My nostalagic Tuesday posting today will be on one of my most memorable trips I took a dozen years ago.  However, first, a few news items of the day, with some editorializing by yours truly. Continuing on what is becoming a  series started a few days ago  about the demise of Republicans, the fight you see in the House of Representatives regarding shutting down the government to embarrass President Joe Biden, keep in mind that this is a civil war, and has nothing to do with Democrats.   Read this . You of course know that our Federal government does not operate like we do.  They have something called a fiscal year, which begins on October 1. Thus, Congress needs to pass a spending bill to keep the government operating by the end of September. The Senate seems inclined to do so. The House has a civil war. While pundits approach this subject with alarm, do not fret, the fact of the matter is that  Congress has shut down the government 21 times since 1976 ...