First, yesterday President Joe Biden gave a talk about democracy in Arizona.  This was his most blistering attack yet of Donald Trump and his MAGA extremists.  Did you know that  Joe introduced John to Cindy , his wife? And speaking of Trump: His civil fraud trial trial in New York could begin as soon as this coming Monday.   Also, his pool of funds to pay legal bills for his cronies is running out.   Trump won't bother to even seek a transfer of his case from Georgia to a federal court. Finally, that House quagmire about the government shutdown tomorrow.  Looks like Keven McCarthy lost his battle to pass anything only with Republicans.  Democrats in the House say that if only 5 Republicans vote with them, all this nonsense can be avoided.  But if McCarthy makes that move, he will lose his speakership.  So be prepared for at a short shutdown.  Will this be terrible?  Nah.   The USA has had 21 of them over the past half a century .  Most of them end after a couple days.  The longest

  Some good news.  According to an article in   Forbes ,   both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines may offer years-long protection against COVID-19 , including variants.  Even mixing the two--one dose each--should be equivalently good.  There could be other vaccines with similar immunity power, but the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was not expected to be as durable. One more tidbit:   is Kim Jong-un on a diet or seriously ill?   At one time he was supposed to be 5'6" tall and more than 300 pounds.   When he took control nearly a decade ago at the age of 27, he was less than 200 pounds.  He proceeded to gain 14 pounds/year.  Not anymore.  He is said to be emaciated, putting his followers in despair.  Who will replace him?  Children too young.  He does have an older brother, and, of course, a sister, who is a lot more prominent, but said to be scared for her life. America's Got Talent is well-into its  16th season .  One of my favorites this year is Jimmie Herrod, who while aud