Wednesday again

Warning: below follows unedited stream of consciousness as usual.

I hope everyone is doing well. Johnny and I are on our way to West Virginia for today and tomorrow. I'm going in pursuit of a couple of job opportunities and Johnny is going to take care of some business in Summersville.

Thinking about what to do for this post, I realized I had already written a bunch of stuff in the last week. No, I'm not talking about the novel I have been working on at a snail's pace. I've spent more of my non work seeking time researching for the book rather than writing it. So on that front I have dabbled in Origin of the Species, and the Hope, Hype, and Reality of Genetic Engineering.

Getting back to the point. When Grandad Tom was here a couple of weeks ago, he suggested that I read Captains and the Kings by Taylor Caldwell. I read it. Caldwell can seem pretty over the top when stating her views directly, but when she weaves her ideas into a fictional narrative she is very compelling. Caldwell's views on the nature of man and government are dark, cynical, and insightful. Yes, all of the above. She is someone who thinks. This is not to say I always agree with her conclusions.

I ended up putting together an analysis of the ideas she espouses and my response to them. Rather than posting it here, I'm sharing it as a Googledoc with those of you I know regularly read this blog. Feel free to ask, if you don't get a copy and want one.

The reason for this, in part, is that many years ago, as part of having a security clearance I agreed that before publishing anything relating to certain subjects, I would get Department of Defense approval. Now to be clear, while I certainly don't discuss anything that is or was classified in the analysis, and don't express any views that would be worrisome, still I did give my word. Caldwell for one would find irony in this.