SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

MAJOR AUTOMOTIVE NEWS – FROM CNN:   Washington (CNN) Saudi Arabia is easing restrictions on women driving, finally allowing almost half its population to get behind the wheel.
A royal decree has been issued that will allow women in the country to drive, the Saudi Foreign ministry said Tuesday on its official Twitter account.  A committee has been formed to implement the ruling and it will present recommendations within 30 days. Then the government will have until June 24, 2018, to implement the new decree.  "This is a historic big day in our kingdom," Prince Khaled bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the US, said Tuesday in a briefing with reporters.  Can you believe, in this day and age, that this is news?

IMPORTANT CRIME NEWS – FROM THE SMOKING GUN:  A gunman “dressed as a Coca-Cola bottle” yesterday robbed a Kentucky restaurant, police report.  Investigators say that the suspect stuck up a Rally’s restaurant in Henderson just before 7 AM Monday. The robber, armed with a handgun, stole over $500 from the closed eatery, which was only staffed by a manager (who was not injured during the robbery).  The Henderson Police Department described the robber as a white male who fled the crime scene in a gray minivan driven by another white male.  The gunman’s Coca-Cola outfit may have been some kind of Halloween costume, said a police spokesperson who added that investigators are attempting to access surveillance footage that may have recorded the suspect.  Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call the local Crime Stoppers organization.  Just be on the lookout for someone dressed as a Coca-Cola bottle.  If he's dressed as a Pepsi bottle, he's just a wannabe.

AN IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION – FROM THE WRAP:  It doesn’t look like any NFL players will be disciplined for kneeling or locking arms in protest during the playing of the National Anthem. But First Amendment experts say most employees can be fired from many jobs for exercising their freedom of speech.  Federal law does not protect workers in the private sector — only government employees.  “There is no federal law protecting against discrimination or retaliation for political activity” at private companies, Paula Brantner, a senior adviser at Workplace Fairness, told TheWrap. “A lot of people think they have First Amendment rights, but those only apply to government employees.”  There was a time when most journalists knew this – it was basic professional knowledge – but no more.  I'm glad someone finally explained the law.

September 27, 2017