The U.S. Senate met yesterday, a rare Saturday, and today, Sunday, ever more so, not to end the government shutdown, but for Republicans to get on TV news programs to blame Democrats for shutting down SNAP benefits and cancelling flights.  President Donald Trump returns to DC today. But not to help work on opening up the government, but to attend the Washington Commanders vs Detroits NFL game in Landover, Maryland.  Ah, I still remember back 43 years ago when I cheered on the Redskins in RFK Stadium, in walking distance of my office, when I toiled in the U.S. Senate. Trump plans to meet with the Commander's leadership group to name their new $3.7 billion stadium, to open in 2030, after him. I bet many of you are somewhat confused by the term, SNAP benefits. First came the Food Stamp Program in 1939. The Food Stamp Act was passed in 1964. Electronic Benefit Transfer, or EBT cards, were introduced around 1990 to replace paper food stamps Then in 2008, to reduce the stigma associ...

This is now   Day 39 of the government shutdown .  I earlier this week predicted that this should all be over by yesterday.  Well, the Senate is having a rare Saturday session, and the 15th vote on advancing the House-passed continuing resolution could be advanced later in the day,  But Senators are not close to reaching an final agreement. Over the past decade, my streaming was "limited" to Netflix and Amazon Prime.  15 Craigside also has Showtime, but recently made available, for FREE, Disney streaming services:  Hulu, HBO Max and ESPN+, my posting yesterday.  So today I compare the Disney+ family with Netflix and Prime. I now pay for Netflix, something I've been doing for more than 15 years.  Same for Amazon Prime.  I calculate that I've spent around $5000 during this period. Amazon Prime? I buy things through Amazon, and the TV part comes with it. So I'll continue. Netflix? I am charged $18/month. Should I continue, now that I have all th...