96-year old Queen Elizabeth II is dead, long live 73-year old King Charles III.  She reigned for 70 years. An   accession council   of over 700 citizens, including Prime Minister Lizz Truss, voted to proclaim him king.  Did you see Charles shaking hands and getting kissed by some lady?  No one was wearing a mask.  The actual coronation will not take place for months.  Queen Elizabeth II was so honored 16 months after King George VI went.   Longest reigning monarch today is now Hassanal Bolkiah of  Brunei .  He is 76-years old and is soon to reach 55 years in his leadership.  How many of you have been to Brunei?   It is located on the north coast of Borneo in Southeast Asia.  Has a population of just under half a million.  Gained independence from Britain in 1984.  Has vast oil and gas fields, and is next to Singapore in the Human Development Index.  Government has zero public debt. Whether at the national or international level, I long wondered who was the greatest diplomat to engender

                   From  Worldometer  (new  COVID-19 deaths yesterday):           DAY     USA    WORLD      Brazil      India      South Africa June     9     1093     4732         1185        246       82 July    22      1205     7128         1293      1120     572 Aug    12      1504     6556        1242        835     130 Sept     9      1208      6222       1136       1168       82 Oct     21      1225      6849         571        703       85 Nov    25       2304    12025        620        518      118 Dec     30       3880    14748       1224       299      465 Jan      14       4142      15512        1151        189      712 Feb      3       4005    14265       1209       107      398 Mar      2       1989     9490        1726       110      194 April     6        906    11787         4211       631       37 May     4        853     13667        3025      3786     59   June    1        287    10637         2346      3205      95  July    7         251      8440        1595