Kauffman, Soap, and Dirty Dollars
Bill Kauffman is great. In this piece, he writes about Eisenhower's isolationist/pacifist family members. Interesting stuff, and it ends with this point to ponder: "Since 1941, war has warped American life. Only the doddering and the dotards among us have lived in an America that is not armed, aggressive, and perpetually at war. If you would seek those who know what an America at peace is like, visit the nursing home." * * * * * * * I'm mid-way through his most-recent book: Bye Bye, Miss American Empire: Neighborhood Patriots, Backcountry Rebels, and Their Underdog Crusades to Redraw America's Political Map. It sets out to make the case that the United States could become a confederacy again, or maybe a nation with more than 50 states, or maybe at least a nation that again respects the Tenth Amendment. It's pretty interesting. He knows the idea of the U.S. breaking apart into smaller countries seems quixotic, but he points out that the idea of the USSR breaking apart would've seemed quixotic in 1980. * * * * * * * Yikes. Anybody else here ever try this? I Haven't Used Soap or Shampoo in a Year, and It's Awesome. No, it's not a French guy (if it were, you could delete "in a Year" from the headline). It's a guy who thinks American marketing has mendaciously made us think we need soap and shampoo to be clean, but we really don't. Jeffrey Tucker published a similar piece about shaving cream awhile back. I tried Tucker's advice and found that it works, as long as (i) the razor is sharp, and (ii) you use a little soap. Maybe I'll try going soap-less/shampo-less. I'll have to ponder it. * * * * * * * Kinda unsettling: "The Commonwealth of Virginia introduced House Resolution No. 557 to establish a joint subcommittee to 'to study whether the Commonwealth should adopt a currency to serve as an alternative to the currency distributed by the Federal Reserve System in the event of a major breakdown of the Federal Reserve System.'" Link. My hunch: It's an anti-Fed gimmick by the bill sponsor, but hey, it's not a bad idea to have a back-up plan in these troubling times. Utah apparently agrees.
