The Iconoclast's Review (Book) http://www.Writing.Com/main/profile.php/blog/ericthefred In the immortal words of Buffalo Springfield, "Nobody's right if everybody's wrong." Impeccable logic out of the mouths of hippies and young rockers. I've been watching Occupy Wall Street with something akin to nostalgia. I can't help it; I was in elementary school during the height of the Vietnam War and the Hippie movement, a...[Read Full Post] Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:18:36 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/736164 "I do not think it means what you think it means." Yes, I know that this quote outs me as a hopeless Princess Bride wonk, but not only is Inigo Montoya one of my all-time favorite movie characters, his words are an appropriate place to start this article. I suffered a severe case of face-palm damage the other day while standing in a check-o...[Read Full Post] Thu, 06 Oct 2011 16:20:57 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/734953 Let's talk about the real problem, shall we? Lately, our national body politic has become largely fixated on the soaring budget deficit and what awful consequences it will have in the imminent future. I do not in any way dispute the gravity of this problem, but I almost without fail disagree with the solutions that the people on TV offer. The r...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:37:34 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/734952 I know the line is usually quoted as "The Emperor isn't wearing any clothes!" (which isn't right either) but this conjures up storybook illustrations of the monarch parading down the street in his underwear. Frankly, Mr. Andersen never mentioned tighty-whities. Did you know that we have an emperor in America? His name is Public Opinion...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:35:57 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/734951 Ulteriorly Motivated, my abortive first attempt at a political column disguised as my WDC blog page, died a slow painful death shortly after the 2008 elections. I had a half-written article about President Obama and how, despite the fact I did not vote for him (my vote went to Bob Barr) I was glad that he won. I thought it was wonderful that never...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:28:51 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/734950 I never liked the politics of David Lloyd George, the PM of England during WWI, but he left us one very astute piece of advice: "Don't be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated; you can't cross a chasm in two small jumps." You may recall I mentioned the election as being your one chance to communicate with the world, and especia...[Read Full Post] Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:21:56 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/616416 The thing about being a Libertarian is, when someone steals your yard sign, you don't know who to blame, the Republicans or the Democrats. But it did make me feel good to think that at least one of them sees us as a threat. I try not to brag on my kids, but they make it difficult. Anyway, it's actually on topic this time, so bear with me. I...[Read Full Post] Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:23:31 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/614871 I feel a little guilty that I haven't responded to any comments on my last entry, yet I'm back with another. Sorry, but I've been a little under the weather. Same excuse for the long delay between posts. Thanks everyone who has emailed, rated, or commented. I'll reply individually as soon as I catch up some. One of my all-time favorite ...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 13:02:57 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/614556 An old joke among pilots goes, "The key to air safety is to keep your total number of takeoffs in balance with your total number of landings." I find this nugget much the same as the wisdom ricocheting around web pages and news channels lately. Every bit of it seems to be simultaneously sound and useless advice. At the start of the biggest world...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 13:01:00 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/612424 Except for this paragraph, my first post is the same as my original 'Blog Description', but I wanted to put it here as an entry so that I could replace the description with something shorter. To everyone reading, hail and well met. Welcome to my blog, and I look forward to your comments. Introduction I face the Ameri...[Read Full Post] Sun, 25 Sep 2011 12:58:50 EDT http://www.Writing.Com/main/books/entry_id/611902