Trego's Mountain Ear

I noticed a meme this morning, stressing the well known Finnish Sniper Simo Haya.  Like all memes, it is partly true – Haya’s rifle was a Mosin-Nagant.  It was also worked on to be competitive in target shooting, and he also used a submachine gun in racking up windrows of dead Russian invaders.  Simo Haya Read more

The EPA has spoken.  All non-electric cars made after 2026 have to average 55 miles per gallon.  I remember how I felt back in the Nixon days, when someone explained, “It’s no big deal.  I’ll just trade the V-8 in on a four cylinder.”  I was already driving a 4 cylinder, and it got over Read more

The Gregorian year is 365 days in 3 years out of 4, then 366 in the leap year.  The tropical year – the time it takes the planet to circle the sun is 365.242199 days.  That difference from 365.25 is why we had a leap year back in 2000 but didn’t in 1900.  It’s complicated, Read more

I heard the comment that Joe Biden would replace Jimmy Carter as our worst President.  I have to stick up for Carter – we had extreme inflation on his watch, and the Iranians took over the embassy – but his accomplishments are insignificant compared to James Buchanan.  In Buchanan’s single term.  He came in as Read more

Generally, inflation is a product of governmental monetary policy.  Stable currency isn’t often the goal of the politicians, so we wind up with inflation. Adam Smith, in The Wealth of Nations wrote: “The value of any commodity, therefore, to the person who possesses it, and who means not to use or consume it himself, but Read more