Today is Halloween.   Exactly a year ago,  we boarded the Diamond Princess in the Port of Yokohama.  I remember it so well because I had an opportunity to wear my Halloween pants I had recently purchased at Savers for $3.  I was planning to bring it on this cruise to wear tonight.  However, I couldn't find it. Exactly two years ago, or on 31October2022, my posting was titled  HALLOWEEN 2022 .  To quote from that article: As you must know by now, today is Halloween, a tradition supposedly originated with the ancient Celtic   festival of Samhain   2000 years or so years ago, when bonfires were lit and people wore costumes.   This celebration first came to the U.S.in the 1840's when Irish immigrants escaped their potato famine.  Coincidentally, there is an Irish practice where going door-to-door to collect soul cakes and offerings for dead relatives was traditional.  Failure to supply a treat could result in some practic...

Donald Trump has many times said that he is a stable genius.  He's never mouthed a number, but likes to say that his IQ is the highest.   Stephen Colbert begs to differ . There has been one report that his IQ was 156, but  this article  both says it and contests it.  If this were true, he would have been the second smartest U.S. president in history.   This list  was made in 2015. The day after Joe Biden decided to end his run for president,  Donald Trump called Biden the WORST PRESIDENT in American history .  Wrong!   Earlier this year, presidential historians announced their newest survey : FULL LIST OF OVERALL PRESIDENTIAL GREATNESS RATINGS AND RANKINGS Lincoln - 93.87% FD Roosevelt - 90.83% Washington - 90.32% T Roosevelt - 78.58% Jefferson - 77.53% Truman - 75.34% Obama - 73.8% Eisenhower - 73.73% LB Johnson - 72.86% Kennedy - 68.37% Madison - 67.16% Clinton - 66.42% J Adams - 62.66% Biden - 62.66% Wilson - 61.8% Reag...

  Yesterday I said that Democrats needed a miracle to stop Donald Trump.   Most miracles are quick, like Jesus walking on water.  This sudden and crucial turn of event for Democrats triggered by President Joe Biden deciding to drop out of the campaign, endorsing Kamala Harris, was key, but not the miracle. This delivered prayer for Democrats is unfolding. The  universal support for Harris, with potential competitors quickly pledging to be at her side, plus strong sense of relief from freedom-inclined world leaders, has energized the Democratic Party, totaling changing the chemistry of the 2024 presidential election.   That margin of difference--the 5 to 10 percent of potential voters who can still be swayed--has definitely switched from the high that Donald Trump has enjoyed for a couple of weeks, back to Democrats. The youth/age vote has totally reversed.  Now, Donald Trump is the old and decrepit candidate. Adding his confirmed status as felon a...