With any luck, or if I can resist <$NoAd$> the temptation, the blogging will be a little lighter today. I think I’ve finally gotten a handle on a book review I’ve been working on fitfully for a couple months and now more intensively over the last few weeks. So I’m going to be getting into the writing of that. And I’m going to do a radio segment this afternoon. But mainly, I’m not too modest to say that today 
is my 36th birthday and I’m going to take some time to enjoy it. First, with one of the long leisurely walks with my dog, Simon, which seem to be one of his prime joys in life. And now mine too, I guess. That and a good cigar I’ve saved for the day, which a long walk affords an opportunity to enjoy.
A few other matters of customary business.
With all the site’s readers contacting their senators and reps and being so aggressively civic, I am chagrined to say that until a few days ago I hadn’t gotten around to figuring out who represents me. Living in DC for half a decade you get used to having no representatives at all. And I’ve only lived here for eight weeks or so. Still, I didn’t know.
It turns out that it’s Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D) who represents the 8th District of New York. I don’t figure him for much of a phase-out man. So I doubt we’ll be fielding many letters on his position on Social Security. But there it is.
As for Heather Wilson (R) of New Mexico, it was a tough call whether 
she makes her way into the Caucus. So I got in touch yesterday with the outside judge who sometimes helps me with the really difficult calls. His feeling was that she doesn’t belong in since he figures she’s been cagey about her position for so many years because she really does support phasing out Social Security. She’s just wary of saying it, fearing the political backlash.
I noted though that in running the Caucus we’ve had to flesh out a quite detailed and fine-grained taxonomy of weaseltude. And the FIW (“Finger in the Wind”) category is designed specifically for her form of weaseling — the fancy footwork of reps like Rep. Wilson who are signaling resistance but will go whichever way the wind blows or expediency or patronage dictates in the final analysis.
With that in mind and on the basis of the ‘Coleman Surmise’ (see the excerpted paragraph in this post from yesterday that begins ‘Ok’) we’re slotting her in, though only barely and with a close watch on subsequent weaseling.
We’ve also got some interesting information coming about ambassadorships in East Asia, an old interest of mine. So all that soon.
