From Air Traffic to Intellectual Currents

With some commentary on trade deals

Welcome to another edition of The Mueller Report!

Updates

I got caught up in travel delays with my recent trip – getting to D. C. at 3 AM instead of 10 PM. And getting back to Leadville at 11:30 PM instead of 9 PM. The Daily Economy ran a piece this week about problems with air traffic control that is worth reading.

Last weekend I attended a conference with the soon to be elder team at FBC. Besides the intense stimulation of ideas from the conference and teaching itself, I was grateful to see how easily the four of us could have prolonged conversations assessing the material, thinking about application, and sharing our thoughts. Even more surprising to me, though, is that we generally shared moments of discomfort or disagreement on the same points from the conference.

This was surprising because, for the most part, we liked the conference content. There was probably only 5% or so that seemed off or not right to me, but it happened to be almost exactly the same 5% that seemed off to my fellow elders.

Our first Colloquium begins this evening! I’m looking forward to kicking off the dream we’ve had for a few years. We had one or two colloquiums like this in the past, though slightly less formal. I’m going to be busy with guests, events, travel, and taking some significant time off over the next three weeks – so the newsletter may be less regular than it already is until mid-June.

Writing

Here are some of my pieces in the last two weeks that you may find of interest:

• Trump’s Underwhelming UK Deal at The American Spectator

• Trump’s Unforced Trade Errors at National Review

• Could Adopting Collectivist Activism Undo Classical Liberalism? at The Daily Economy

Reflection

I am slipping into a “busyness” problem. Commitments and complications are catching up with me. I’ve found myself increasingly thinking about productivity, accomplishment, and logistics over the past month. I’m not sure what will give or where things will fall by the wayside, but I’ve been adding, rather than subtracting, things from my plate for months. Something will have to give.

The issue is not exactly that of being run ragged or burned out. Instead, the problem seems to be greater distraction or not doing as well at the work I have to do. We’ll see what happens with the summer schedule, with travel, and with vacation this summer. Even more telling will be how the arrival of the baby in the fall shakes things up!

Busyness tends to help me prioritize (or perhaps reveals my priorities?), but it comes with some of the costs I mentioned above. Having plenty to do, though, tends to be better than not having much that you needed or wanted to do. I remember feeling critical of people who were really busy (and especially if they complained of busyness – mea culpa!), so I don’t want to rely on a survival lifestyle in order to prioritize.

Bookshelf

I just finished Brad Birzer’s biography of Russell Kirk this week. It’s a hefty book – not only in terms of length but also in terms of ideas. Birzer dives deep into several of Kirk’s most important intellectual influences – including T. S. Eliot, Willa Cather, Irving Babitt, and, surprisingly to me, Leo Strauss. Of course, Kirk’s patron saint was Edmund Burke, but as far as I know, Kirk never had an in-person encounter with the Irish statesman.

An underappreciated element of Kirk’s personality is his gothic and literary bent. He wrote many successful fictional ghost stories, sometimes categorized as horror. Yet these stories had weighty themes rather than graphic descriptions to give them weight. Apparently, Kirk and Ray Bradbury were good friends.

Of course, Kirk had a long relationship with Bill Buckley and was quite involved with National Review. But he wrote for many periodicals and journals and famously worked as an advisor to Barry Goldwater during his run for president. In general, though, Kirk stayed relatively aloof from day to day political drama and conflict.

I’m impressed and humbled by Kirk’s abilities, both as a scholar and as a writer. His output was prodigious and apparently his memory was more or less photographic. He could write and carry on a conversation (or two) simultaneously! And he could pound out a book chapter between 11 PM and 5 AM.

Kirk’s life and writing have certainly inspired me since I first visited Mecosta as a graduate student. Every subsequent visit has deepened my appreciation for Kirk and his legacy. His willingness to leave academia and strike out on his own as a scholar and writer make me feel less off the beaten path. And the radical hospitality he displayed, and the circle of friends and colleagues that he developed from his little hamlet in northern Michigan, give me hope for what The Abbey can become.

While Birzer’s book is not easy or short, those who are interested in the development of conservative ideas in the 20^th century or in the sage of Mecosta should read it.

Game Corner

Coming up with a new game every newsletter is not easy, but there are so many games out there that so far it has been doable. Two weeks ago, I borrowed a friend’s game, Blood Rage, that the boys had been requesting to play for months. Despite the ominous title, the game is not particularly gory or bloody. Everyone plays as Norse warrior tribes, along with the random monster or troll. The theme drives the title more than anything else.

I’ve only played this game twice, so my understanding is rudimentary. Everyone begins with the same personal board. The game board in the middle has three territories for each of four regions. In the middle is the world tree space. Players send troops into various territories, subject to various constraints and resource requirements.

From there you can pillage the space to increase one of your three ratings that allows you to do more in the future. Successful pillaging results in scoring a certain amount of Glory (the points for the game). Other players with warriors in adjacent territories have the option of jumping in and fighting over who gets to pillage the territory.

Where most of the strategy comes in, however, is in picking cards at the beginning of each stage. These cards can 1) increase your strength in a battle; 2) improve/upgrade some element of your units or deployment; 3) provide a quest that will give you glory if you fulfill it; and 4) give you some kind of special ability or effect.

Part of what makes this game interesting is that you don’t have to win all, most, or even any, of the battles to gain the most glory. Several cards give you points for sacrificing warriors (who go to Valhalla) and ships. You can also steal glory if you lose battles but have the right card to play.

The game isn’t my favorite, but as you can guess, the boys love the thematic elements (including giants, monsters, ogres, etc.) and the repeated conflict.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!