We have ribs in the smoker, and I’ve been doing odds and ends around the house (including laying conduit and PVC for power and water of a new irrigation system). I want to wish as happy a holiday as possible under the circumstances to all of my readers. If you’ve never done it (or even if you have), I recommend reading the Declaration aloud; too few understand what this is all about, particularly given the state of our educational system. I also recommend reading Coolidge’s speech on the sesquicentennial. It seems more timely than ever, and is one of the best of its breed.

I will say, though, that Trump’s speech last night was a pretty good one, and it kicked off the campaign much better than the one in Tulsa. And of course, it drove all the right people nuts.