Bills 23, Ravens 20

I have been looking after a white dog - Sophie, the one in the photo - for the past couple of weeks. I've been in Muskoka for as much of that time as possible. Not because it necessarily suits me but for her. She loves to chase squirrels and tennis balls, swim and spend her days roaming around the property and the shoreline. Of all the dogs I have known, Sophie is probably the most intelligent one. And definitely the one which sheds the most white hair. I will need to borrow her owner's Dyson.

So, the US government is set to "shut down" as early as tomorrow. This is thanks to Tea Party Republicans who see the budget and debt ceiling debate as an opportunity to defund the Affordable Care Act, known as "Obamacare". Republicans who are not members of or supported by the Tea Party movement have been urging their colleagues to back off for fear of a public backlash against the party. There is now a clear division within the Republican party which makes it look as if the right hand doesn't know what the extreme right hand is doing. The best thing that the more "mainstream" Republicans could do is to ask their Tea Party colleagues to form their own party where they would be free to continue to create their own set of facts and truths as well as the policies which fit within them. They could continue to advocate for further tax cuts for "the job creators" and rail against the evils of "big government". FOX News could move from being their unofficial to their official broadcaster and they wouldn't have to waste time bad-mouthing people like David Frum any more. I am now convinced that a three party system is what's needed in the United States. The time has come. And the fact that the Democrats would govern the country for at least a couple of generations would just be an added benefit. After Obama's second term ends, Hillary Clinton would serve two terms as the first female President and then maybe the Democrats could nominate a Hispanic for President. Let's call him President Martinez.

After finally selling my tickets to yesterday's game on NFL TicketExchange on Saturday morning, I decided to stay at the cottage to watch the game. Mainly for Sophie of course. The Bills were able to run for more than 200 yards against the Ravens and, along with the career high five interceptions given up by Joe Flacco, the running game dictated time of possession and was key in winning this close game. All four Bills games this year have been decided by seven points or less.

Up next is a Thursday night road game against the Bills' Lake Erie cousins, the Cleveland Browns. Then the Bills will have 10 days to prepare for the Cincinnati Bengals who come to Orchard Park on Canadian Thanksgiving Day.