Riverbend posted in August on the Iraqi populace’s response to chaos:

For a while, the men in certain areas began arranging ‘lookouts’. They would gather, every 6 or 7 guys, in a street, armed with Klashnikovs, and watch out for the whole area. They would stop strange cars and ask them what family they were there to visit. Hundreds of looters were caught that way- we actually felt safe for a brief period. Then the American armored cars started patrolling the safer residential areas, ordering the men off the streets- telling them that if they were seen carrying a weapon, they would be treated as criminals.

Leonard Dickins (Unruled) comments:

This quote is almost too good to be true for an anarchist. Anarchy [initially] releases criminal elements (the unorganized political means). This is opposed by the armed people, which works: “we actually felt safe”. But the state interposes; it will not permit any challenge to its monopoly, regardless of the price that the peons pay.

Leonard Dickenson (Unruled) on Lockean claims in cleared parking spaces. Cited by Will Wilkinson (The Fly Bottle).

I don’t happen to agree that tTT (even extended) is the best movie ever, but wholeheartedly endorse the remainder of John Holbo’s remarks:

The extra two discs with the behind-the-scenes stuff are fantastic as well. All these geeks. They had the best. jobs. ever.

I was particularly struck by something that didn’t strike me. In Jurassic Park I was awestruck to see a stampede of struthiosaurs, but I didn’t even think to notice anything special about the Warg attack. The passing of nine years has raised our standards, obviously, but was I also distracted by the more dramatic context?

I was amused at how often I heard “this model was never meant to be seen in close-up” or “that sound-effect was never meant to go into the final.”

And where are those hundreds of swords now?

The only thing missing is disc five, containing nothing but two hours of Jackie Chan-style physical comedy outtakes. Uruks running into elves and falling down laughing. Elves knocking elves off the parapet. Aragorn poking Legolas in the eye. Saruman slipping and doing a face-plant in his palantir. Eowyn and Wormtongue flubbing their lines and doing a can-can. That stuff. As Sam would say, the ones you remember. The ones that meant something. You know they’ve got hours of the stuff. Why not show it?

This evening in Mill Valley, my way was briefly blocked by four deer. I don’t know when I’ve seen so many so close together. They very kindly jumped out of the street to let me pass.

A reader writes:

I’m fascinated that you’re watching Buffy for the first time. I’d be delighted to read as much commentary as you could possibly feel like generating . . . .

Part of it is envy that you’re coming to it new, part of it is wondering how it comes across All At Once, part of it is always wondering what it looks like to someone else, and part of it is wondering what it looks like to you.

All At Once is only part of the novelty; I rarely get to follow a series at all, vs catching random episodes.

Some impressions of the first season:

A show with such a theme normally has a tiresome character whose job is to say, once per episode, “I’m the relatively stupid character but am I the only one who thinks this is a really bad idea?” . . . . But Xander is so darn likable!

Sunnydale is not a ghost town, and that makes WSoD creak a bit. Is there something about the Hellmouth that makes most residents forget that grue is always happening? (Oct 3: Such a hoodoo is in the Mayor’s interest. It need not be strong enough to keep everyone in permanent denial.)

I loved the novelty of the demon brought to life by a scanner. (I also loved the series Weird Science and Northern Exposure until they jumped their respective sharks. And the dialogue in Buffy is miles ahead of NX.)

Speaking of shark-jumping, in the season closer not only is the principal threat removed but the Shallow Character shows concern for others, a sense of duty and a bit of ingenuity. Ominous!

Angel’s early behavior (“Hi, be on guard against something about which I won’t tell you anything useful, have a jacket, bye”) is one of the few seriously wrong notes. It’s arbitrary, and not really explained by the revelation of his nature.

For Dad‘s birthday I got him a brass sextant. “Thank you, a GPS unit is one gadget that I didn’t have!”

Xygos lhxdhc vijhsb There was enough material there to enable him to prepare several new tricks which he had learned from some of the jugglers in the circus, and he had passed part of the night in getting them ready Rob’s storage batteries are not powerful enough to electrocute one or set the house on fire