EVERYBODY WANTS TO KNOW...

 Who's the best first pick in their fantasy football league.

Who should they pick first in the famous REGJB Blog Survivor Pool? (Hint- not the Dolphins unless you want to go out week one; week two; week three; week four, et. al.). 

When is Mexico's next payment for the Wall scheduled to be made?

Just how open are the Straits of Trump? 

When will there be a new cafe at the REGJB?  This may be a hot topic in the prediction pool markets. Our take? Well after the President has breakfast with new Speaker of the House Hakim Jeffries after the midterms. 

AND....

How should one play Nvidia in light of the earnings call today after the market closes with CEO Jensen Huang.

We know Nvidia has fallen post earnings five of the last six quarters. We also know Nvidia will beat expectations and raise guidance. But here is what the market will be looking at.  Are Nvidia's investments in their customers circular financing- meaning they are loaning money to their customers to buy their chips?  Or is Jensen creating a new equity market for his company?

 Our take is it is the latter, and it will not matter. (And we like to rhyme, most of the time). 

Nvidia will most likely fall tomorrow as per the put/call ratio we are seeing. And then over the next year it will rise. Most analysts have a price of +300 on the stock currently trading around 210.  Rumpole says "buy Nvidia, don't trade it." 

So keep your powder dry today and be a buyer tomorrow, next week, and next month. And while you're at it look at the Yahoo/Finance piece on AMD with the headline that it "may rip up 40%..." . Just sayin...

Meanwhile, the Fins  RBArchane is a good first round pick, as is Cardinal's rookie RB Love, and a few other bangers. In our expert opinion do not go WR until rounds 2-3 and QB rounds 4-5-6. 

HEADWARE

 Whilst the comments have taken off in discussing a local federal Judge's comments about ethnic headwear, can you identify the hefty president who appointed the Judge? 

One of these two scale-busters is the biggest president ever. 

Let's say a Judge hates baseball. And there's a lawsuit over the Marlins. Can the judge preside over the case? 

Let's say a Judge is a vegetarian; can they preside over a lawsuit seeking to shut down an abattoir? 

Let's say a Judge hates rap music and thinks it adversely affects society; can they sit on a 2Live Crew copyright infringement case? 

Could a Jewish judge rule in a deportation case of a Nazi? 

And finally, could Republican judges be counted on in Florida to allow a full recount in a contested presidential election, where stopping the recount would allow the Republican candidate to be elected president?  (Never mind- we know the answer to this one. Ask Al Gore if you forgot). 

CLUES

 Need a break from post-election angst? Worrying about the Iran war which we were assured would be over in two weeks? Can't sleep because the world's superpower can't manufacture replacement missiles in less than two years while a third-rate oppressive theocracy can apparently refresh its arsenal within weeks while being bombed?  Going over the figures of Mexico paying for the wall and not finding any payments? Got a Judge who sets you for trial the day after you return from vacation and thinks they are doing you a favor? Searching in vain for one defense-positive opinion from the Eleventh Circuit?  Stressing over who to pick as your QB in fantasy football and wondering whether the Bears QB was a one-year wonder? 

Fear not. We have just the answer for you. 

Play this game- Clues by Sam. Find the criminals and find the innocent people through an ingenious use of word clues where there is no drone-prosecutor mindlessly intoning victim wants max while the Desantis drone smiles and calls balls and strikes. 

After we do the failing NY Times puzzles of Wordle, Spelling Bee, Connections (which we are not the biggest fan of), the Mini (which we are), Strands (our latest obsession), and the two gems in the Washington Post- Keyword and Wridges, we head over to Clues by Sam and do what we do best- find the innocent people.

Enjoy.

We also usually get to 18 words, (we've yet to get a perfect score, but have come all so close, ugh)    Zanagrams, and Uncrossy.  

Those are more bullet train/airplane ride games when we take a break from reading what Gen Z calls K Bros (Brothers Karamazov) 

ELECTION RESULTS ... PRIMARY 2026 .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION NIGHT — THE RESULTS ARE IN … ALMOST

AS OF 1:53 A.M., 100% OF THE VOTES HAVE BEEN COUNTED:

767 of 767 precincts reporting.

A total of 244,454 voters cast ballots in Tuesday's Primary Election, representing approximately 19% of Miami-Dade County's registered voters.

Based on the results as they stand tonight, two judicial races are headed to a runoff on November 3rd, General Election Day.

CIRCUIT COURT — GROUP 5

There will be a runoff between Arthur "Marty" McNeil and Monica Segura.

CIRCUIT COURT — GROUP 69

There will also be a runoff between Rita Baez and Bonita Jones-Peabody.

COUNTY COURT — GROUP 25

And this one is razor thin.

Incumbent Judge Luis Perez-Medina currently trails challenger Maribel Diaz, an attorney with the Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office, by just 572 votes.

With the margin well under one-half of one percent, The Captain expects this race will be subject to Florida's recount procedures before anyone starts measuring the drapes in the judge's chambers.

For now, Maribel Diaz leads.

AND THE STUNNER OF THE NIGHT …

Incumbent Circuit Judge Mavel Ruiz appears headed for defeat at the hands of 30-year-old attorney Destiny Goede Alvarez.

Alvarez's candidacy has generated controversy from the beginning.

First came "The Name Game," which Captain Justice previously reported on: Alvarez changed her name shortly before submitting her application to the Judicial Nominating Commission and later changed it again before qualifying to run for judge.

Then came her decision to challenge an incumbent Circuit Judge despite having been a member of The Florida Bar for barely more than five years—and without having tried a single jury trial.

And then came the money.

As we reported, Alvarez received campaign contributions from 25 Political Committees/PACs, with 24 contributing the maximum $1,000.

A substantial amount of political money and support lined up behind Alvarez, much of it from conservative-aligned political committees.

Tonight, that support appears to have paid off.

Barring a significant change in the remaining votes, Destiny Goede Alvarez will become one of Miami-Dade County's newest Circuit Court Judges.

AND FINALLY …

Congratulations to Assistant Public Defender/Judge-Elect Renee Gordon, who wins election to the Circuit Court on her third try.

And congratulations to incumbent Judge Spencer Eig, who has won another term on the Circuit Court bench.

Two runoffs. One race separated by just a few hundred votes. And an incumbent Circuit Judge apparently headed for defeat.

Not a boring night in Miami-Dade judicial politics.

CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 5

Arthur "Marty" McNeil - 42%

Monica Segura - 36%

Alex Annunziato - 22%

GROUP 35

Renee Gordon - 63%

Cristobal Padron - 37%

GROUP 67

Judge Mavel Ruiz - 111,142 (49.54%)

Destiny Alvarez - 113,215 (50.46%)

(Alvarez leads by 2,073 votes)

GROUP 69

Rita Baez - 37%

Bonita Jones-Peabody - 35%

Yaneth Baez - 28%

GROUP 76

Spencer Eig - 56%

Yenly Dominguez - 44%

COUNTY COURT

GROUP 25

Judge Luis Perez-Medina - 109,982 (49.87%)

Maribel Diaz - 110,554 (50.13%)

(Diaz leads by 572 votes)

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

GREG GONZALEZ A YEAR LATER

 We were pondering what to write this morning when a comment arrived and solved our problem. 

And while you enjoy this and remember our colleague, we throw out there that as we continue our sabbatical we have finally stepped up to remedy a long-time deficiency in our consumption of classic literature and engaged on the journey of reading the 1000+ page Brothers Karamazov.  (For our 30-somethings and robed readers, perhaps there is a two-minute summary on Tik Tok you can watch). 

Myles Raucher commented on "GREG GONZALEZ"

I've been out of the loop for a long time and not following events or keeping in touch so it feels so odd to post a comment a year after Gregg's death. 

Some folks thought Gregg was contributing so much time to Veteran Treatment Court because he wanted to be a Judge and impress Governor Desantis. When he told me this we both burst out laughing simultaneously. We couldn't stop laughing as we fed off one another. 

It was funny to the both of us because it represents the divide between those who see banal self interest as the primary motivation and those who recognize a duty to our fellow vets. 

I was the PD Veteran Court attorney for three years, a former Air Force guy. Gregg did some unorthodox and madcap stuff helping out vets like letting one live with him for weeks and buying a sax for another. 

Sometimes he recruited me in evening searches for the clients missing in action [failure to appear in court]. He wouldn't let them fail or allow them to be sucked into the gritty Miami asphalt.

Gregg had a different vision from the bulk of humanity. Whenever he performed another of his acts of anonymous assistance to a vet on a random day without self promotion I would say: "So Gregg. You're trying to impress the Governor." And we would guffaw wildly. 

Gregg was respected by the vets in VTC. That says a lot. When a fellow Vet respects you, its earned, deep, and heartfelt. Its not a cheap respect but a recognition of successfully performing the mission. 

There are more stories I could tell. But its not necessary. From the compassionate comments, I think folks know what a special soul Gregg was.

Thank you for this. 

WHY WE LOVE BASEBALL vol 96

 In our on-going lifetime love affair with America's pastime, we present to you the rookie debut of St. Louis Cardinal Joshua Baez this weekend. 

First Baez became the 33rd player in major league history to blast a home run on the first major league pitch he saw. 

Second, Baez became the second player since 1900 to hit two home runs in his first two major league at bats. 

And third, Baez became the only player in baseball history to hit three home runs in his first three major league at bats. 

After Baez flew out to left field in his fourth at bat, the baseball savvy Chicago Cubs fans in Wrigley Field gave their rival St. Louis Cardinal player a standing ovation for his exploits. 

This is one of the many many reasons our love affair with baseball continues unabated. 

ARE YOU READY?

 The dog days of August mean many things. Baseball fans begin to take notice of pennant races. Robed Readers sip Prosecco or Limoncello or Campari spritzes in European vacation spots, congratulating themselves on their sophistication. New ASA's and PDs arrive wide-eyed in the REGJB where everything is new and seems exciting. 

To long-time and careful readers of the Blog the dog days 🐕 of August means "when is Rumpole posting information on the award-winning Survivor Pool and Fantasy Football League?" 

The answer is very soon.  

Keep watching these pages for very important Blog FF and SP updates.