things out with her new single, "I Can Do it With a Broken Heart" for today's, "Song of the Day."

That was a fun backstage look at what goes into staging her epic concerts.

Thanks for stopping by, folks.  It was great to see you, as always.  Enjoy the rest of your day, be good, 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.