Hi everyone,

Welcome back.  How are you?  Our crew had a nice day yesterday.  We managed to work in both a bike ride and some garden time.  Now, BDH and Little Buddha were just discussing how there's no getting around the fact that the sunrises are about an hour later than they used to be, so we can't use them for a natural alarm clock anymore.  What is this, September or something? 

I think today's to do-list is a little on the long side (including a trip to both the bookstore and library), so let's get to work.  The guys made coffee, so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Tuesday Clutter.

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If you would like to support us, we'd be thrilled if you'd consider buying us a cup of coffee here!

President Biden and Vice President Harris campaigned together in Pittsburgh on Labor Day to tout their administration's pro-worker agenda and highlight the threat posed to ordinary Americans by Donald Trump.  It was the first time the two of them made a joint public appearance since President Biden dropped out of the race in July.  It must have been such a challenge for President Biden to shift his mindset from candidate to supporter.  However, he understood the assignment and gave Vice President Harris the spotlight.

Fighting for the middle class.  (pic via pittnews.com)

Labor Day is traditionally the start of the fall political season, but apparently no one told Donald Trump, because he was MIA all day.  Maybe he's not sleeping well in anticipation of next week's debate.   He probably needed a nap.

Democratic strategist James Carville has some spot-on advice about how Vice President Kamala Harris can set Donald Trump up for failure when the two candidates debate next Tuesday.

A top Trump volunteer emailed supporters in New Hampshire to say the campaign believes the Granite State is no longer in play.  New Hampshire is a purple state these days.  However, as the linked article mentions, it's been over 20 years since the 603 went for a Republican presidential candidate, and given Vice President Harris' historic momentum, that streak looks likely to continue.

Donald Trump said in an interview on Fox News on Sunday that he had "every right" to interfere in the 2020 presidential election.  Since he's already admitted he did it, can we just skip ahead to the sentencing portion of this story?  The man believes he's above the law, and that can not be allowed to go unchallenged.  Trump can not be allowed anywhere near the White House again, for the sake of our country.

Good for the book publishers who are suing Florida over a book banning law which has seen the removal of many books from school libraries, simply because some right-wing extremists don't like them.  Parents who don't want their kids exposed to a wide variety of perspectives about different subjects are setting those children up for limited lives, all in pursuit of a political agenda.  That's bad enough, but these fanatics have no right to make those decisions for other students.  The law is a gross assault on the 1st Amendment, and it should be struck down.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to make it clear that he's acting more in his own interests than those of his country.  A defiant Netanyahu responded to a general strike in Israel, and criticism from President Biden that he's not doing enough to end the war with Hamas, by saying, "No one will preach to me on this issue."  However one feels about this complicated region, it's clear that the longer the war goes on, the longer Prime Minister Netanyahu is able to distract attention from his ongoing corruption trial, where he could face 10 years in prison.  He'll continue to do whatever it takes to avoid that sentence, no matter the cost.  According to the linked article, even his own defense minister thinks now is the time for a cease-fire. 

A Brazilian Supreme Court panel upheld one justice's ruling to block Twitter in the country until the platform hires local legal representation for its ongoing disputes with the courts and government.  On the one hand, a media ban is always concerning.  On the other, it's entertaining as hell to watch Elon Musk's promotion of right-wing/white supremacist propaganda and misinformation come back to bite him in such a large market. 

In other Twitter news, iOS users can now edit their DM's, thus finally joining the Android and web crowds.

This year's iPhones and other Apple products are scheduled to be unveiled next Monday, September 9.  It doesn't sound like there will be much of a difference in the actual phones over the current models, but everyone wants to know what Apple is thinking when it comes to A.I. these days.

According to this linked Bloomberg article, September is traditionally a terrible month for Wall Street.  Good to know.  The Clutter investment team will keep their expectations low, and if anyone decides to overreact to any bad news between now and October, our staff will be on the lookout for bargains.

The Boston Red Sox lost 4-1 to the New York Mets last night.  Boston's defense was sloppy, as they became the first team in the majors to reach 100 errors this season.  Meanwhile, the offense remains quiet.  Sox starter Brayan Bello struggled, giving up four runs in five innings, but when you go 1-4 with runners in scoring position, and give away outs to your opponent, the odds are good the night won't go your way. 

The loss leaves the 70-68 Red Sox 4.5 games behind the Kansas City Royals in the race for the final AL Wild Card spot.  That's especially frustrating, because the Royals are in the middle of a six-game losing streak, and the Sox haven't been able to take advantage of it.

Next up:  Kutter Crawford tries to get the Red Sox back on track when he takes the mound against the Mets tonight.

The New England Patriots already have enough to focus on before Sunday's season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals.  They don't need the distraction of rookie wide receiver Javon Baker going on an IG Live rant about a police officer giving him a ticket.  The team says Baker has been punished for the video, but he won't be held out on Sunday.  Presumably we're talking about a fine here.  Get it together, Baker.  Focus on showing you're an asset to the team.

Congratulations to the Boston College football team for stunning #10 Florida State 28-13 last night.

Oh geez, how did we forget that the Joey Chestnut - Takeru Kobayashi eating contest was streaming on Netflix yesterday?  Can't believe we missed the opportunity to watch Chestnut down a record 83 hot dogs.  (Simply writing that is giving us stomach aches.)  Only in America, friends.

The Apprentice, a movie about Donald Trump's early days, will reportedly be released in theaters on October 11.  We'll take a pass on that one, despite the fact that it's getting good reviews.  The short summary of the plot is that Trump's horrible father never loved him, and the country has been paying for it ever since.

Former Doctor Who star Matt Smith can't understand why anyone would attack the show as part of a culture war.  As the 11th Doctor so eloquently put it, "It's about an alien who is cool and travels around the universe saving civilisations – what's not to love?"  Exactly.  The show has always been "woke" throughout its 61-year history.  Anyone who is angry about that either doesn't actually watch the program, or they haven't been paying attention.

That escalated quickly:  Oasis fans had a bad time dealing with Ticketmaster's ridiculous "dynamic pricing" model last weekend, and now the BBC and others are asking if that damages the band's reputation.

The Cure are releasing two new tracks on October 1, which is the band's first new music since 2008.  The net profits are reportedly going to producer Brian Eno's climate charity.

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  Here's Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers to close things out with a remastered video for, "Straight into Darkness" for today's, "Song of the Day."

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.