The Ohio Republic - R.I.P.

Earlier this year Harold Thomas, sole proprietor and citizen of the Ohio Republic, began to exhibit signs of a coming change.  He'd dumped a perfectly good blog hosting service and started with a new blogging platform that a little research might of informed him that it wasn't going to be a good choice. At the same time he lessened the distance between himself from (and I say this knowing full well the tautological implications of the expression) some of the more odious elements of the secession movement.

It seemed an odd thing for Harold to do since he'd always struck me as someone with at least one foot in the real world, even as he intellectualized some of the batshit crazy that is the foundation of the whole nullification "and-if-that-doesn't-work-we-still-have-the-option-to-seceed" nonsense.

Anyway, Harold's decided to call it a day and shut down his blog.  I guess that he just wasn't feeling enough love for his worldview and political antidotes.  I'd always thought him to be a harmless, if somewhat hapless sort, until he started to pal around with a racist at the League of the South.

In his wordy, overly long way, Harold wrote this at the conclusion of his swan song:

"The Ohio Republic has been a wonderful experience. It has led me to many friends, a few critics, and one very interesting enemy in Vermont. They kept me going when I wanted to quit the blog or leave the book unfinished."

While I'm happy to have been some sort of inspiration to you, Harold, if I could offer you four truths to take with you into retirement, they would be:

- Ayn Rand wrote fiction; she was not an economist.
- The Gilded Age was an interlude, not the foundation of American economic principles.
- The Constitution was a compromise with more to come.
- I was never your enemy; my enemies can explain the difference to you.

Rester soif, mon ami.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

For the archive of the Free Vermont Framework listserv, click here.