The Defenestration of Centrally Devised Plans

 I guess one theme of the past month has been "life is what happens when you make plans."  Today was a fine example of that, as I had scheduled a bunch of interviews for today and tomorrow to save the rest of the week for other things.  And, of course, some of these interviews were moved to later in the week (begging the question of why they were scheduled in the first place, but yes, stuff happens) so now everything is strung out.  This did free up time for another interview set up by a recruiter (my esteem for these types rising momentarily) but on the whole it was...frustrating.  At least I had some good chats today and the expectation is that there will be more of the same tomorrow.  Also, my blood sugar has been low most of the day -- after being high -- so my plan for a gym double was scotched.  Sigh.  Let's hope tomorrow is a bit...smoother.  I was able to get a sheaf of food pantry paperwork and budget stuff out the door, so there is that.  I am sure the Board loves my newfound attention to these details (to say nothing of Downtown) but ideally this will not be a permanent feature.

Why is Joe Biden so unpopular? (yahoo.com)
I got a kick out of this, and then I decided to check out the comments, and I think they are spot on; inflation really hasn't been settled, wages have not caught up with price hikes, and no one seems to think that Washington has a plan to solve this -- not even the "Whip Inflation Now" type.  When you add in the other things -- the gaffes, the odd family items, etc. -- it doesn't make people feel confident.  Now, of course, because we are Republicans, our ability to screw up the slam dunk cannot be doubted, but... between the candidates (starting at the top) and the policies, I smell catastrophe in 2024.

Government by Reason—or by Passion? | City Journal (city-journal.org)

I rather like Dr. Guelzo, and I read this thing recalling to mind his sonorous voice, which boosted my enthusiasm.  Funny, of course, with all that is going around with Issue 1, and one can imagine both sides adopting his arguments -- that unbridled passions are extremely problematic for a democracy (hence the need for an electoral supermajority) and that the voice of the people must be respected (like it or not).  I suspect Abe would not be for Issue 1 but on the other hand, as the article noted, he was certainly aware of the dangers of the passionate mob, and sadly these types seem to be ascendant nowadays...