Oh, those bitter clingers!

News flash: Presidential candidate Barack Obama says I’m not going to take your guns away in front of a hand-picked crowd of Democratic supporters in Duryea, Pennsylvania — and they don’t believe him. No, that was not a hook for an anti-Obama rant. Obama’s unbelievability on this issue is only partly his own individual fault.… Continue reading Oh, those bitter clingers!

McCain makes a bold move

Picking Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential nominee was a clever and gutsy thing for John McCain to do. I think he has just wrong-footed the Democrats on several levels. First, this choice looks bold and change-making in exactly the way Obama’s choice of Biden did not. Instead of a tired old pol with a history… Continue reading McCain makes a bold move

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Categorized as Politics

Why I hate identity politics

I was born with a congenital defect. That’s a value-free statement that nobody can conceivably insult me by repeating. It is a fact that I have cerebral palsy, probably caused by neonatal oxygen deprivation. It is a fact that my central nervous system (specifically the motor-control areas of my right temporal lobe) does not function… Continue reading Why I hate identity politics

A welcome outbreak of sanity

Instapundit links to this interesting news story: Texas school district lets teachers, staff pack pistols. While this is a step in the right direction, I think it does not go far enough. I think all teachers, day-care staff, and other adults in loco parentis for groups of children should be required to carry firearms on… Continue reading A welcome outbreak of sanity

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Categorized as Firearms

The Great Skank Question

Monica Lewinsky. Rielle Hunter. I’d haul out the tired old Marx quote about history repeating itself as farce, but l’affaire Lewinsky was pretty farcical to begin with. As I looked at images of Hunter and Lewinsky, though, I was struck by a question: If power is, as is so often claimed, the ultimate aphrodisiac, why… Continue reading The Great Skank Question

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Categorized as Sex

George Lakoff Framed Himself

I’ve been a fan of George Lakoff’s writings on cognitive linguistics since reading Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things around 1990. Later, I observed his foray into political advocacy with increasing concern for him as the trajectory from expected savior to derided scapegoat became increasingly obvious. Now, the Chronicle of Higher Education gives us a retrospective,… Continue reading George Lakoff Framed Himself

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Categorized as Politics

Sword Camp 2008: Tactics Day, Day Four

Tuesday was Tactics Day. It opened with a class on ground analysis; how to match your tactics to the ground you have to fight on. We analyzed a particular area of the site for access and escape routes, cover, concealment, impediments to movement, and the way all these affect possibilities for attack and defense.

Sword Camp 2008: MacGyver Day, Day Two

Tuesday was designated MacGyver Day — all about cleverness, improvisation, and thinking outside the box. This sounded like fun, right enough, but what I was really looking forward to was…holmgang.

On the road in Michigan

Blogging (and my responses to comments) will be light for the next two weeks. I’m on the road in Michigan, attending a week-long swordfighting intensive that starts tomorrow, then I’ll be at the World Boardgaming Championships for a week after that.

What D&D character am I?

Most what-kind-of-X-are-you quizzes are superficial jokes. I just found one that seems better constructed than the average, and as an old-time D&D fan I couldn’t resist it. Here’s the paste from my results, with a link: I Am A: Neutral Good Human Wizard (7th Level) Ability Scores: Strength-14 Dexterity-10 Constitution-16 Intelligence-15 Wisdom-14 Charisma-15 Alignment:Neutral Good… Continue reading What D&D character am I?

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Categorized as General

A Brief History of Firearms Policy Fraud

The Heller vs. D.C. ruling affirming that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to bear arms was a major civil-rights victory building on 15 years of constitutional scholarship. Accordingly, we owe a great deal of thanks to principled and dedicated legal academics including Don Kates, Dave Kopel, and the blogosphere’s own InstaPundit (aka Glenn… Continue reading A Brief History of Firearms Policy Fraud