“He really wouldn’t think he has built that gun, would he?”—Chief Justice John RobertsIn his seminal article, I, Pencil, Leonard Read shows that, “not a single person on the face of this earth knows how to make [a pencil].” Sure, the pencil maker knows how the near-finished parts are assembled, but the pencil maker does not possess complete knowledge of how those constituent parts—the paint, metal, eraser—were made. Nor does he know how the inputs to those parts were made, and so on. And the pencil maker does not even know how the machines he employs, or their constituent parts, were made. He simply knows how to utilize his capital structure in a manner that takes near-finished parts and modifies and assembles them into pencils.This true proposition leads to its corollary: not a single

Before anyone gets their hopes up about a reduction in government expenditures resulting from the upcoming Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), remember that, once rolling, a log rolls in one direction—downhill—until stopped. But have any of us ever tried stopping a log as it accelerates down a hill?The LogAh, the log.

A few years ago, I bought a unique item. When I first became aware of it, I was intrigued and interested, but the price was $50 more than I was willing to pay ($450 versus $400). Wanting it, at my price or less, I kept watch over various websites looking for a sale price that matched my price point. After a number of months searching, I found a site that offered the item for $390 and I bought it.Now, since the manufacturer has gone out of business—a victim of covid—the value of the item on the used market sometimes exceeds twice what I originally paid. Since mine is in great condition, I assume it could garner the higher price. However, I also claim that I wouldn’t now pay that price for it—I value my $850 more than the item.At least that is what I claim. And I am not making that claim to

“Jeremy Bentham however pointed out that the use even of a single name may imply a Petitio Principii [Question-Begging Epithet].”—W. Stanley JevonsJevons continues,Similarly in Parliament a bill is often opposed on the ground that it is unconstitutional and therefore ought to be rejected; but as no precise definition can be given of what is or is not constitutional, it means little more than that the measure is distasteful to the opponent.“Democracy” is also a word with no precise meaning, one that means whatever the user deems it to mean. Sure, the technical definition is rule by the people, but that rule takes many forms. Is it rule through plebiscites or representatives, or a combination of both? Do all have a right to vote, or is voting limited to some? Are the people constrained by a

Where’s Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead? Seriously, what list of the greatest rock guitarists of all time would not—could not—include him? Sure, I know the internet article was just some teaser to get me to mindlessly click through an ad-laden list.

The annoyance of government edicts, no matter how petty, challenge my emotional equilibrium in a manner different from the various vagaries of life. Sure, I do not want to experience something such as a flat tire, but neither do I want to deal with pointless tasks required to satisfy a whim of the state, though, in the balance, the former I accept like a mosquito on a hot summer’s night, while the latter aches like a hammer to my thumb.