At the start of the pandemic, I stumbled upon a promising website, a haven for Classical Liberals – my ideological comfort zone. The site, managed by an engaging individual, hosted weekly Zoom meetings that delved into discussions on various political and cultural subjects. At first, I felt I had discovered a political home.  

Regular email exchanges with the admin allowed me to contribute suggestions and offer assistance. In one discussion, I expressed concerns about the potential infiltration of what I termed ‘kookyism.’

Kookyism, a term we intuitively understand (The Germans probably have a word for the concept). It embodies individuals who dominate conversations, are overbearing, obnoxious, and often intoxicated. Their penchant for conspiracy theories tends to disrupt and contaminate any platform they infiltrate.  They ruin everything.

And sure enough, that guy showed up to a zoom meeting.  He talked non-stop for almost an hour, mentioned (in an off-hand way, of course) that he’d been kicked off FaceBook (and then Twitter), AND THEN started getting into the conspiracy theories (who didn’t see that comin’?!).  I finally had enough and told everyone that I had to put my kids to bed (they were in high school).  He posted his nutty theories on the website.  I was shocked and displeased to see that.  I emailed the admin and said that perhaps his wonderful site could be a place that debunks conspiracy theories, not embraces them.  He responded by saying that perhaps they could have a section that had both.  That was it for me.  I left.  Since then the place has fallen apart.  The website is offline.  There’s a FaceBook page, but only a handful of people belong.  It’s a real shame.  Now, I don’t know if the kooks are the reason for the website’s demise, but I wouldn’t be surprised. 

“Whiskey and Politics, DMV”, however, will chart a different course. While welcoming diverse political views, including communists, fascists, and libertarians and others, the emphasis is on maintaining a broad yet sensible tolerance. Gadflies are embraced, but those verging on the demented, deranged, or just plain-ol’ wifty need to look elsewhere.   There are plenty of websites that cater to conspiracies and kooks of all stripes.  This will be a haven of sanity. 

Anticipating that some may cross the line, I commit to fostering constructive dialogue. In the comments section, I’ll gently request revisions to offensive phrases. If met with disregard, deletion may be necessary.

To be blunt:  This is my website and I’m responsible for it.  I do my best to keep it up to date and give you, my dear compatriot, something worth visiting.  As they say in Spinal Tap, “Such a fine line between clever and stupid.”  I will most certainly make mistakes.  I’ll ask you to change something and you’ll complain that I didn’t do the same for that other guy who said something even worse.  I’ll be patient with you and ask the same of me.

I sit here sipping Angel’s Envy, Port Cask finish, the website’s launch looms.  Man, I hope this works!