In Robert C. Townsend’s invaluable book of business advice Further Up The Organization, he proposes that every company institute a unique executive position: VP in Charge of Killing Things: It’s about eleven times as easy to start something as it is to stop something. But ideas are good for a limited time—not forever…. …
Category: anarchism
Jan 21 2023
Tirade #2
Stand back, Gentle Reader. This could get ugly. I’m about to vent. *** Mostly, I eschew watching videos of more than two or three minutes’ duration. I read very fast, and I much prefer to absorb information that way. Thus, the time spent watching a video is almost always several times what reading …
Jan 16 2023
Allies And Enemies Of Nature
A dynamic is a tendency powered by natural needs and drives, and the incentives that pertain to them. Of course, there’s quite a bit of static thrown about concerning what’s natural and what isn’t. However, the people who claim that drives built into our bodies and minds are merely the consequences of our upbringing …
Jan 31 2022
Why I Wrote And Promote The Spooner Federation Books
Regular Gentle Readers have noticed that I’ve been indirectly touting this novel recently. A couple have expressed curiosity about it: “If you’re going to sneak pitches for your novels into your op-eds, why that book? It’s one of your oldest.” One, whom I know more personally than most of my other readers, went even …
Jan 30 2022
Conditional Property
Have you ever seen the phrase above? I’ve encountered it only once, and that was in a fictional context: “What made you think that I’d accept a gift of this kind?” “It is not a gift, Mr. Rearden. It is your own money. But I have one favor to ask of you. …
Jan 27 2022
Just In Case I’ve Never Mentioned This Before…
…there is a novel – a remarkably brave and optimistic novel – that addresses the possibility of an America without government. It’s clear-eyed; it allows that there would be some difficulties and some dangers. It also allows that such a project would probably have a limited lifetime. But it is among the most cheerful …
Jan 03 2015
The Tirade Of Tirades
Now the rainman gave me two cures, Then he said, “Jump right in.” The one was Texas medicine, The other was just railroad gin. And like a fool I mixed them And it strangled up my mind, And now people just get uglier And I have no sense of time. If you’re around my age …