I blame North Carolina’s loss in the NCAA championship game on Gov. Roy Cooper. It’s traditional for mayors and governors to place bets on championship games. If your team wins, I’ll give y’all a big dinner of our famous local product, and if we win I get some of your local product. The idea is to get some friendly press touting a favorite local product. … Continue reading The Folly of Politicians Betting on Championships
I’ve stepped away from endorsement of or involvement in anything involving Congress. I know that if you touch pitch, you’re defiled. I’ll make an exception and strongly endorse passage of the John Tanner Fairness in Redistricting Act. I spent much of my career litigating unfair redistricting plans, and I hope you’ll consider urging your representatives and senators — those of you who live outside the … Continue reading The John Tanner Fairness in Redistricting Act
I haven’t had a lot of eating time in Georgia (i.e., time outside the Atlanta airport) since I started the Blog, and there are no trips on the horizon. That’s a shame because there’s a lot of good barbecue in Georgia. I have reviewed a few good places fairly recently — Heritage Market in Atlanta comes to mind, as does B’s Cracklin’ in Savannah and … Continue reading Georgia Barbecue
Regular readers have met my good friend, Jonathan Breul, most recently here. When not eating barbecue or lobster, Jon is a leading expert in government organization and efficiency. No, really. There is such a thing. At least Jon tells me there is. I’ve never seen it, but Jon has made a distinguished career out of it. Leading governmental and academic institutions suffering dysfunction hire Jon for his … Continue reading Best Government Response to Lockdowns
Many thanks to my good friend Dan Kenney, the genius behind the Coach4aday blog, the host of the Annual Beer Snob Pig Picking, our Senior Carolina Correspondent, and the Master of the Deep Fried Turkey. Dan sent this good news from North Carolina. The much-anticipated — I should say much yearned-for reopening of Wilber’s is very close. The pit has been rebuilt, and they have set … Continue reading Wilber’s, Goldsboro, North Carolina: The Re-Opening Menu is Here!
Barbecue and rocket science both require extraordinary ability and years of hard work and dedication. You might have thought that no one can do both. Not so. Knapp Hudson, our Senior Portland, Maine, Correspondent and a fellow Indian Springs grad, pointed me to an article in Gastro Obscura about an expert in both fields. Dr. Howard Conyers grew up near Paxville, South Carolina, population 158, which … Continue reading Barbecue and Rocket Science
UPDATE: This is a sad, sad day. I just learned from the Barbecue Bros that Smiley’s has closed. The dread North Carolina Department of Transportation has claimed another victim. I really liked Smiley’s. It was one of he places that made Lexington, North Carolina, one of the great barbecue destinations. It is my sincere hope that Smiley’s, like Wilber’s, will rise from the ashes. Note that … Continue reading Is the North Carolina Department of Transportation Anti-Barbecue?
This blog is public spirited, and particularly concerned with education. Recall our criticism of the ahistorical and culturally inappropriate offerings at the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History here in Washington, or our review of the benefits of going to East Carolina for college. Most recently, we promoted science education. We are also concerned with elementary and high school education, and want to publicize Best … Continue reading Excellence in Public Education
I have tuned out of political debates lately, at least to the extent possible here in DC. Politics increasingly seems dominated by name-calling and “gotcha” moments; and ad hominem attacks just irritate me unless they’re really clever. That happens about once in a good year. The political reporting and commentary here in DC mainly involves the horse race — who’s ahead, whether a bill is … Continue reading Finally — A Substantive Political Debate about Something Important
I avoid political posts, in part because this is a family blog. Today, however, s Repeal Day, the anniversary of the ratification of the 21st Amendment, one of my favorites, the one that ended Prohibition, and it is altogether fitting and proper that we mark the day by offering one of the seminal American political speeches, one that set the pattern for much of our political … Continue reading The Whiskey Speech
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