Gulls hitching a ride across the bay in the ferry’s draft. Kind of genius.

Let me see if I can go find it.

Choppy morning on the Delaware Bay.

Racist Joe Biden Bans Travel From Africa - The Babylon Bee

Voters are reporting that they are devastated to learn Biden is just as racist as Trump was when he restricted travel from China. Just like when Trump did it, Biden’s racist travel ban is obviously an attempt to keep people of color out of our country while using COVID as an excuse. Sad! 

IT’S 2021!!!!!!!

Civil rights groups and various liberal organizations have not yet come out and condemned the racist, xenophobic travel ban as they did during the Trump travel ban. This is probably just because they forgot, or maybe they had too many Thanksgiving leftovers and fell asleep. 

Biden’s Covid Death Milestone - WSJ Opinion

Covid deaths this year have now surpassed the toll in 2020 with 350,000 since Inauguration Day. It would seem that Mr. Biden has done no better than Donald Trump in defeating Covid despite the benefit of vaccines, better therapies, and more clinical experience. The left politicized Covid by holding Mr. Trump responsible for a disease that was always going to be hard to defeat.

Now the media is silent on the topic. The point is that this isn’t a political opportunity, it’s a national challenge.

Christmas lights going up, house by house.

Nice day in town.

Janet Yellen Announces Americans Can Use Promo Code ‘THANKS’ For 10% Off All U.S. Goods And Services

“To activate the promo code, simply mention it to your Whataburger cashier, or visit treasury.gov/thanks. Remember, this amazing offer won’t last, so now’s the time to book that babysitter or finally get that Instant Pot! Again, that’s T-H-A-N-K-S, thanks.”

Atlantic sunrise.

U.S. Joins With China, Other Nations in Tapping Oil Reserves - WSJ

The six countries combined are likely to put about 65 million to 70 million barrels from government stockpiles onto world markets, according to a tally by RBC Capital Markets. That figure is only a little more than half of the world’s daily consumption, which the Energy Department estimates will surpass 100 million barrels in the final three months of 2021.

Excellent, that’ll get us through lunch.

What’s the plan for this afternoon?

Airpower.

Daddy & Me time with Lucy.

My favorite animal at the zoo.

🦉

Man Crushed To Death By Giant Pile Of Cheese After Refusing To Tell Olive Garden Waitress To Stop - The Babylon Bee

According to diners who saw the accident, the man locked eyes with his server and sat in stoic silence as mountains of cheese piled all around him.

Made it to the ocean.

Southwest Airlines, USAA, and CarMax used to be a few of my corporate heroes. Companies that I could rely on to do the right thing, to put their customers first, and deliver outstanding experience each time. The past decade has been hard on all three.

Southwest started faltering when they merged with AirTran. A whole new crop of employees suddenly changed uniforms, but they didn’t change cultures. Instead of warm, friendly employees at every encounter, Southwest started to look and feel a lot more like their cattle-call competitors.

USAA needed to grow their membership, so they opened it up to anyone who had served honorably. A massive new pool of members rushed in the door and USAA had to staff up quickly. Phone hold times extended, employees grew more corporate, and the overachievers disappeared into thin air.

CarMax build a brand on car buying the way it should be. In a slimy business, they stood out. Their cars were better than average, cleaner than average, and backed up by a no-questions asked warranty. But they could only build so many superstores, and many smaller markets would never support that volume. So, they came up with a new small-market format store and spread far and wide. New employees missed the memo, and now they deliver overpriced cars with an underwhelming experience.

The thread that ties together these three stories is growth at the cost of fundamentals. They needed to grow, and they did, but they forgot to bring their new team members into the culture. Any bozo can run an airline, issue insurance, or sell used cars. It takes a truly great company to turn customers into raving fans. And when the great fall, it’s time for the market to go looking for new companies that act like the greats used to.

A Popular Tax Trick for Savers, the Mega ‘Back Door’ Roth IRA, Is Eliminated in House Bill - WSJ

The IRA measures will raise tax revenue to help pay for items such as universal prekindergarten and lower prescription drug prices.

What an accounting trick!

They eliminate the tax payments the government receives today from a 35 year old couple making backdoor Roth IRA in exchange for taxes paid at withdrawal on a traditional IRA at least 25 years away, but book the assumed additional tax revenue today.

This is Enron-style accounting.

Of course, many models suggest that these high earners that Congress is targeting would be better off using a pre-tax strategy during peak earnings years anyways. The assumptions made by this Congress are dubious, to say the least.

And I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that the Democratic leadership looking to kill the Backdoor Roth today are the same ones who codified it into law when they held power in 2010.

Gorgeous fall colors.

A stop back in time.

Biden Asks FTC to Examine Oil, Gas Companies’ Role in High Gasoline Prices - WSJ

In a Wednesday letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan, Mr. Biden alleged that there is “mounting evidence of anti-consumer behavior by oil-and-gas companies.”

C’mon man!

Keystone XL, Green New Deal, clean energy tax credits bonanza, the new Dept. of Energy Green venture capital fund, constantly bashing oil and gas, suspending permitting for drilling on Federal lands….

The anti-consumer behavior is being perpetrated by the Biden Administration.

Worth the drive.

Glasgow’s Climate of Unreality - WSJ Opinion

“If [Mr. Biden] were asking them to boost their production over five years, I’d quit,” Mr. Kerry told reporters, by way of trying to square this circle. “But he’s not. He’s asking them to boost production in this immediate moment.” Lord, make us green, but not yet.

Great line.