Note: This Beaniegram begins an abbreviated version of the newsletter, usually containing synopses of columns, articles, and reviews for the week. It normally is posted and emailed on Sunday evening. Toward the end of each week, I will have a shorter version of my journalistic comments regarding the freedom-cause-oriented day-to-day subjects of the week. All continuing "boilerplate" information that the Beaniegram and the Midweek Meander carried along will be placed in a relatively static page at this location. I want to thank Steve Zimberg of Societism.org for the suggestion to make my routine communications, like, shorter. — bw

Guest Human-Interest Article
Especially for Garlic Lovers
James Ricci's incredelicious pasta sauce recipe
by Maria Struck

Madre Mia! Even my adolescent boys loved it. On evenings when they had dates with girls whose reputations I deemed to be a tad short of virginal, I exercised my maternal duty and put extra garlic in the sauce, but had the wisdom to pretend ignorance: “Oh, I didn’t realize you were going out tonight, but I’m sure you can have a little of the Ricci Sauce anyway. No one will be able to tell.” Of course they wouldn’t be able to resist, and, to my great relief, reeked of garlic all night. (I had to be careful not to outsmart myself though, since I was taking a big chance that my sons would come home engaged if the date happened to be Italian.)
[full column]

My Column
Pirates on the Veranda
Feds announce plans to nationalize IRAs/401Ks
by Brian Wright (with ref. to Patrick Heller)

Which means that many of the institutional investors—the ones who gave us retirement accounts of varying flavors and colors—and their customers (millions of my peers who built IRA and 401K nest eggs) have participated in the government-allowed bonanza. [IRAs and 401Ks have built-in tax exemptions.] And, except for the Great Recession, most of them have 'done good.' Well, lo and behold, the hand that supposedly giveth may taketh away. From the column in Coin Update News:
[full column]

Movie Review
The Graduate
Coming of age film for the Baby Boomers __ 8/10

No doubt the author and director are suggesting that Southern California materialism represents a barrier to authentic human growth, not an encouragement. [start small spoiler alert] Further, it so happens Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), seeks to satisfy her psychological needs—recover a feeling of excitement from her youth before this facade of a life buries her—by using Benjamin physically. At 21, he's insecure in the sex department, so they work out an arrangement... which is full of a lot of natural humor and pathos, the stuff that broken dreams are made of. [end small spoiler alert] [Full Review]

Book Review
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Runners
101 inspirational stories of energy, endurance, and endorphins...
Ron Kaiser, et al

I've run short stories from Ron before, and he's also been published before in the Chicken Soup series. The Soup book on runners I thought would be fairly prosaic, ho hum stuff. I mean, it's just running, right? Who wants to think about all the boring minutes on the road while worrying about knee damage? What's the inspiration? Where's the human interest? Well, you'd be surprised. A lot of the stories are from women who have used the rigors of running to free themselves from depression or household routine or the desire to pop a Twinkie. Yet the common theme for men and women is a certain spiritual connection they find in the experience of running, in the streets or, better, through nature. [Full Review]

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War involves in its progress such a train of unforeseen circumstances that no human wisdom can calculate the end; it has but one thing certain, and that is to increase taxes.
— Thomas Paine

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