The First Monday of the Second Part

We had lots of much needed rain here last night and this morning. Right now a light drizzle is coming down. That's four days in a row with at least some rain. 

The fam returns this afternoon, thank the Lords of Kobol. And so begins the second stage of summer. 

Let's just try to stop worrying and relax. 

We watched a lot of World Cup yesterday. Don't FIFA shame us. 

Norway was playing the refs as well as the Brazilians. Brazil is obviously the Kansas City Chiefs of FIFA. We watched the officials do everything they could to give Brazil a chance at a game tying goal. 

Mexico vs England was the best soccer game we've ever seen, which ain't sayin' much. During the last 20 minutes, England's goal was under siege. The limeys made a heck of a defensive stand. We were impressed. 

Overall, were we not entertained?

At The Times of Israel, a profile of Netanyahu's chief electoral rival, Gadi Eisenkot. The headline and subhead: 'Gruff and unpolished, Gadi Eisenkot is becoming the face of the anti-Netanyahu movement. The plainspoken ex-IDF head embodies a shift from the PM’s slick style, which has come to define Israeli politics. But after surging in the polls, he now faces a brutal campaign as Netanyahu’s chief foe...' This is very interesting*. 

Polls remain where they've always been, Bibi's Likud leading followed by Bennett, Eisenkot, and Lapid. At the moment an election would probably result in a hung parliament. But beware Netanyahu enthusiasts, the Bibi fatigue is real. [How would you vote?-Ed]. We'll put it this way, if one wants to make the case for Bennett or Eisenkot, we're listening.  

DOGE report.

Okay, we have a vague outline of the first part of the Dublin op. At least we know what we're writing this morning. 

We spent a good chunk of yesterday working on the details of the DEW line story. The prot-a-gon-ist (IYKYK) is a nerdy kid from Cincinnati who likes electronics and is obsessed with baseball. And he's really disappointed that his beloved Reds were destroyed with the rest of Cincinnati. If you know your baseball history, you know what the Reds were up to in 1975. 

* Yes! 'In terms of one of Israel’s most intractable and urgent issues, integrating its growing Haredi population into mainstream society, Yashar proposes two initiatives: First, expanding national service for all Israelis, including Arabs and Haredim, the vast majority of whom do not currently enlist, with a particular emphasis on military service. Second, mandating the study of a core curriculum (generally including subjects such as English and math) in all schools, including ultra-Orthodox ones that eschew secular subjects.'