- I expected to be named an alternate in the Missouri delegation. I was (I've seen the submitted delegate list).
- Endorsements from me may be a bad thing or a good thing. At the moment, I have endorsed two candidates -- Mimi Robson for LNC vice-chair (link coming when I know of one) and Shawn Levasseur for LNC secretary.
- I will, of course, attempt to do some blogging and such from the convention. If that's something you want to support financially, see the right sidebar. One reader is already paying my air fare and hotel costs, and I think I have the other expenses in hand, so it's not a matter of dire need -- more a matter of how soon after I'll be able to get motorcycle school and a new vehicle purchase taken care of, as I've put those things off to make this trip (and I have a planned trip to Atlanta in July, for which I'd like to be riding a long-trip-worthy bike).
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Less than a Month Until the Libertarian National Convention
Saturday, April 27, 2024
Wordle 1043 Hint
Hint: You may have one in your eye. If not and if you want one, shop for it during the day -- after twilight they're hard to find.
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First Letter: G
Friday, April 26, 2024
Wordle 1042 Hint
Hint: I'm usually inspired by Wordle, but today's is boring and tasteless.
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First Letter: V
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Wordle 1041 Hint
Hint: To get started on today's Wordle, tell it a little bit about yourself.
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First Letter: I
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
Wordle 1040 Hint
Hint: The answer to today's Wordle isn't hidden, it's in plain sight.
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First Letter: O
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Wordle 1039 Hint
Hint: The Red wanderer in a popular children's playground game of yore.
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First Letter: R
Monday, April 22, 2024
Wordle 1038 Hint
Hint: The most important use for today's Wordle just may be providing light entertainment for cats.
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First Letter: L
Sunday, April 21, 2024
The HMO/PPO Healthcare System Is Not Geared Toward Listening To Patients
The earliest available appointment is in late July. OK, no problem, I'm the one who canceled and these things take time.
- My A1C, which went way up for fully explicable reasons and which I expect to look a lot better three months from now.
- Slighly low sodium, slightly low chloride, and slightly high alkaline phosphatase. I strongly suspect the first two have to do with me spending a lot of time out in hot weather doing yard work, drinking lots of water, and not drinking anything with electrolytes in it during the three days before my bloodwork. Not sure about the last one, but unless it is sustained I don't find it too worrisome in the absence of other markers for liver problems (I've also had my liver looked at in the last few years).
Wordle 1037 Hint
Hint: Mr. Roger is apparently a very cheerful guy, but not someone you'd care to encounter while traveling by sea.
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First Letter: J
Saturday, April 20, 2024
When Otherwise Good Organizations Support Very Bad Things
Wordle 1036 Hint
Hint: To solve today's Wordle, let it shine (your thinking process, that is).
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First Letter: L
Friday, April 19, 2024
Wordle 1035 Hint
Hint: If you gamble on Wordle, today would be a good day to increase your bet.
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First Letter: R
Thursday, April 18, 2024
Wordle 1034 Hint
Hint: There are several sides to today's Wordle. Pick one.
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First Letter: F
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
Wordle 1033 Hint
Hint: Ten percent for the big guy, biblically speaking.
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First Letter: T
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Brief Libertarian National Convention Updates
- RFK Jr. has apparently given up on the idea that he can just waltz into the Washington Hilton and jitterbug out with the Libertarian Party's 2024 presidential nomination.
- While I have not seen the emergence of any "unified slate" of candidates to replace the current Libertarian National Committee regime, several good individual candidates are starting to come forward. More information coming on that as things develop.
- I've been notified of my acceptance as an alternate for the delegation from the great state of Missouri (where I lived most of my life prior to moving to Florida, and where I participated in the party as a member, county party official, state executive committee member, and candidate for / appointee to public office). Yay!
- I'm considering starting a No Particular Order Caucus in time to get literature, stickers, etc. printed up for distribution at the convention. Anyone who's interested in possibly financially supporting said printing (or in what the hell all that means), talk to me privately or in the comments.
Wordle 1032 Hint
Hint: When shopping for ham, you may have to decide between this kind and "butt."
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First Letter: S
Monday, April 15, 2024
More or Less is Objective. Goldilocksism is Subjective.
Since public goods are non-rivalrous and non-excludable, we won’t get enough of them if we rely exclusively on the free market.
Wordle 1031 Hint
Hint: Any project requires certain tools and resources; today's Wordle refers to the process of acquiring those things.
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First Letter: E
Sunday, April 14, 2024
Ritual Car Rental Complaint
- Tamara specifically reserved a medium-sized car -- not a compact, but not a large car or SUV.
- When we arrived to get a car, we were told that they had none of those available ... for the drive she had specifically booked the reservation for, which was from St. Louis to Gainesville. They had a lot full of that type of car, just none they were willing to rent for non-local return.
- So, they were going to "upgrade" us, at our expense. Which is what they ended up doing, although the additional expense was less than the initial quote, probably because we were about to walk out and go to another place.
- There were only three of us, so we didn't need, say, a Lincoln Town Car or a Ford Explorer to comfortably hold five or six.
- We weren't planning to haul a piano or anything. Just the luggage we brought when we flew in (one suitcase total plus our "personal item" carry-ons), plus a few things we picked up in St. Louis (a case of Fitz's root beer, a couple of vinyl LPs, and a few other, small, items). We didn't really need a cargo bay. The back seat and/or a trunk would have been more than sufficient.
- We were driving about 900 miles and preferred a vehicle with good gas mileage.
Wordle 1030 Hint
Hint: This kind of gasbag sometimes has a good year.
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First Letter: B
Saturday, April 13, 2024
Well, I'm Back Home ...
We hit a couple of favorite spots while in town, but nothing major, and just didn't have time to see a bunch of friends we'd have like to visit with.
I did score a copy of an album that I used to own and that had long since disappeared, by a band I saw live many times in Springfield, Missouri, for $2.99 at Vintage Vinyl, which was cool. That only happened because we stopped by Fitz's for root beer, across the street.
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
Wordle 1026 Hint
Hint: If you have today's Wordle, you're already most of the way to having a nice cup of soup.
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First Letter: B
Tuesday, April 09, 2024
Apologies Now ... and in Advance
Wordle 1025 Hint
Hint: You might have two answers in mind for today's Wordle. Try combining them into a single solution.
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First Letter: M
Monday, April 08, 2024
Wordle 1024 Hint
Hint: A subgroup of a species, or the process of creating that subgroup.
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First Letter: B
Sunday, April 07, 2024
Wordle 1023 Hint
Hint: When you want to speak English but you also want to sound French, today's Wordle is an acceptable alternative to "shazam" or "whoomp, there it is."
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First Letter: V
Saturday, April 06, 2024
Wordle 1022 Hint
Hint: A little bird told me that today's Wordle could be about an Alabama lawyer with a daughter he calls "Scout."
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First Letter: F
Friday, April 05, 2024
Wordle 1021 Hint
Hint: The technique for solving today's Wordle may all be in ... today's Wordle!
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First Letter: W
Thursday, April 04, 2024
Wordle 1020 Hint
Hint: There's only one way to become king of the mountain.
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First Letter: C
Wednesday, April 03, 2024
I Don't Find It "Upsetting" That NASCAR Won't Refrain From Having Cars On The Track So I Can Join The Daytona 500 On Foot
Jackass star Steve-O is coming up on 16 years of sobriety, but not everyone is willing to accommodate him as he abstains -- one such person, allegedly, is Bill Maher. In a recent episode from Steve-O’s podcast Wild Ride!, he said Maher’s team reached out to invite him onto Maher’s podcast Club Random, where Maher interviews people while smoking marijuana. ... “I’m a clean and sober guy, approaching 16 years,” Steve-O said. “The Bill Maher podcast, which I saw you on, reached out and they -- his thing is he smokes pot the whole time while he interviews people. And I said ‘Hey, I’d happily go on there but could you, while I’m on, out of respect for my sobriety, could he refrain from smoking pot?” he continued. “He said no, that’s a dealbreaker.”
My First (And Possibly Only) Public Endorsement for Libertarian National Committee ...
- It is my opinion that the entire current LNC owns the consequences of its current term. They should all be strongly considered for replacement, because the current term has been a financial, membership level, and "messaging" disaster. If I'm a Coca-Cola stockholder and the company loses money, loses market share, and runs commercials saying "our beverages taste like ass," my default position will be against re-election of the board running the show. Which is not to say that I won't listen to arguments from incumbents as to why they should be re-elected ("I personally raised this much money, I personally recruited this many members, and I vehemently objected to and voted against the 'tastes like ass' commercials"), but that would be a request for an exception -- as a body this LNC has been a failure of epic proportions.
- While I supported the current secretary for election in 2018 and re-election in 2020, I believe that position in particular is up for a change after three terms, and would be even if the current secretary hadn't become a damaging chaos agent in her second and third terms. I'm just generally a "two terms at most, then out" type, although I've made exceptions.
- Shawn has the record (see the link above for his resume) and he's someone I trust to do the job because he says he's willing and able to do that job. I strongly prefer a long record of party work and demonstrated competence when looking at candidates. When it comes to LNC, I tend to emphasize those factors over ideological agreement.
- But, speaking of ideological agreement, Shawn's long-time support for this blog and other projects of mine indicates to me that while we may not agree on everything, we're at least somewhat on the same general page.
Wordle 1019 Hint
Hint: Today's Wordle could get hairy -- you may have to weave your way to the solution.
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First Letter: P
Tuesday, April 02, 2024
Wordle 1018 Hint
Hint: You surely know today's Wordle -- it's in your blood.
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First Letter: S
Monday, April 01, 2024
Wordle 1017 Hint
Hint: Part of a palm (not the "hand" kind of palm, the "plant" kind of palm).
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First Letter: F
Thanks For Asking! -- 04/01/24
Of course there's an AMA thread this month. It's April Fools' Day, duh.
Sunday, March 31, 2024
Wordle 1016 Hint
Hint: You shouldn't do today's Wordle. Heck, people disapprove of today's Wordle so strongly that you shouldn't even talk about it!
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First Letter: T
Saturday, March 30, 2024
Wordle 1015 Hint
Hint: Variants of today's Wordle include (but aren't limited to) "police," "electromagnetic," and "majeure."
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First Letter: F
Friday, March 29, 2024
For Better Or Worse?
Wordle 1014 Hint
Hint: An actual kingdom, or a metaphor for one.
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First Letter: R
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Wordle 1013 Hint
Hint: Instead of just reading this hint, say it out loud.
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First Letter: S
Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Election 2024: Now The Going Gets Weird (And Maybe The Weird Turn Pro)
Convention Wear, En Route
Wordle 1012 Hint
Hint: Today's Wordle did cause me some sudden pain, but that's all over now.
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First Letter: S
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Ah, A New Research Study!
Wordle 1011 Hint
Hint: Think LaGuardia, or Pepin the Short.
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First Letter: M
Monday, March 25, 2024
A Couple of Early Thoughts on the Libertarian National Convention
Wordle 1010 Hint
Hint: If used as a proper noun, today's Wordle is long, tall, and drives a 1965 Mustang.
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First Letter: S
Sunday, March 24, 2024
Wordle 1009 Hint
Hint: Knowing where today's Wordle is comes in handy, especially if you're 1) wet, 2) a galactic hitchhiker, or 3) both.
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First Letter: T
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Still Not Going Down The Road, But Also Not Feeling Nearly As Bad
Wordle 1008 Hint
Hint: The word for your status if you were dead, but aren't anymore.
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First Letter: R
Friday, March 22, 2024
Not Going Down the Road, But ...
I felt terrible yesterday. So terrible that I ended up not getting a Garrison Center column written. Bad enough to see if COVID-19 is making the rounds in my area again in a big way (it isn't). No fever, just some cough, stomach upset, and general body aches.
I don't feel worse today, but I'm not sure yet whether I feel much better either. Maybe as the day goes on, I will, and feel up to knocking out a late mid-week column today and a weekend column on Sunday. If not, I'll probably just do a weekend column on Saturday and chalk up a miss. A nap should resolve the question!
Wordle 1007 Hint
Hint: Today's Wordle is just nothing but rot.
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First Letter: D
Thursday, March 21, 2024
The March Through May Austerity Agenda
Wordle 1006 Hint
Hint: Looking for the answer to today's Wordle? It's under that tree over there.
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First Letter: S
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Election 2024: More Bad News for Trump
In Which I Agree With Someone Else, and Elaborate as to Why
Kevin D. Williamson at The Dispatch:
Graciela Mochkofsky, dean of CUNY’s graduate school of journalism, has a proposal for the education of new journalists. Headline: 'One Way to Help a Journalism Industry in Crisis: Make J-School Free.' ... Undergraduate journalism education is an entirely worthless endeavor, and journalism majors would be far better off studying almost anything else, from economics to French novels; graduate journalism education is a mostly worthless endeavor, and the real value of prestigious programs such as Columbia’s is in signaling and networking.
While I'm not sure I'd go so far as "entirely worthless" -- to the extent that J-School may teach very specific technical skills for certain varieties of journalism (I'm thinking of video editing and such), it may be useful -- the main elements of every kind of journalism are combined functions of three things:
- Spelling, grammar, and sentence construction that are taught (or at least used to be taught) at the elementary and junior high school levels;
- The five point lede formula, which I learned in a single one-hour session of my junior high school newspaper's class; and
- For specialized variants -- everything from sports to weather to opinion journalism -- experience or education in the specialization rather than the journalism proper.
Wordle 1005 Hint
Hint: Today's Wordle usually refers to a professional or other "in-group" specific subset of language.
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First Letter: L
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
Just In Case ...
Been Scootin'
Wordle 1004 Hint
Hint: The Dude does this.
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First Letter: A
Monday, March 18, 2024
Dog Bites Man: It's the Government's Fault, as Usual
- Something's invented that makes things better; but
- The US government prevents it from being adopted; until
- The US government makes it adoptable, but only under idiotic conditions;
- The US government finally allows it to be adopted; then
- The US government requires it to be adopted whether the car companies are ready to adopt it or not and whether customers want to buy it or not.
Wordle 1003 Hint
Hint: You don't need to eat your Wheaties [TM] before getting to work on today's Wordle, but a bowl of farro wouldn't hurt.
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First Letter: S
Sunday, March 17, 2024
The Very Short Case Against The TikTok Ban Bill
- Code is speech;
- TikTok is code; therefore
- TikTok is speech; and
- "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech"
Wordle 1002 Hint
Hint: A nosy noise, or perhaps a single shot of bourbon.
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First Letter: S
Saturday, March 16, 2024
Wordle 1001 Hint
Hint: Humans just get to pick our poison; some other creatures make their own.
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First Letter: T
Friday, March 15, 2024
Wordle 1000 Hint
Hint: Singular, think lava. Plural, think rash.
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First Letter: E