The second Not Fake News update so far this week:  Pay attention, people; it’s “Take Out The Trash Day”. All sorts of things are happening while you’re watching the

Fabulous Impeachment Show and Flea Circus Extravaganza.

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– Congress has just passed a Continuing Resolution timed so the country will be ready for a budget debate mere moments before the Iowa Caucuses.

– While the House is completely tied up with impeachment, the Senate unanimously passed a Chinese trade bill designed to protect Hong Kong on the verge of the White House finalizing its own trade deal. The Senate bill differs significantly from the House bill, though they were both introduced on the same day back in June. Yes, the timing is intentional.

– Iranian special forces in Syria launched a random untargeted missile attack at Israel. Israel shot it down and fired missiles back. Syrian air defenses stopped some of the Israeli missiles. Israel wiped out Syrian air defenses and went on to make a new parking lot where the Iranians had been.

– Meanwhile, the U.S. has sent an aircraft carrier group to cruise off the Iranian coast inside the Persian Gulf. Both Iran and Oman consider the passage of warships an act of war. The U.S. has never acknowledged this, and thus far, Oman at least has yet to invade us in response.

– Malta is making arrests in the Panama Papers blogger murder case. They’re going to extreme lengths. And yes, there’s an Epstein link here.

– CNN has two different headlines condemning Trump’s gun control policies – one domestic, one on export. Meanwhile, Toronto is in the middle of a stabbing epidemic. Canadian police are at a loss. Seriously; I can’t make this shit up.

– Islamic State attacks in Mali and Libya – heavy casualties; lots of destruction. Note that these groups formed pre-Trump; it’s natural to want to blame him for everything from wildfires to school shootings, but it’s not always appropriate.

– A French student set himself on fire in protest of living conditions at French universities. Tuition costs about $500 annually thanks to subsidies. I’m not making light of the French student’s action, but instead wondering when American students will start self-immolating.

– Things are getting a little quieter in Bolivia and Hong Kong, but neither is expected to resolve itself peacefully. Meanwhile, Guaido’s peaceful revolution in Venezuela seems to be fizzling out.

– And yes, Epstein is still dead. Two of his guards are expected to plead guilty to faking records of their inspection logs as they apparently slept through the hanging.