An Introduction

Hey everyone,


Well, I have finally decided to do it: I have started a blog.  I have been hesitant to start a blog, in large part due to the fact that my wife works for the Department of State, which is can be a bit sensitive when it comes to social media.  That, coupled with the fact that my wife and I are in a relatively small embassy (Brazzaville), has dissuaded me from being vocal about my views and thoughts on international politics, American current events, and foreign service life in general.  However, recently I have felt more and more that I need an outlet and, indeed, a forum to address and, in some cases, redress the things that strike me as important in my daily life.


That said, I have decided to throw caution to the wind and start posting.  And what, pray-tell, will I be posting on?  Really, it will depend on the things that have been playing on my mind.  Likely topics?  News of note, music I dig, my life in Brazzaville, my impressions of the foreign service life, so on and so forth.


If anyone wonders, the title of the blog comes from a quote from John Maynard Keynes.  "A study of the history of opinion is a necessary preliminary to the emancipation of the mind."  I have been thinking about Keynes a great deal lately, in large part due to the continuing recession and all the political machinations which have occurred in its wake.  I won't go into whether or not I think a Keynesian remedy is appropriate (maybe in the future), but I really appreciate the quote and feel that it encapsulates some of my own interests.  


Posts to begin soon.