Doing some tab clearing here … Holder sez Fast & Furious was a bad idea That he, of course, opposed. Yeah. Okaaaaay. But why lacerate his spleen in the first place? Dunno how big a problem this is going to be for people outside of China. But it’s something for PM buyers to be aware of. One more reason to be glad you don’t live in Britain. Who knew that maple syrup played such an intriguing part in American history? Dr. Andrew Weil on dealing with depression. J.D. Tuccille on “Free-Range Publishing.” Some things in life really do get better.…
Category: Money
Posts about being frugal, getting out of debt, staying out of debt, spending practically and splurging joyfully. This category may also contain posts about hard money and what the government is doing to all that “soft money” it creates.
Hm. Great minds. (You may recall this.) And almost great ones. (Funny how so many people come so close but miss the real point.) (Tip o’ hat to PT.) Oooh, da poo widdle snitch powice infowment. Him get his widdle feewings hurt. (Tip o’ hat to C^2.)* Weird stuff found in the woods. (Don’t click unless you have a lot of time to waste today.) A tad dated. But amazing Also amazing. Owl flying in for a kill at 1000 frames per second. Oh my. The Internet Movie Firearms Database. Search on a movie or TV show and learn all…
Here’s the latest from Jake MacGregor. Just one chapter again this week (the cold weather is rough on Jake’s health). But it’s one that ties some loose threads. Silver on “The Free Rider Fallacy.” (For the next time one of your dubious friends brings up one of those endless why-liberty-can’t-work hypotheticals.) Sweden. Hey, maybe you could send us some of your government. Well, on second thought … Of course you haven’t been following the long, drawn-out wedding and Insta-Divorce (TM) of whichever Kardashian that is … starts with a K, something like that. Me neither. Ahem. And I don’t read…
Still deadlining. Oy. But I’m beginning to believe that the light I see at the end of that tunnel might not be an onrushing train. This weekend I’m going to collapse in a happy heap. Meanwhile, the news … “Penn Jillette’s 10 commandments for atheists.” I’m neither an atheist nor a fan of commandments. Still, these are pretty good. (Tip o’ hat to PT.) Can any of you techno-hackers tell me if this might work at a distance of 50 yards or so? I’ve had this little problem … Six things nobody will tell you about MF Global. I mean,…
Just one new chapter from Jake MacGregor this week. But it’s a sweet one. Good on you, Canadians, especially all you patient gun-rights activists. It seems you’re finally, really and truly to be rid of that ridiculous long-gun registry. (D’you suppose the gov will actually wipe all trace of it from existence, though? Only if your politicians and bureaucrats are more honest than ours.) The real contagion risk from Europe or how the U.S. treasury market might go blooey. (Tip o’ hat to D.) A man of principle. Scott Olsen’s condition is improving and he is now conscious, but he’s…
Man, this round of deadlining is hurting my head and my whole self. I’ve just done the second draft of the most difficult article I’ve written in years. Probably wrote 15,000 words overall (that’s about 1/6th of a novel, people) to get 4,000 that I hope are useable. Write, rewrite, cut, cut, cut, rewrite, cut, cut. Have a feeling the client will still want one more session of slash and burn. Maybe tear the thing down to 3,000 or 3,500. After that, more deadlines. More challenging ones, in a way. Some days, I wish I’d taken up a promising career…
It’s amazing — and encouraging — how many commentators suddenly seem to be realizing that the problem isn’t “right” or “left” or even a matter of a system needing “reform.” The problem is oligarchy. Tuesday I linked to a very good article about The Bigs. Novelist Barry Eisler is among the first to come right out and use the proper term. (Tip o’ hat to J.) That noxious Louisiana law banning second-hand dealers from transacting any business in cash. You may have read about it. Ellendra in the comments points to an article that says it was passed in virtual…
Fascinating scientific detective work reconstructing the DNA of the black plague. Fascinating, too, how even something as horrible as plague can ultimately change the world for the better. See? We told you never to talk to cops. Oooh. This is gonna be good. “A tale of suspense, pyromania and sexual tension, coming to an Amazon near you!” J.D. Tuccille can write like nobody’s business. He’s even entertaining when he’s just blogging about being a dad. I’m gettin’ my hands on a review copy ASAP! Bill St. Clair on respecting intellectual property without government. Is it a good sign or a…
Two from The Onion (language in both NSFW): Steve Jobs obituary and “Nervous American Voters Worried About Botching Another Election.” One from Ragnar in a recent comment section. Sort of a redneck punk rap song, “My Country, My Ass.” (“Teacher used to say we had a Bill of Rights. I think they took our rights and sent us the bill.”) Regulators vs an enterprising ship salvager. What to do if you can’t afford a vet. DRM encourages piracy. No surprise, really. Neither is this. (Not that the fedgov should be subsidizing anything, of course.) Funniest pet Halloween costumes. Think it’s…
So much for “democracy.” Farewell transparency (we hardly knew ye). Welcome murder.gov. (The Al-Awlaki assassination was even worse than we thought.) If Bank of America wants to charge new fees, that’s their business. If customers don’t want to put up with it, that’s their business. (Of course, the fees are yet another predictable unintended consequence of gummint, but that’s another story.) But look what BofA does to sell the idea. Does it go to the customers? To the markets? Nooooooooo. Another Sign of Our Times. The DoJ and the WH are furiously scared of the Fast & Furious truth coming…