Walter In Denver

Heh

Did you know that Peter Bagge, known for Hate and his work in Reason Magazine, among many other things, has a strip in the Weekly World News?

It's called the Adventures of Bat Boy. I actually paid for a copy of the paper instead of reading it while in the check-out line.

Beer Blogging

Friday I was invited to a tasting of the new Breckenridge Brewery product, 471 IPA Reserve. They showed me to a hidden back room, (really!) where there's a quaint wood paneled bar, and they were pouring the stuff into plastic cups.

"What is it?" I asked the fellow behind the bar.

"It's sort of like our Trademark Ale," he answered, "except we doubled everything. Hops, everything."

"It's got an alcohol content of 9.2%. We just measured it this morning." he added.

I drank two. That would be my limit. It's definitely not for wimpy beer drinkers. So far it's available at Breckenridge Brewery locations. Drink at your own risk.

Rocky Mountain Blog Roundup, Version Umpteen

The next go-round will be held next Monday, the 29th. All March posts will be eligible.

While I'm thinking of it I haven't asked for anyone to guest host lately. If you'd like to host just let me know, walter[]walterindenver[]com. All Colorado blogs are welcome.

Also, I have an unconfortable feeling that someone volunteered to host a few weeks back, but I can't find the message. If that was you be assured it's nothing personal, I'm just disorganized. Send me another note and I'll try not to lose it.

The Establishment

The World Wide Rant is two years old, which means it is now Officially an Institution. Andy and Co. may no longer dress in 'business casual,' [or bathrobes] while blogging. Nope, it's all suits and ties from here on out.

That may be the the downside, but on the upside WWR HQ will now be listed on the touristy guides that you find in hotels rooms when you stay in Denver. You can probably get a package deal, see the U.S. Mint and WWR HQ on the same ticket. Have your picture taken with Fiona for only $5 more.

In related news, Coors is planning on making a special edition Rant Lager to be available soon.

Wolves

Plans to re-introduce wolves to the Colorado landscape are getting closer to fruition. It's a controversial idea - wolves are predators which cull the deer and elk populations. They also enjoy a nice juicy calf now and again. That may not seem like a big problem, unless you raise cattle for a living.

So years of study have already been completed, gaging Colorado's suitability for sustaining a healthy wolf population. The decision to start the re-introduction is entirely political, of course, which means there's no reason to think logic will have any influence on the decision. It gives me some pleasure, then, to see wolves taking matters into their own hands, umm, paws:

Wyoming has 234 wolves; Montana has 182, and Idaho about 340, said Ed Bangs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wolf coordinator. This after the animals were wiped out in the region early last century to protect growing livestock herds.

Already a dozen wolves have been spotted as far south as Interstate 80 near Rawlins and Rock Springs, only a day's trot from Colorado

It looks like sooner or later wolves will make their way down here anyway. I have a simple suggestion for the people pushing for new wolf packs in Colorado. Take donations for a fund to compensate ranchers who lose livestock to wolves. It wouldn't take a huge amount of money, probably a few tens of thousands of dollars, and all sides walk away happy.

It's such a simple idea that I wouldn't be surprised if someone is doing it already.

What a Day

The game was great, I met lots of nice people from the ole' alma mater, and then I come home to read this. Vegetarians who eat meat, courtesy of Zomby. Read and laugh.

With Any Luck

Twelve hours from now I should be in Pepsi Center watching UTEP annihilate Maryland.

Go Miners!

You Won't Believe This

At what point would you declare the actions of a government to be tyrannical? I think this would qualify:

WHAT do you give someone who’s been proved innocent after spending the best part of their life behind bars, wrongfully convicted of a crime they didn’t commit?
An apology, maybe? Counselling? Champagne? Compensation? Well, if you’re David Blunkett, the Labour Home Secretary, the choice is simple: you give them a big, fat bill for the cost of board and lodgings for the time they spent freeloading at Her Majesty’s Pleasure in British prisons.

The only possible bright side to this is that there's a legal battle over this, and hopefully there's at least one sane person in the chain of authority who will put a stop to this nonsense.

Via Perry de Havilland.

L's and A's

According to Jonathan Wilde, the great debate of the blogosphere isn't left vs right, but authoritarians against libertarians. I would like to think that's true.

Nederland, Colorado

That's where you'll find Frozen Dead Guy Days, an annual festival. Yes, there is an actual frozen dead guy.

You've just missed this year's event, but it's not too early to start planning for next year.

Can You Believe It?

According to the GAO, lying is just part of the job for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Once again, Ron Paul is one of the few good people in Washington.

Take My Vote, Please

Jim Henley has a complaint, or two, about the Democrats:

Bill Clinton's stalwart guardianship of his own low pleasure rights drove conservatives nuts, but it also obscured how willing Clinton was to throw lesser beings to the lifestyle police - V-chips, drug prosecutions, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and a whole range of minor-to-major paternalisms Clinton either fostered, coopted or just couldn't be bothered fighting. (Remember school uniforms?) If it didn't involve terminating a pregnancy, your right to just about anything was, in Bill Clinton's view, negotiable.

Great. And you and your friends have done what about that? Made it a litmus test for a nomination? Refused to vote for an enthusiastic drug warrior just because he or she bears the Democratic Party stamp of approval in the general election? Worked to elevate anti-prohibition candidates to office?

The advantage of being the minority party is the freedom to espouse reformist policy. Libertarian votes are up for grabs, and I'd consider voting for a Democrat with a reasonable drug policy. What are they waiting for?

Tough to be a Skeptic

I'm going to link to this just because everyone should know:

The Danish Committee on Scientific Dishonesty abetted a vicious ideological environmentalist smear campaign against Bjorn Lomborg by declaring two years ago that his excellent book The Skeptical Environmentalist, was "objectively dishonest." Naturally this accusation hit the headlines. However, in December, 2003, the Danish Ministry of Science and Technology overturned the DCSD kangaroo court's decision and sent it back to them. On futher reflection the DCSD members have now decided that perhaps they'd been a bit hasty and have completely dropped the matter[.]

I don't have anything to add. Follow the link for more info.

Go Miners!

What a remarkable story this year in El Paso. The UT-El Paso basketball team has made its way into the WAC championship with a win last night over Boise St:

UTEP came from nowhere this season, from nowhere to somewhere -- and that somewhere is the championship game of this Western Athletic Conference tournament.

UTEP 85, Boise State 73.
[...]
UTEP was 6-24 one year ago. The Miners now have turned that mark completely upside-down, moving to 24-6 with Friday night's victory.

They play Nevada tonight for the league championship.

Our Old Friends

For you Spanish readers, Madrid newspaper El Pais is reporting a change in the investigation of this morning's bombing. Interior Minister Angel Acebes has announced the finding of evidence of Arabic involvement. He hasn't yet ruled out the Basque seperatists, however.

Link via the World Wide Rant.

Peeve

The bombing in Spain this morning is obviously a horrible tragedy, one with long term ramifications in world politics.

So what's the lead story on KOA radio this morning? The hockey fight. News 4 at noon did the same and then their second story was about the University of Colorado football scandal.

That's pathetic, folks.

Newsflash

"GEORGE MICHAEL will ‘retire’ from the music industry after his current album..."

How will we be able to tell?

Private Regulation

There are some examples of private regulation that work in today's society, sports prominently among them. There are limits to the regulatory authority of sports governing bodies, and we're seeing those limits playing out with the now infamous hockey fight which injured Colorado Avalanche player Steve Moore.

Andy Duncan wrote a bit about private regulation in sport, and how well it works, in Samizdata a couple of months ago. Here's a snip:

Notice, also, that little in the way of policing is required. The referee makes a decision, and that's it. Self-restraint and the need to save face in the 'society' of the game, gets most players obeying 'The Law', though occasionally team-mates and linesmen, acting as proxy-police, are needed to suppress hotspots of dissent. Notice also how powerful this effect of self-restraint becomes, before the face of this flimsy anarchist law. You've got a six-foot-five, 32-inch-waisted, nineteen-stone man, pumped with adrenaline, who has just had his testicles gouged with a bullocking boot, who has retaliated in kind, and who is shouting and remonstrating at an eleven stone referee, and yet the merest display of a red piece of plastic and the point of a finger gets this beast of a man to turn, to walk away, and to obey the instruction to leave 'The Pitch'. Okay, so he's often unhappy, and lip readers refuse to reveal what he's saying on family television, but he does ultimately do what he's told, even if kicking some form of bench, or bench official, on his way off.

So speedy inexpensive legal decisions, competitive judges, competitive systems of law, the lack of a need for much policing, binding second level arbitration, legal stability, and a complete acceptance of all parties as to the ultimate legitimacy of 'The Law'. Ladies and Gentlemen. I give you a fully-functioning anarcho-capitalist legal system, in action. It can work.

There's also an off-field level of regulation in league sports, and Vancouver Canuck player Todd Bertuzzi now finds himself at the mercy of NHL administrators. This case is also being investigated by local police, as the incident was so brutal as to catch their attention. There is a precedent for this action. In 2000, also in Vancouver, hockey player Donald Brashear was severely injured when Marty McSorley hit him in the head with a stick during a game. McSorley was given a lengthy suspension, and he never played in the NHL again. He was also sentenced to probation by the courts. Considering a professional hockey player's salary, losing a career, or even just a big chunk of a season, is a much more serious punishment than anything the courts are likely to impose.

Even Brashear agrees, and he hopes the courts won't get involved in the current case.

It would be useful if sports governing authorities codified the situations where they would prefer law enforcement to get involved. That's a better idea than waiting for lawmakers to do it.

Colorado Races

Nighthorse Campbell won't run for reelection in the Senate, so the race is wide open. Just about any Colorado politician you've ever heard of has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the Senate and all the politicians you've never heard of will run to replace the Senate candidates.

If you live in Colorado you've been reading about it in the paper, and if you don't live here Colorado Luis has helpfully written about it here. And here. Oh, here too.

Not that I care much. If Tancredo runs it might perk things up a bit. Nothing like a little insanity to stir up things. Maybe Tancredo V.S. Salazar.

Recommended

Here's the Libertarian purity test, which I first found via Andrew Olmsted.

I took it twice, and scored 97 and 89. There's some ambiguity in some questions, and the quiz really seems to be testing for anarcho-capitalist purity rather than libertarian.

Update: Gary Farber has questions.

A Connection

You've all heard about the water taxi which capsized off Baltimore. A tragedy, for sure, but it hits home when you find out one of the victims is a Cato empoyee, one of the people working for our betterment.

Radley Balko knew her well.

Bob Barr?

Ex-congressman Bob Barr was targeted by the Libertarian Party for defeat in the primaries during the last election cycle. His hard-line stance against medical marijuana made him a good target, and the LP ran TV ads attacking him on this subject. I don't know if it was the LP's efforts that made the difference, but Barr lost.

Oddly, he seems to hold no grudge. Here's the same Bob Barr:

While I am not a card-carrying member of the Libertarian Party, I must say
that, after speaking to its members and listening to many of their concerns,
I've decided that Libertarians have much to offer Georgians of all political
stripes. I hope the media wakes up and pays more heed to the Libertarian
candidates and the substance of their positions. On many of the issues
comprising its platform, the Libertarian Party of Georgia has staked out a
position strikingly in accord with what I perceive to be positions favored
by mainstream Georgians. For example:

To be sure, the Libertarian Party adheres to some policies that are not shared by most Georgians. Notable among those are its advocacy of loosened anti-drug and anti-obscenity laws, and its pro-choice stance.

Maybe we've been too nice to the political opposition. We just need to beat them to make them like us.

Lots of Good Blogs

...are found in the Carnival of the Capitalists, this week hosted by Catallarchy. It's good to expand the circle of blogs you read now and then.

I don't always write a post that qualifies for inclusion, but I had one this time.

Caracas Protest

A half-million marched today in support of the recall effort against President Hugo Chavez.

I think he has a clear choice; step down or try to violently supress his opponents. The latter choice will likely lead to a long and bloody civil war.

Welcome

If you've come looking for the blog roundup click here. Or just keep reading.

Another Dictator in Latin America

As Hugo Chavez makes progress in turning Venezuela into another brutal dictatorship, the opposition grows. Milos Alcalay, Venezuela's embassador to the UN, has resigned. In announcing his decision, Alcalay listed his reasons:

"[The] situation that has presented itself in the last few days places in danger the three fundamental principles that dictate the functions of a diplomat: respect for human rights, respect for democracy, and the use of diplomatic dialogue as a norm.”
[...]
“The military and police repression against men, women, and children has had painful results. The dead and injured are joined in the news of the disappearance of political leaders, the multiple complaints of torture and other irregularities revealed through the media, national and international. which show our country in a model similar to those totalitarian or authoritarian regimes...which were rejected by the people of Latin America in ...80’s.”

Alcalay is well respected at home, and has survived as UN embassador through several administrations. His resignation could be a sign that larger numbers of Venezolanos won't tolerate Chavez's bloody class warfare. What happens from here is anyone's guess.

Related - Andrew Olmsted says Chavez is a "Castro wanna-be."

Nostalgia

Once upon a time, when blogging was a new thing, there was this one blog. It was a funny, popular blog, and all the cool bloggers linked to it and read it daily. Now, this wasn't just any old blog, no, this blog careened drunkenly from one subject to the next, and it often ran over old ladies and kittens. It was quite a spectacle, usually hilarious, often obscene, sometimes incomprehensible, and always entertaining.

And then it died. Or maybe it was just hibernating, and since August of '02 it's been silent. But just now a few score fresh words found their way to Protein Wisdom.

Time Capsule

Here's a dose of political incorrectness for you:

Ten hundred books could I write you about her
Because I felt if I could know her
I would know all women
And they've not been any too well known
For brains and planning and organised thinking
But I'm sure the women are equal
And they may be ahead of the men

Yet I wouldn't spread such a rumor around
Because one organises the other
And sometimes the most lost and wasted
Attract the most balanced and sane
And the wild and the reckless take up
With the clocked and the timed

That's the opening of a song written by lefty icon Woody Guthrie in 1942. The music was never recorded or set to paper, so when Guthrie died the music was lost. He did write down the words, and more than a half century later Billy Bragg, a noted leftist himself, set those lyrics to music, with spectacular results.

I wonder if Guthrie weren't a leftist if he would be so fondly remembered. Better still, what would happen if a musician sang those words today?