tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post8240071738912667656..comments2024-03-19T07:48:54.021-06:00Comments on Gus Van Horn: Quick Roundup 418Gus Van Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-74627031392290612822009-04-01T17:26:00.000-06:002009-04-01T17:26:00.000-06:00Gotta keep a sharp eye out! Of course, the goatee ...Gotta keep a sharp eye out! Of course, the goatee is so common in Houston that that wouldn't necessarily help you. (On a past visit, one of my brothers noticed this and coined the phrase, "standard Houston goatee.")<BR/><BR/>I did meet someone else who follows the blog yesterday, though.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-91124813312184640352009-04-01T16:51:00.000-06:002009-04-01T16:51:00.000-06:00I didn't know you were at Yaron Brook's talk. I di...I didn't know you were at Yaron Brook's talk. I didn't notice anyone who looked like your "Bitchy Blogger" masthead. Of course, I wasn't really looking.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14647603135214400838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-5962905580631113802009-04-01T16:23:00.000-06:002009-04-01T16:23:00.000-06:00Are you sure that he hasn't effectively outlawed i...Are you sure that he hasn't <A HREF="http://www.newclarion.com/2009/03/two-more-massive-laws/" REL="nofollow">effectively outlawed it</A> already?<BR/><BR/>By the time he's done, he'll have deemed the energy you used to speak anything not at his behest a waste of federal resources and the carbon dioxide in each word a pollutant.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-41779219266044314992009-04-01T14:08:00.000-06:002009-04-01T14:08:00.000-06:00You're right, Doug, but at the same time, when the...You're right, Doug, but at the same time, when the shells are falling all around you, it's sometimes not as easy to do the abstracting. Last week was particularly bad. As I said in an email to friends today, "Obama couldn't be doing more damage to the country if he tried."<BR/><BR/>But I like your outlook on things. And you are very right about the threats to free speech. We lose that, and ...C. Augusthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05860759500684485756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-58236429833277134412009-04-01T14:06:00.000-06:002009-04-01T14:06:00.000-06:00Speaking for myself only, I find that I'm having t...Speaking for myself only, I find that I'm having to get past feeling overwhelmed. <BR/><BR/>Yes, you do have multiple concretes from which to abstract wider principles. That's certainly true, but you still DO have to start SOMEWHERE when commenting on the events of the say.<BR/><BR/>That said, much of what Obama is doing really isn't all that different from what Bush did, but perhaps it stands out more to me as someone for whom the errors of conservatives took time to grasp. New mental habits take time to form, and past errors take time to fully uproot. I'm still sorting that out.<BR/><BR/>In my case, I have less time to blog nowadays, too, so I am trying to figure out whether that is part or all of the source of that feeling for me.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-91455495040548502092009-04-01T13:49:00.000-06:002009-04-01T13:49:00.000-06:00I disagree that the volume of Obama's horrendous p...I disagree that the volume of Obama's horrendous policies is making blogging more difficult. In some ways it makes it easier. It forces us to be intellectual "wholesalers" rather than "retailers" as AR once said. In other words, you can't possibly take these issues on one at a time. It forces us to abstract the wider principles involved. Then, since there is a new concrete everyday, you can cite the new example as further evidence! I think the long run effect of what's happening could be positive if we can get people to think in principle. This is forcing many people to search for a more abstract answer - and we have it. If we don't lose free speech, I think we will see this as a watershed moment in history.The Rat Caphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-72719405924556969772009-04-01T13:24:00.000-06:002009-04-01T13:24:00.000-06:00Hah! Maybe Obama'll name you "National Scapegoat."...Hah! Maybe Obama'll name you "National Scapegoat." The cool thing is that if he does, it'll really be MY fault! <BR/><BR/>But I'll pin the blame for THAT on you, too. Bwahahah!Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-36660510000038096952009-04-01T12:42:00.000-06:002009-04-01T12:42:00.000-06:00"Yesterday, I told C. August that I have found blo..."<I>Yesterday, I told C. August that I have found blogging somewhat more difficult since Obama took office just because of the sheer volume of things he's doing wrong. </I>"<BR/><BR/>What did I do? I didn't think I was doing that many things wrong. I mean, my wife sometimes gets mad at me, but I didn't think I broke the whole economy...C. Augusthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05860759500684485756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-78230960444446675422009-04-01T11:16:00.000-06:002009-04-01T11:16:00.000-06:00It was quite good, but I had not planned to review...It was quite good, but I had not planned to review it, mainly out of force of the habit of normally not blogging local events that I developed during my "anonymous period". (The HR 676 hearing was so bad I made an exception.)<BR/><BR/>My very short take on the virtues of the talk is that Brook opened by immediately demolishing the whole myth that capitalism was even around TO fail to cause the crisis. Later, he moved seamlessly into explaining -- taking the lack of fire in the belly for capitalism on the part of most of its "defenders" as his point of departure -- why the fight for capitalism is a fight for selfishness.<BR/><BR/>He was on offense the whole time.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for asking that question. That talk improved my mood, and you helped me figure out why.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-30118118720844686232009-04-01T10:13:00.000-06:002009-04-01T10:13:00.000-06:00How was Yaron Brook's talk at Rice? Were you plan...How was Yaron Brook's talk at Rice? Were you planning on posting a summary/review?Paul Hsiehhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01779998765205366214noreply@blogger.com