Hide the Ivermectin y’all, the Don is back for more. It seems endless investigations and humiliating defeats weren’t enough to dissuade the orangest president in our nation’s history from seeking another term as ‘leader of the free world’. Hopefully the people tasked with covering his campaign are less willing to let him lie openly and freely, but God knows that won’t stop this guy from trying.
The political landscape is a bit different than it was almost seven years ago when Donald first descended the golden escalator into our lives. The pandemic is still ongoing (somehow), the economy is in the toilet, and people are slightly more cautious about storming government buildings. There’s no doubt Mr. Ketchup Steak will find traction with certain demographics, but I’m hopeful that people learned their lesson.
(Narrator’s voice: “They absolutely did not learn a single lesson.”)
Side Items
Striking Academics in California: Tens of thousands of academic workers in California are on strike this week, demanding better pay, more benefits and job security. 48,000 academic workers in the University of California system continued striking, resulting in canceled classes and halted research just before midterm season
NASA Did the Damn Thing: Finally! NASA was able to successfully fuel up the Artemis rockets that will make the trip around the moon and back. The Artemis lifted off early this morning and will be in orbit for a few weeks, returning (hopefully) around December 9
SOMEBODY’S missile killed two Polish people: I’m not saying it was Russia, I’m not saying it was Ukraine, I’m just saying a missile definitely hit a Polish border town and ended the lives of two people. Of course American media outlets were quick to blame the Ruskies for the attack, only to walk back these claims hours later as more information is made available. The official story now is that the missile may have been fired by Ukraine, but only because of an incoming Russian missile. Let’s pray this doesn’t wind up being another Archduke Franz Ferdinand situation
World Cup Preview: The remaining 10 teams stand the best chance of bringing glory back to their country. These nations are: The Netherlands, England, Argentina, France, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Brazil, Portugal and Uruguay. I’m not a betting man, but these are the top 10 contenders in this year’s tournament
The Netherlands: The strength of the Dutch starts with their back line, boasting top defenders like Virgil Van Dijk, Matthijs de Ligt, and Tyrell Malacia. But these flying Dutchmen will need their midfielders and attackers at the top of their game in order to make a deep run, and they’ll be itching to make up for past World Cup defeats. The Dutch lost the final of the 2010 World Cup, came in third place in 2014, and then mysteriously lost all their mojo and didn’t even quality for the 2018 tournament. This time they’ll be looking to make a statement
England: As much as I’ll be rooting against them, this English team is undoubtedly stacked. With world-class talent at every position, the only question is whether or not this team can come together for a greater cause. They’ve landed in a favorable group, facing the US, Wales and an Iranian team in the midst of chaos. If England can take advantage of the clear talent gap, there’s no reason this team will face a humiliating early exit again
Argentina: In what is likely the final World Cup of Lionel Messi’s storied career, the Argentines will feel added pressure to put their all into winning. The Albiceleste have talent at every position, and they should be able to run riot through a group featuring Poland, Mexico and the Saudis. If Messi can avoid injury, there’s no reason to think this team can’t win it all