What if they’re not stars, but holes poked into the top of the container so we can breathe? – Unknown

Welcome to “Thursday Numbers!” In case you’re a first-time visitor, this is the weekly column where I take a look at the numbers that are in the news (in descending order) and provide commentary sometimes sprinkled with sarcasm, humor, and bluntness.

This week’s topics include the Mega Millions lottery, unemployment data, the DoD and the Trump Turnberry resort, Brad Tschida, firearm deaths, Justin Trudeau, NFL penalties, most/least diverse states, new Democratic primary voters poll, Eli Manning, and much more!

211,000,000

That’s the estimated jackpot for Friday’s Mega Millions lottery. (MegaMillions.com)

204,000

In the week ending September 7, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 204,000, a decrease of 15,000 from the previous week’s revised level. (USDOL)

Thursday’s data is released at 6:30 a.m. Mountain time, well after this column is published. Click HERE to see today’s unemployment data.

184,000

The Defense Department has spent at least $184,000 at the Trump Turnberry resort in Scotland since 2017, as it sent several dozen crews from flights making a refueling stopover to the resort hotel, the Pentagon said in a letter sent to congressional investigators. (New York Times)

I’ll bet a lot of crews want to take these flights…

75,000

Montana’s Office of the Commissioner of Political Practices has agreed to pay State Representative Brad Tschida, the House Majority Leader, almost $75,000 to settle a claim for attorney’s fees related to a lawsuit he filed to strike down a law keeping ethics complaints confidential. (Missoulian)

It was also reported that Tschida said the amount would “barely cover” his legal costs. I’m sure the publicity he received and attaboys from his fellow Republicans will make up the difference.

40,000

According to a newly released report from Congress, in 2017, for the first time, the rate of firearm deaths exceeded the death rate by motor vehicle accidents. That year, nearly 40,000 people were killed in the United States by a gun, including approximately 2,500 school-age children. That is over 100 people per day and more than five children killed each day. Sixty percent of gun deaths each year are firearm suicides.

The report from Congress is called “A State-by-State Examination of the Economic Costs of Gun Violence.” Click HERE to read it.

The report found that states with high rates of gun ownership (Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Montana, West Virginia, and Wyoming) have the highest rates of gun suicide.

2001

Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, wore brownface makeup to a party at the private school where he was teaching in the spring of 2001. The picture was taken at an “Arabian Nights”-themed gala at a private day school. It shows Trudeau, then the 29-year-old son of the late former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, wearing a turban and robes with his face, neck, and hands completely darkened. (Time)

Trudeau has apologized.

I guess those private day school parties are pretty wild…

622

Are you tired of penalties in the NFL – especially when they are called on your team? According to NFLpenalties.com and reported by Yahoo Sports, 622 penalties have been called through two weeks of the season. It’s approximately 9.72 flags per game. In 2018, there were 4,069 total flags in the regular season at an average 7.62 per game. In 2009, per the site, there were an average 6.64 penalties per game.(Yahoo Sports)

Maybe the refs should keep the flag in their pockets more!

46

That is Montana’s rank as one of the least diverse states in America according to the personal finance website WalletHub. WalletHub compared the 50 states across six key categories: socio-economic, cultural, economic, household, religious, and political diversity. (WalletHub)

That puts Montana in the company of Kentucky (45) and New Hampshire (47). West Virginia (50) is the least diverse and California (1) is the most diverse.

They probably found a few fourth or fifth generation Montanans to interview…Yee Haw!

29

That’s the percentage of Democratic primary voters who support former Vice President Joe Biden according to a new Fox News poll. Biden is down 2 points since last month and down 6 points since May when he was at a high of 35 percent support. Biden’s current 11-point lead is down from a high of 19 points in June.

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders climbs back into second with 18 percent (up 8 points since August), followed by U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren at 16 percent (down 4), forming the clearest top three candidate tier seen in this race to date. (Fox News)

If Biden continues to make mistakes, we may see his lead completely evaporate.

2

On Tuesday the New York Giants announced rookie Daniel Jones would be their Week 3 starter, meaning mainstay and future Hall of Famer Eli Manning would be a backup. It is just the second time since the 1998 season that a Manning isn’t a starting NFL QB. That’s when Peyton, the No. 1 pick overall, began his lengthy career with the Indianapolis Colts. (Yahoo Sports)

Eli Manning is 38.

##END##