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| Obligatory photo to remind people I am an actual human being |
Listen, nobody starts a blog in 2021 for the fame, power and money.
Primarily, this blog is for me. I’m not one to lower my
standards or ambition, but I’d be content if more than two people end up tuning
into this (those two people being mum and dad, obviously).
The main motivation for starting this blog is that I do my
best thinking through writing. In a previous life when I was writing regular opinion
pieces, I’d only really figure out whether my opinion was coherent once the
piece was written. So I want to use this blog as a space – a safe space if you
will – for exploring the stuff I care about, without the pressure of arriving
at fully fledged opinions and conclusions.
I also want to use this blog as a way of keeping track of the stuff
that I consume that makes a fleeting impression at the time. I’ve found that I consume
a lot of information: books, podcasts, Netflix, academic papers, interesting
articles. There is no way my brain can retain all of that.
Of course, I could just keep a paper diary. But I already have
several diaries on the go for various purposes (at least one is a dedicated
list of my enemies and how I will seek vengeance). But with an online account I
might have a better chance of making someone’s life a little better by pointing
them to something good in the world.
I don’t have a project plan for this blog. Its use will evolve over time. Or die. I’m willing to kill a blog that no longer serves my needs. But here’s a list of what this blog might turn out to be:
- Insightful stuff to read or listen to.
- Good econ papers and thought (I can’t promise this won’t turn into a Tyler Cowen/Tim Harford/Raj Chetty/Eric Crampton fangirl* page in 6 months).
- Stuff to avoid because they are wrong or deceptive and because I said so.
- Reckons. About whatever I feel compelled to get off my chest. But probably with some social/cultural/policy element.
- A celebration of food and wine because we should all indulge in life's bodily and spiritual pleasures before some government regulates the joy out of it.
What this blog won’t be:
- A libertarian treatise or even a reliable record of how libertarians think. The blog title is a nod to the fact that what I find interesting or infuriating might be different from other people. And I think anyone who purports to approach life as a blank slate either hasn't thought enough or is kidding themselves.
- Also, there will be no Ayn Rand.
*Yeah, I'm aware I only named male economists. I'll reflect on that.