Welcome to the blog roll, Jake.
He's another of the folks willing to dirty his hands up a bit in order to put some prime rib on our citifed tables.
May 11, 2012
Kill the government
Good idea, but it's like trying to stomp a hog snake with your sneakers. Derned thing just keeps on squiggling. Ask any of the 44 souls who populate Mount Sterling, Iowa, down along the Missouri border.
Mount Sterling is an official city with an ambition to be an official nonentity. Even the city council agrees it has nothing much to offer and has voted itself and its town into oblivion except as a "populated place" to the cartographers. They can live with that level of recognition and organization. Couldn't we all?
Not so fast says Higher Authority. The vote was 2-0. The third council person was absent . Never mind her presence would have made no difference. Everyone down there wants to disband.
The confusion comes from a decision some years ago -- no one seems sure just when and no one much gives a damn -- to pare the council from five to three. The official red tape got tangled, so maybe two members didn't really constitute a legal quorum. Now the lawyers and state bureaucrats are involved, and Mount Sterling remains alive as a taxing, law-enforcing, zoning-law capable bureaucracy with authority to borrow money it couldn't possibly repay. Sort of like the government that lives in Washington.
If it's that hard for 44 good folks to behead their government, we libertarian/ancap fanciers may have a longer row to hoe than we thought. Just have to keep on stompin' I guess.
Mount Sterling is an official city with an ambition to be an official nonentity. Even the city council agrees it has nothing much to offer and has voted itself and its town into oblivion except as a "populated place" to the cartographers. They can live with that level of recognition and organization. Couldn't we all?
Not so fast says Higher Authority. The vote was 2-0. The third council person was absent . Never mind her presence would have made no difference. Everyone down there wants to disband.
The confusion comes from a decision some years ago -- no one seems sure just when and no one much gives a damn -- to pare the council from five to three. The official red tape got tangled, so maybe two members didn't really constitute a legal quorum. Now the lawyers and state bureaucrats are involved, and Mount Sterling remains alive as a taxing, law-enforcing, zoning-law capable bureaucracy with authority to borrow money it couldn't possibly repay. Sort of like the government that lives in Washington.
If it's that hard for 44 good folks to behead their government, we libertarian/ancap fanciers may have a longer row to hoe than we thought. Just have to keep on stompin' I guess.
Shooting Vietnam
Horst Faas won a Pulitzer for combat shots in Vietnam. Later an RPG wound confined him to the AP bureau in Saigon where he added a second legend to name, as a trainer, teacher, editor.
He was also famous in our profession for handing out Nikon Fs like candy, one to virtually every would-be war free lancer who stumbled into his Saigon office. The camera came with unlimited Tri-X and one instruction: Come back with good pictures.
Personally, Mr. Faas carried a Leica.
He died yesterday at 79. RIP to a consummate professional.
He was also famous in our profession for handing out Nikon Fs like candy, one to virtually every would-be war free lancer who stumbled into his Saigon office. The camera came with unlimited Tri-X and one instruction: Come back with good pictures.
Personally, Mr. Faas carried a Leica.
He died yesterday at 79. RIP to a consummate professional.
May 9, 2012
Losing Lugar
We may need to supply mouth guards to every liberal and neocon (as though they really are two separate snake balls) in America. Indiana fomented a national tragedy by tarring and feathering Senator Richard Lugar in yesterday's GOP primary. Already the establishment politicians have ground their teeth down to nubs.
Without Lugar the Senate is doomed to deadlock. Worse, the era of "collegiality" and "bipartisanship" is in danger of doing a do-do.
----
Bipartisanship:
Senator Lugar: I'm getting bored with this, Ted. You let me push my wars in Afghanistan and Iran and I'll support your $2 billion to hire more cops and teachers. Okay?
Senator Kennedy: We're getting close, but you get one war or the other, not both. C'mon, I got Harvard AND Williams to worry about.
Lugar: Okay, Afghanistan, then. But I also want that $250 million for Wabash River beautification. Hell, we're borrowing it all from the Chinese, anyway.
Kennedy: Done! Let's go to the Monicle in a bipartisan manner and find a lobbyist to pay and drink martinis and be collegial together.
Without Lugar the Senate is doomed to deadlock. Worse, the era of "collegiality" and "bipartisanship" is in danger of doing a do-do.
----
Bipartisanship:
Senator Lugar: I'm getting bored with this, Ted. You let me push my wars in Afghanistan and Iran and I'll support your $2 billion to hire more cops and teachers. Okay?
Senator Kennedy: We're getting close, but you get one war or the other, not both. C'mon, I got Harvard AND Williams to worry about.
Lugar: Okay, Afghanistan, then. But I also want that $250 million for Wabash River beautification. Hell, we're borrowing it all from the Chinese, anyway.
Kennedy: Done! Let's go to the Monicle in a bipartisan manner and find a lobbyist to pay and drink martinis and be collegial together.
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