Thoughts with Whiskey: 2025-09-12

Our beverage tonight:  Weller Antique 107.  Not bad, but I prefer the Weller Reserve (green bottle), which is a great tasting Wheat Bourbon.

Where to begin...

- Yesterday was the 24th anniversary of 9/11 (and the 25th anniversay will be a couple of months after the USA celebrates our 250th birthday), and Charlie Kirk was assassinated earlier this week.  Not a particularly great week for the country.  

Kirk left behind a wife and two children under the age of three.  You don't have to agree with Kirk to think that it's fucked up that he was shot for expressing his views.

Part of the deal of being American is Freedom of Speech.  People say what they like, and we don't arrest or hurt them for what they say.  Yell, argue, call someone an idiot- but anytime someone gets attacked for expressing their views, it's anti-American.  

I didn't like a lot of what Kirk said.  But I liked the fact that he was willing to go to colleges and argue his beliefs.  

I don't talk much politics anymore.  Up until now, I've chalked it up to the idea that neither party really represents me, and that debating doesn't lead to any actual insight, just pointless arguing.  But now I'm wondering if part of it is cowardice- I don't want to upset my friends by disagreeing with them.  Or strangers.  And if the implied message of the shooting of Charlie Kirk is "Don't speak up... or else."  Then the proper response is to speak up twice as loud.

(speech over.  I'll move onto lighter subjects now)

- Gene editing technology is showing promise to cure diabetes.  The potential for mRNA is limitless in what it can possibly do.  This might actually lead to the cure for cancer, dementia, neurogenerative diseases like ALS.

I recently invested in the stock market in an ETF of genetic companies like CRISPR technologies.  I am optimistic about the future of medicine.

- In fact, I really wish we'd take half the money given to AI and spend it on Gene editing; I suspect it could advance cure by years if not decades.

I'm an AI-skeptic.  I don't think it's a fraud (like I do with Cryptocurrency).  But it's overblown, and certainly not worth the billions of dollars that has been invested in it.  Right now, it's nothing more than a slightly more user-friendly search engine.  Cute, but not a significant technological advance to us.

And if it does turn out to deliver what has been promised... and take over a large number of the jobs... then what?  You can't have a world where 50% of the population is not just unemployed but unemployable.  

I suspect a lot of people who are investing in AI are thinking of the benefits without thinking seriously about the consequences.  And that's if it delivers; much more like, the investment will be wasted.

- OK, time to actually get lighter in subjects:

- The Pink Floyd music retrospective is nearing the end- only three more studio albums left.  It's been a fascinating review.  My plan is to pick another artist in 2026, but I'm not sure who to pick.  

- The Kawhi Leonard story continues to amaze me.  First, Pablo Torre may be doing the best reporting in any field right now.  This is the second significant story that he's broken with a lot of evidence.  

Second, the NBA has to come down hard on the Clippers, even if there isn't more of a 'smoking gun'.  If they don't, they have just approved a blueprint for a salary cap workaround for every team in the NBA.  The NBA will be like MLB- which is great if you want to see the same six teams contend every year.  

I'm going to predict the NBA will hurt the Clippers- maybe not five 1st round draft picks, but at least 3, and possibly suspend Steve Ballmer from interacting with the team for a couple of years.   

Thoughts with Whiskey: 2025-07-11

Tonight's beverage:  Weller Special Reserve.  For the price and availability, probably the best value in my opinion.

Currently reading:  The Innovators.  Walter Isaacson is a great writer, and the history that led to the computer- from the theories of Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace through the invention of the transistor, microchip, and computer- is a powerful story.  I'm learning a lot.

Currently playing:  Nothing.  I have an issue where computer games with first person perspective usually gives me vertigo.  Could use a good new PC game (preferences are for mystery/puzzle/RPG games).  Recommendations are welcomed.

Current recommendation:  Game Changer, from Dropout.  It's a simple formula- take a bunch of comedians, put them in a game where they don't know the rules, and run with it (Taskmaster operates on the same principle, and the episodes are free on youtube).  This year's games have been utterly chaotic and brilliant, and Game Changer alone is worth getting Dropout.

The Pink Floyd retrospective continues next week.  I've known the band's most famous albums, but almost nothing of their earlier stuff.  It's a fascinating group- musically talented, with a lot of ideas- but with their early albums they are still trying to put it all together.  It's not until their eighth album that it finally comes together.  The journey is long but it's worth it.

Thoughts with Whiskey: 2025-05-25

Current drink:  Maker's Mark.  Not my favorite bourbon, but extremely solid, and a great deal for the price.

• Finished the episode "Who Are You?" from the show Andor.  Absolutely brilliant.  One reason it works is that it's the first show since the 1977 original movie to make the Empire actually competent and scary (the later movies made the Sith scary and the Empire as just their lackeys).  A good guideline for Star Wars is that the more emphasis they put on the Force, the weaker the world gets.

• I'd like to thank Tyrese Haliburton for being the NBA villain they didn't know they needed.  He and the Pacers are both very good and very obnoxious.  Part of me roots for them to lose- the other part wants them to win it all this year so my beloved Cleveland Cavaliers can knock them off next year.

• The House passed the "Big Beautiful Bill" this past week.  Two thoughts:

• Speaker Mike Johnson is, much like Nancy Pelosi and Mitch McConnell, really good at his job.  He twisted enough arms to get the bill passed when it seemed unlikely.
• I'm an old school Conservative.  I like tax cuts, and I think the government overspends.  But with a current debt at over $36 trillion and a current deficit at over $1 trillion (that's over $1,000,000,000,000.00), we really need spending cuts and tax hikes.  This bill does nothing to deal with the debt seriously

• Current game:  The life and suffering of Sir Brante.  Fascinating "Chose Your Own Adventure" type game going over an entire life.  Really enjoying it

Everyone have a great holiday:  Some Gave All 

Thoughts With Whiskey: 2025-05-16

Today's beverage:  Weller Special Reserve.  Probably the best value for bourbon, in my humble opinion.

* The Cleveland Cavaliers of 2024-2025 may be one of my favorite teams to have ever followed, and it was heartbreaking to see them go out in the 2nd round of the playoffs.  I would run it back with the same players; stability is criminally underrated in basketball, and I do think this was a learning experience (though a painful one) for them.  

* Watching season 2 of "Andor" now.  Best Star Wars tv show, even over the Mandalorian.  My plan is to finish the season and then rewatch "Rogue One".    And it continues my theory that the less involved the Force are in the Star Wars Universe, the better.

* I'd chat about politics... but what's the point?  I want my elected officials to be competent, decent, and boring.  Text me when that option becomes available.  

* Pete Rose and 'Shoeless' Joe Jackson are now eligible to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.  I lived in Kentucky when Rose broke Ty Cobb's record, and he was deified in that part of the country.  He was a great baseball player and horrible human being.  Though I suppose the same also applies to Ty Cobb and others who are actually in the Hall of Fame.  

* Be well, everyone.  It's rough out there.  

Thoughts without Whiskey- 2024-07-06

Too early in the morning to drink...

• Politics:  Biden needs to step aside, today.  He's 82, and he's already shown that he is not capable of being President today, let alone for four more years.  It's tragic- I actually don't think he's done a bad job, given the problems of the past four years- but for the good of the nation, he needs to announce he won't run for re-election

• Politics 2:  At this point, unless Kamala Harris steps aside (and why should she), she would be the natural replacement as the Democratic nominee.  I admit she hasn't impressed me as a politician; she's all right talking to people that already agree with her, but the President also needs to address people who either disagree with her or are unsure.  On that front, she's been terrible so far.  There are issues that work in her favor (abortion, crime) and issues that work against her (immigration, inflation).  But that applies to every politican.  We will find out if she is up to the task.  Harris and the party has four months to make the case- and the chances of her winning are much better than if Biden remains on the ticket.

• Politics 3 (last one):  If I'm a Democrat (I'm not), or I'm a person who hates the thought of Trump winning (I am), then I am furious at the Biden White House.  They've known he's been having problems for months.  People have seen several video clips of him forgetting, appearing lost, stumbling.  But rather than acknowledge this, they covered it up, did not give the press a chance to interview him, and blocked any primary challengers.  

It's now July, it's almost the convention, and the public only just now has discovered how far gone Biden is.  Worse, Biden has announced that he's staying in- and because he has the delegates, I don't think the Democratic Party can block him.  

Trump went through a Primary.  I don't like it, but the GOP has decided he's their standardbearer, and they had a fair chance to test him and replace him.  The Democrats didn't with Biden.  

If Trump wins in 2024, the people who covered for Biden deserve the blame.

 

• Sports:  The Cavaliers signed Donovan Mitchell.  Mitchell's an outstanding player, and he is showing that he wants to be the team leader (look at how he was encouraging his teammates during the playoffs games, even when he was injured).  The Cavs have a lot of talent, and hopefully the new coach Kenny Atkinson can elevate the team.  Given the moves by the rest of the Eastern contenders, they will need to step up.

• Writing:  My friend Don Mewha has written a book.  I'm jealous.  During COVID I tried to write a superhero story.  I did finish the story, sent it out to try and get published, got rejected soundly, and put it aside.  (Though if anyone wants to Beta read it, send me a message)

I've got a couple ideas germinating in my head, but I'm trying to figure out if I have the time and energy to try again.  It would be something different.  It's definitely a better way to spend my time that trying to beat Grimdawn on Hardcore mode.

Thoughts with Whiskey- 2023-09-14

Tonight's Drink of Choice:  Blade and Bow Bourbon.

* Just returned from a vacation to the Northwest (Portland, Seattle, Vancouver).  It's a gorgeous part of the country- mountains and ocean, not too hot nor too cold.  The scenery is outstanding.  It's expensive, and the traffic is a nightmare- but I completely understand why people love that part of the country.  I love living in Ohio- but I think that part of the country would be my second choice.

* Seattle and Vancouver were fun.  Portland... not so much.  The city has fallen badly since the last time I went there (over 10 years ago).  It's an example of The Broken Window Theory- visible signs of crime and disorder lead to worse conditions.  All three cities had grafitti- only Portland looked (and felt) dirty.  All three cities had homeless people- Portland was the only one of the three that felt unsafe.  

*  But Oregon itself?  Fantastic!

Oregon is beautiful

* The GOP is opening an inquiry to look at Impeaching President Biden:  Of course they are. 

Here's the thing- Biden did do something wrong.  The evidence is clear that Hunter Biden allowed himself to be paid millions of dollars by Burisma, because they believed that having Hunter meant access to (then Vice-President) Joe Biden.  It was an obvious conflict of interest, and Joe Biden should have been much more forceful in vowing that there would be no undue influence.  

Was it wrong?  Absolutely.  Is it impeachable?  Anything is impeachable if you get enough votes.  But I don't think most voters would say Biden should be removed from office over it.

Here's the dilemma- Constitutionally, Impeaching is the only way Congress has to condemn bad behavior from the President.  When your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.  When your only tool is Impeachment- everything looks impeachable.  We're going to see a lot more Impeachment hearings in the future unless this gets changed- no matter who the President is.

So we'll go through this hearing, taking up our time, when what Congress needs is some partial measure- a declaration of condemning the President's behavior- that could be argued, voted on, and moved on.  

* Football season has started, and for the first time in almost a decade, I'm in a fantasy football league.  I sat down the wrong QB, but somehow managed to win the game.  Don't ask me how.  

* I do feel bad for fans of the New York Jets.  They went all in on winning this year, and now their season is over when Aaron Rodgers tore his ACL.  I root for Buffalo (and how the hell did they lose that game?), and I felt bad for the Jets.

Thoughts with Whiskey- 2023/05/07

Haven't posted in a while, and drinking a Buffalo Trace Bourbon to end the week and ponder some random stray thoughts...

* I don't even care enough about the Royal Family to make fun of them.  If you have an opinion about them, one way or another, great.  

* Overdue to get back on eating healthier...  with the weather getting warmer, going to try making fruit smoothies for breakfast.  Adding some spinach for health and peanut butter for protein and fat.  

* Hated seeing the Cavs lose badly in the first round.  I know they are a young team, and I hope they learn from this and come back next year.  

* Never would have guessed that James Harden would thrive in the playoffs.  If the 76ers get to the Finals, it elevates his place in NBA history.

* The national debt is over 31.5 trillion dollars.  And yet no one in Washington DC is serious about addressing this.  Which means one of two things- either they believe the debt isn't a real problem, or they think it's a problem that the cure (higher taxes and spending cuts) is so much worse that they can't apply it.  I think it's a serious problem that needs to be addressed immediately, and I hope I am wrong.  

* Finished season 3 of The Mandalorian and Season 2 of Single Drunk Female.  Looking for a new show to binge.  Any recommendations?

Thoughts with Bourbon: Rank Punditry (VP Pick) edition

 Making a prediction and locking it in on August 7th, 2020:

Susan Rice will be Joe Biden's Vice President.

(Note:  This will likely be proven right or wrong within the week.  If it's wrong... it won't be the first time I've made a bad judgement).

Here's my reasoning:

1)  Biden guaranteed back in March that he would pick a female VP.  This could be seen as grovelling- or it could be that he already knew who his VP was going to be, and since he already had it locked in, why not make the guarantee?

2)  Biden, I think, wants a VP who will act like him when Biden was President Obama's VP- a trusted advosr, the last person in the room before the President makes his decision.  From what I understand, Rice and Biden got along very well during the Obama adminsitration.  If Biden trusts her, he could see her fulfilling the role he played for President Obama.

3)  Biden wants to make 'his' pick.  If he picks Harris or Duckworth, he will be seen as caving to pressue.  There is no good political reason to pick Rice- therefore, if she is chosen, it must be because he believes she is the best person qualified for the job.

Now, the big question- is she?

She's a former National Security Advisor and former Ambassdor to the UN.  Her credentials in foreign affairs are serious and legitimate.  

The bad news is that she's never run for elected office, and she lost the opportunity be Secretary of State because of the Benghazi debacle.  No one really knows how she'll react under the spotlight of a national election.

Politically, I think she's a poor choice because she doesn't have elected experience, and because the GOP will bring up Benghazi for several months.  The paradox is that, while I think she's a poor political choice, my respect for Biden will increase.  There's no reason to pick Rice for VP (as opposed to Secretary of State) unless he truly believes she's the best person for the job.

Biden's 78.  At his age, who his Vice President is carries significant weight.  Susan Rice wouldn't be my choice- but I think she will be Biden's.

Thoughts with Scotch: Quarantine Edition

Been a couple of months since I posted.   A few random thoughts:

* I'm watching "The Wire" and halfway through Season 3.  I've heard many people praise it as the greatest show of all time- and I might end up agreeing with them.  The stories and the characters are fantastic.  I loved "Homicide:  Life on the Streets", and that show seems like the warm-up for this show.

* My weight was going up, but I'm working on my diet again.  Over a year on a Pescetarian diet, and no craving for meat.  

* No sports to discuss, and the sports podcasts I listen to are focussed on the Michael Jordan documentary.  I don't disagree that he's not the great basketball player of all time.  I just don't want to watch a 10 episode documentary on him.  

* Collecting the 2020 Topps Heritage set, which is styled after my favorite baseball card set of all time (the Topps 1971 set).  I suspect this will be the last individual set I put together;  after this, I will look for collecting certain players or mini sets.

* I've given up trying to post or even comment on world events.  I'm too tire and frustrated, and for my own sanity I'm working on the things I can.  I'm ignoring the forest for the trees, because I can do something about the trees.

Be well and stay safe, everyone

Thoughts with Whiskey: Politics

I've been drinking some Aberlour Scotch and cursing trade wars and thinking...

1)  This week, I'm getting a vasectomy.  I'm making jokes about it (the wife keeps referring to the "Cone of Shame", and I've made comments form 'Gonads to 'Gone-ads').  I'm not worried about it (I've had a kidney taken it- this should, in theory, be a piece of cake), but I admit a little bit forlorn.  I'm almost 48; I know I'm too old to be a father.  And I knew years ago that I wasn't going to be one, and that I'd probably be too lenient to be a good father.  But there are still regrets, and the thoughts of "What if...".  

2)  Changing to something less personal... I'm watching High Fidelity on Hulu, and highly recommend it.  The movie was great, and I think the series is even better.  Zoe Kravitz is awesome in the Rob role

3)  The next debate is tonight.  Honestly unless something happens in the next week, I suspect Bernie Sanders will be the Democratic Nominee.  Which sucks from my point of view, because I think both candidates are so awful that neither deserve my vote.  I'll abstain, hope from gridlock, and get a pre-boarding ticket for the Nikki Haley 2024 bandwagon.

4)  I might as well post it here to put extra pressure of myself- my goal in 2020 is to finish the book I've started.  When it's complete, I'll be asking for beta readers.

And on that note, time for me to finish my drink and head.  Peace, my friends.