…refers to a hit record that has entered the charts in a high position, or has climbed rapidly in the charts, or is thought to have the potential for further rapid potential.

~”with a bullet”/Wiktionary

The origin of the phrase “with a bullet” goes back to Cashbox Magazine, which published weekly listings of record sales from 1942 until its demise in November 1996.  One feature of its registry was to highlight songs with high potential by placing red bullets next to their names.  The phrase was also popularized by Casey Kasem, host of a succession of radio programs during which he would count down the most popular songs on the Cashbox charts.

A series of headlines this morning suggest there is a new version of “America’s Top 10,” the televised spin-off of Kasem’s radio program.

• “Coronavirus Forecast Researchers Say Florida Could Be Next Outbreak Epicenter” (U.S. News and World Report)
• “Florida Hits the Gas” (Fernandina Beach News Leader)
• “Top Trump Donors to Stay on Amelia Island during Republican Convention” (Jacksonvile Daily Record)

Congratulations to the Sunshine State!  One week ago it was #11 on the charts when it came to confirmed cases of the coronavirus.  This week, it broke into the Top 10 “with a bullet.”  Following three consecutive days of record new cases, Florida is now #7 having passed Pennsylvania within the past 24 hours.  And, based on the difference in new cases in higher-seeded jurisdictions, is likely to move into the #5 position by the end of June.

Yet, News-Leader op-ed columnist Steve Nicklas trumpets the decision by the Republican National Committee to hold its Donald J. Trump coronation in Jacksonville, describing it as follows. “A celebrated event in late-August with mega-wealthy participants is just what struggling hotels and restaurants and shops here could use.”  Do you want to guess what the greater Jacksonville area does not need?  One more catalyst to accelerate the already burgeoning number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Duval County for which Jacksonville is the county seat.  According to News4Jax, 12 percent of all the cases reported in Duval County since the outbreak began have occurred in the past three days.

Which brings me to the last headline.  Heaven forbid, wealthy donors should have to stay in  the same hotels as the MAGA-hatted masses that make up Donald Trump’s electoral base.  For a mere $1.16 million per couple (this is not a typo), those mega-wealthy participants to which Nicklas referred can be part of the “Trump Presidential Trust.” According to the Fernandina Beach Observer, the VIP package entitles the donor “to the guaranteed hotel berth comfortably outside Duval County.”  So, while Jacksonville mayor Lenny Curry touts the “$100 million economic impact” generated by this potential COVID19 super-spreader, the Observer reports, “…the biggest margins in terms of hotel spending will be outside his jurisdiction.”

Therefore, Deprogramming101 is initiating a new Top 10 list, suckers who have been scammed by Donald Trump, the Trump family and the Trump Organization.  This week Mayor Curry broke into the Top 10 with a giant red bullet.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP