I've been mulling over Smallville and Leverage RPGs. I'm impressed at how distinct they are for nominally using the same core system. They both have some very good guidelines/ suggestions/ heuristics for "adventure" design. But they don't really overlap. Smallville is trying to set up soap-opera-like character dramas, while Leverage is fairly ( Read more... )

That's kind of the catch phrase of the first fifty or so EconTalk episodes I listened to. The Hayek point this is referring to (in this article) has become pretty fundamental to my economic thinking. It's the sort of thing I could see going back to school to dedicate myself to fleshing out and formalizing more. There's a couple of other topics I ( Read more... )

I've been picking through a PDF of the Smallville RPG. I can't help but think that this is the perfect system for Chris. Supers where the powers mostly fade into the background, a simple core system, and lots of mechanical drivers for beliefs and relationships. I wonder if decades from now, playing with our kids, I'll still be thinking about ( Read more... )

I've been reading a lot of econ blogs the last few months, a large chunk of which are more like Political blogs focused on Economics. As a result, I've been thinking a lot about politics, economics, and the structure of the social world. Most of it somewhat disheartening and uninsightful ( Read more... )

"There is a persistent and never-ending competition between what is right and what is merely acceptable. In this competition, while a strategic advantage lies with what exists, all tactical advantage is with the acceptable." - John Kenneth Galbraith

In case I haven't been clear, Speakeasy can go die in a fire ( Read more... )

In many ways, the last year has been one of the worst. Fortunately, no-one died. Lots of upheaval, isolation, depression. In general, lots of change. But adversity brings growth, and I also feel like I/we have grown a lot too. For the most part, we've dealt with and adjusted to the challenges. I'm happy with the broad outlines of my life, and ( Read more... )

As part of my Economics fixation, I've been considering off-and-on whether I'm really an economic conservative, and what that might mean. No real resolution. But, towards that end, Sandra and I had a conversation yesterday about Capital Gains ( Read more... )

I had a dream about Chris night before last. He was squatting post-apocalyptic style in some sort of concrete structure, like a parking lot. I felt really bad that we hadn't talked in so long, and I invited him to come live with us, but he wouldn't.

I guess it's that time of year again. :(

We had some snow overnight, which I wasn't really expecting for a while. Maybe a half inch to an inch.

Skipper is distressed at whatever is wrong with the ground.

Seasons are dumb.