19th Century
When Popes Took Coke
The rise and fall of coca wine Coca leaves have been used as a stimulant in South America for over a thousand years, especially in the Andes to overcome the fatigue of living and working [more…]
America
America
Bashar al-Assad’s Journey
As we stand on the cusp of the Syrians and Turks continuing diplomacy by other means it may be an opportune time to have a quick look at Bashar al-Assad. The son of the former [more…]
America
Queerness, Civilization and its Discontents
Foreward: I’m cross posting this in a couple of places. It’s bound to be a dramatically unpopular piece wherever I post it, but I’m providing it in hopes to stir thought on the subject, if [more…]
America
Jeri Ryan and Barack Obama
Jeri Ryan, or you may know her better as Seven of Nine from Star Trek Voyager, and Bathhouse Barry you say, what can they possibly have in common. Seven of Nine is fiction and Bathhouse [more…]
America
President Donald Trump Rally – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Start time 1.00 am. Featured image: Gage Skidmore – Licence CC BY-SA 2.0
20th Century
Tyler Gatewood Kent
Those of you who have defied all tradition and read my ramblings about The Right Club may just remember the name Tyler Kent. He was the cipher clerk at the US Embassy who was passing [more…]
America
Keeping Economics Simple
The US Department of Defence is a major customer of many private sector suppliers, including the Boeing Company. Although relationships between customer and supplier are mutually beneficial, that is by no means the only reason [more…]
America
Is There an Economic Justification for Tariffs?
A tariff is a tax on imports that is used to satisfy a policy goal. Before the federal income tax became law in 1913, the US federal government was funded almost entirely by tariffs and [more…]
America
An Eventful Ride, Part Four
Bestie and I were sat in our booth at the gas station’s restaurant at Lee Vining, looking down over Mono Lake. I was still thinking about Clint’s brilliant film “High Plains Drifter”, for this weird [more…]