I think you’re overreacting. He’s far from assured, but also far from out of the race.

There isn’t one type. There are the ones like Bezos and Dell, who got rich by growing one or more businesses, and are still at it. They likely don’t work normal hours, but they likely work more than 40. Some of those, like Gates, get older and move on to other things like foundation work, but not an actual job. Hard to say what kind of hours they work. Then there are the ones like Christy Walton, who inherited their wealth and don’t really ever work.

I know quite a number of them. My company is overall pretty conservative, with lots of ex military. Many folks are lifelong Republicans but have adamantly said they won’t vote for Trump.

I completely agree, which was more or less my point.

I can’t think of a Democrat who has a better chance from this juncture, sadly.

Like who are you thinking?

I think the numbers of those two groups are significantly different. There are a number of moderate Republicans who will vote for Biden but wouldn’t vote for someone like Sanders or AOC.

Exactly! If you say that Biden should drop out for the good of the country, a bunch of people nod their heads, but if you say trump should, everyone just laughs.

I’m for sure on team “Not Trump, and not a Republican.” I think the debate really may have weakened Biden’s chances, but I can’t think of anyone who I’m confident could do better in the election. And I really mean “in the election” - there are certainly some who I think could do better as president, but they either don’t have the name recognition or wouldn’t pull in the moderates.

I’d love to see a true progressive, but there are an awful lot of people who simply won’t vote for one. So I’m sticking with Biden and hoping for the best.

Trump’s lies have gotten so over the top. We’re like two steps away from him saying he was one of the guys who walked on the moon.

And his cult will believe it.

As suddenly as it had appeared, the magical tornado vanished. And there, occupying the space where the frog had been, was a frog.

“Fantastic,” said Rincewind.

The frog gazed at him reproachfully.

“Really amazing,” said Rincewind sourly. “A frog magically transformed into a frog. Wondrous.”

“Turn around,” said a voice behind them. It was a soft, feminine voice, almost an inviting voice, the sort of voice you could have a few drinks with, but it was coming from a spot where there oughtn’t to be a voice at all. They managed to turn without really moving, like a couple of statues revolving on plinths.

There was a woman standing in the pre-dawn light. She looked she was - she had a - in point of actual fact she…

Later Rincewind and Twoflower couldn’t quite agree on any single fact about her, except that she had appeared to be beautiful (precisely what physical features made her beautiful they could not, definitively, state) and that she had green eyes. Not the pale green of ordinary eyes, either these were the green of fresh emeralds and as iridescent as a dragonfly. And one of the few genuinely magical facts that Rincewind knew was that no god or goddess, contrary and volatile as they might be in all other respects, could change the colour or nature of their eyes…

“L-“he began. She raised a hand.

“You know that if you say my name I must depart,” she hissed. “surely you recall that I am the one goddess who comes only when not invoked?”

“Uh. Yes, I suppose I do,” croaked the wizard, trying not to look at the eyes. “You’re the one they call the Lady?”

“Yes.”

“Are you a goddess then?” said Twoflower excitedly. “I’ve always wanted to meet one.”

Rincewind tensed, waiting for the explosion of rage. Instead, the Lady merely smiled.

“Your friend the wizard should introduce us,” she said.

Rincewind coughed. “Uh, yar,” he said. “This is Twoflower, Lady, he’s a tourist-“

“-I have attended him on a number of occasions-“

“And, Twoflower, this is the Lady. Just the Lady, right? Nothing else. Don’t try and give her any other name, okay?” he went on desperately, his eyes darting meaningful glances that were totally lost on the little man.

Rincewind shivered. He was not, of course, an atheist; on the Disc the gods dealt severely with atheists. On the few occasions when he had some spare change he had always made a point of dropping a few coppers into a temple coffer somewhere, on the principle that a man needed all the friends he could get. But usually he didn’t bother the Gods, and he hoped the Gods wouldn’t bother him. Life was quite complicated enough.

There were two gods, however, who were really terrifying. The rest of the gods were usually only sort of large-scale humans, fond of wine and war and whoring. But Fate and the Lady were chilling.

In the Gods’ Quarter, in Ankh-Morpork, Fate had a small, heavy, leaden temple, where hollow-eyed and gaunt worshippers met on dark nights for their predestined-and fairly pointless rites. There were no temples at all to the Lady, although she was arguably the most powerful goddess in the entire history of Creation. A few of the more daring members of the Gamblers’ Guild had once experimented with a form of worship, in the deepest cellars of Guild headquarters, and had all died of penury, murder or just Death within the week. She was the Goddess Who Must Not Be Named; those who sought her never found her, yet she was known to come to the aid of those in greatest need. And, then again, sometimes she didn’t. She was like that. She didn’t like the clicking of rosaries, but was attracted to the sound of dice. No man knew what She looked like, although there were many times when a man who was gambling his life on the turn of the cards would pick up the hand he had been dealt and stare Her full in the face. Of course, sometimes he didn’t. Among all the gods she was at one and the same time the most courted and the most cursed.

“We don’t have gods where I come from,” said Twoflower.

“You do, you know,” said the Lady.”Everyone has gods. You just don’t think they’re gods.”

Rincewind shook himself mentally.

“Look,” he said. “I don’t want to sound impatient, but in a few minutes some people are going to come through that door and take us away and kill us.”

[And so on]

Yeah, apparently no “free parking” in this game.

So most of Trump’s are just outright lies, while most of Biden’s are things like “Well it’s true it happened but it’s hard to know if it’s because of him,” or “It’s true Trump said that a bunch of times but he hasn’t been saying that lately.”

Really sorry to hear about your mom. I’m older, and both my parents are dead. You’d think that, since it’s the norm than your parents die before their kids, we’d be more emotionally prepared for our parents dying, but I found it pretty tough in both cases. The second one is particularly bad. Hang in there and focus on the good memories.

This is ridiculous. If I lose my job, can’t pay my bills, lose my home, and there’s no room in a shelter, what the hell am I supposed to do? I get that it’s a problem for cities, including mine, to have homeless encampments, but there has to be a relief valve in the system. You have to give people some option for living that isn’t illegal.

Such a fucked up court.

Bill is a treasure, and Martin Short is so fast.

Thank god it’s over!

So… There’s really going to be a second debate? I don’t know that I can take it.

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I agree, and have said the same repeatedly. In 2020, I just wanted a president who wasn’t a complete crook, con man, and national embarrassment. I didn’t think Biden would accomplish much, I just hoped he could repair our reputation with other countries a little.

I was stunned that Biden accomplished more than Obama. He certainly isn’t perfect, but he’s fine a good job. Just that infrastructure bill would be something most presidents would take as their legacy, but he’s done a lot more.

He’s too damned old, but I’ll still take him over Trump.

It’s gotten better, and I agree. I’m really happy about them turning off the mics. But I still think they’re letting Trump ramble more than Biden.

Everyone is just hoping their guy doesn’t say something that will hurt their campaign. Not sure anyone is happy though.

And who is going to appoint the next supreme court justices