If you have troubling finding me during the next couple months, it’s because I’ve gone to live in “Fafnir’s world”:http://fafblog.blogspot.com/2004_08_29_fafblog_archive.html#109400927921360373. I like it better there.

You see it more and more these days: one mild-mannered person or other completely loses it in anger and frustration over the train wreck of the past four years of government, and lashes out in print or in an interview or on a street corner. Everybody has their popping point, and now “Garrison Keillor has reached his”:http://www.inthesetimes.com/site/main/article_rss/were_not_in_lake_wobegon_anymore/.

Granted, he’s preaching to the choir here, but it’s refreshing to see Prairie Home Companion dude flip out on Republicans so utterly. If you’re not one, I recommend you read it. Hat tip to Steve Conley.

Wouldn’t you know it—the Equatorial Guinea mercenary story got really interesting when I was out of town and unable to stay on top of it. It’s hitting plenty of media outlets now, but in case you’ve missed it, here’s the short version.

The trial is on in Zimbabwe, where Simon Mann has pleaded guilty to weapons-buying charges, but still insists that he and his men were bound for the DR of Congo, not to overthrow President Obiang’s government in Equatorial Guinea. EQ wants the mercenaries extradited there, but Zimbabwe has thus far declined, probably (I’m speculating here) due to pressure from South Africa, which doesn’t want to see its citizens face the death penalty, especially under a legendarily shady regime.

But the juicy bit is that Mark Thatcher, the son of Margaret Thatcher, has been arrested in South Africa on suspicions of funding or being otherwise related to the coup plot. He’s a close friend of Simon Mann, and has a history of such ill-advised ventures—this Time article gives a good summary of the situation. Naturally, EQ wants him extradited as well, but that’s even less likely than seeing the mercenaries extradited.

The biggest upshot of this is the added media attention of having someone with a relatively high profile involved—plus the possibility of finding out who the ultimate backers of the coup plot were. Exiled opposition leader Severo Moto is obviously involved, but it’s not like he had money himself, so who provided the money—presumably expecting a share of interest in EQ’s vast untapped oil reserves as a return on their investment? Kathryn Cramer has no shortage of speculation, culminating with:

So who was going to pay off the investors? I think the answer lies in Thatcher’s intended sanctuary: Dallas, Texas.

Connecting the dots from Simon Mann’s mercenary band to Texas oil interests definitely counts as wild, near-conspiracy-theory level speculation, though it’s disturbingly in line with the circumstantial evidence. Who knows how it will turn out, but it remains a story to watch.

Few foods are quite so perfect as the burrito, and while I generally bemoan the proliferation of chain stores, both in my neighborhood and in general, I must confess a certain amount of satisfaction—nay, elation—that there are now three burrito ‘n’ taco based, good quality, counter service joints within walking distance of Polytropos HQ. It is truly a fine state of affairs. The only trouble is deciding which one I like best.

Let’s acknowledge first of all that the very best burritos are likely to be found at a little independent joint. Indeed, it was sublime, truly transporting experiences at holes-in-the-wall in Tampa and San Francisco years ago that kicked off my love affair with the burrito in the first place. For my purposes, though, here are the contenders:

Baja Fresh—Nationwide chain; a good baseline for these sorts of places.

California Tortilla—Local chain; similar menu to Baja Fresh; deliberately tries to foster a fun-loving atmosphere, which can be good or bad, depending.

Chipotle—Nationwide chain, McDonald’s-owned; Subway-style counter service instead of take-a-number; spare, no-nonsense menu; froofroo decor.

(Qdoba is conspicuously absent; I’m aware that it also fits in this vein, but there’s not one nearby and I actually haven’t eaten at one yet.)

Let’s see how they stack up across the categories:

Decor and Service—Baja Fresh is the clear loser when it comes to decor; their black, white, and red checkered motif is very open, but feels too much like a cafeteria. Chipotle hired some architect to design all their fixtures in earthtones and corrugated metal—it gets points for originality, but is just a tad too pretentious and austere. The edge goes to California Tortilla—they’re on the borderline for “too busy,” but their boldly-painted walls (in reds and oranges) feel warm and . . . zesty, I guess. Plus the look ties in nicely with their whole hot sauce motif (more on that below). When it comes to service, take-a-number is definitely the way to go, and California Tortilla has the advantage over Baja Fresh on friendliness and general competence—perhaps because they’ve just opened. Gold: California Tortilla. Silver: Chipotle. Bronze: Baja Fresh.

Price—Baja Fresh is the clear loser here as well. Their burritos automatically come with a side of chips, for which they tack on an extra dollar compared to the other two places. I don’t want those chips, and yet, I usually eat them anyway, creating a dangerous mix of resentment at the price and guilt stemming from lack of self-control. Not plesasant. California Tortilla and Chipotle are nearly identical in price, and while this is a more impressive accomplishment for CT given its larger, more diverse menu, for our purposes the two are tied. Gold/Silver split: California Tortilla & Chipotle. Bronze: Baja Fresh.

Ancillary Food Considerations—Baja Fresh has a nice little “Bowls of Salsa” bar with a few different choices depending on mood, and standard drink choices. You can’t get beer there, though, and you can at the other two. Chip quality, while important for some, doesn’t come into play here, since I rarely order them. But California Tortilla cinches the gold again thanks to its Wall of Flame: a shelf with literally dozens of hot sauces. Their house sauce is also very good. Silver/Bronze split for Baja Fresh & Chipotle.

The Burrito—This is, of course, the category that trumps all others. My tastes are particular: I prefer my burrito with rice, onions, and peppers, but no beans—this means a ‘fajita’ burrito at Chipotle and California Tortilla, and the Burrito Ultimo at Baja Fresh. This is a category where Baja Fresh finally shines—they grill the tortilla a little, which keeps the contents nice and hot and lends some texture as well. It’s an all-around good meal, too. California Tortilla’s burritos have the best meat of all three. I’ve only tried chicken so far, but it’s been quite fine and their blackened chicken is even better. Their fajita burrito loses points, though, for containing disproportionate amounts of unremarkable rice. And as for Chipotle—there’s an ineffable something about their burritos that sets them apart from the others. One of the best things about them is that their rice is made with some secret ingredient (probably “extra butter”) that makes it taste really good all by itself. Their veggies aren’t quite as good as the other two, but their habanero salsa is to die for. And when it comes down to it, the rice factor is tremendously important, because it means that nothing counts as filler in a Chipotle burrito. It’s all good, and you get the sense that you could remove any one ingredient and it would still be tasty. Set against it, though, is the infamous “clumping” downside. They just layer the ingredients on top of each other as they make the burritos, conveyor-belt style, so there’s always a few bites that are heavily weighted toward one ingredient or another. I know this is a deal-breaker for some, but I’ve never minded it enough to be a significant factor. Medals: too close to call.

Taking all factors into account, Baja Fresh, despite its very tasty burrito, comes in third. A single factor—that unremarkable rice—keeps California Tortilla from the number one spot. But as it is, Chipotle is the overall winner, with its unforgettable, quirky burrito at an excellent price. There may be a sentimental bias at play here, since I’ve been enjoying Chipotle for a couple years, and the other two are recent arrivals to the neighborhood. Practically speaking, California Tortilla is probably going to get the most business from me, because they’re literally three blocks away. I like the idea of supporting a local chain, too, so I’m hoping that as this new location gets its act together, they’ll keep getting better.

I would love to address the larger question of the best burrito in Washington DC, and perhaps will, after a bit more research. Recommendations are welcome!

UPDATE: Another visit to California Tortilla last night has introduced a few more pros and cons. Their selection of fountain drinks is poor—no unsweetened iced tea, no Dr. Pepper. And their fajita burrito is definitely third place in my mind now. But their chips and queso is really quite excellent on the side—the ‘small’ version comes with a generous helping of both. Even better, you can order a fountain drink and one of the chips sides as a combo for only 25 cents or so more than the chips by themselves. At last: a combo deal that actually consists of a considerable discount, and that doesn’t force you to buy the combo in order to get a decent price on your main dish. It’s a deal that’s an actual deal, not a gimmick, and that’s refreshing.

Five days between posts! Inexcusable! The good news is that there’s a huge backlog of stuff I plan to write about when I get a chance. The bad news is that it may be a few more days.

While I was in Boston, Polytropos got hit with ~1500 pieces of comment spam. Even for a MT-Blacklist power user, that much is a royal pain in the ass to clean up. So to maintain sanity until I install MT 3.1, I’ve installed the “CloseComments”:http://mt-plugins.org/archives/entry/closecomments.php plugin. Posts older than 21 days that have been inactive for at least 7 days will no longer allow additional comments. If there’s something you reeeally reeeally want to comment on, let me know and I’ll open up comments on that entry.

All the cool kids in the blogosphere have linked to this already, but for those of you who don’t read many other blogs: definitely go read “Over the Bridge”:http://arkhangel.blogs.com/counterpoint/2004/08/over_the_bridge.html on the fine blog Better Angels of Our Nature.

Greetings from Arlington — Arlington, Massachusetts, that is. Down the road from Lexington, where the hotel is (Battle Green Inn — OK accommodations; excellent location), and a little closer in toward Boston. Though I’m sure Arlington, MA has some fascinating historical anecdotes in its annals, I like it because it has a Panera, which means free wi-fi. The place in Lexington that was supposed to have wi-fi didn’t, and the hotel charges for local calls (“barely OK” accommodations, now that I think about it).

All this has been an overlong way to explain my lack of Internet access and the corresponding lack of attention to the blog, which will continue for a few more days.

If you’re ever in the area, the Indian restaurant in Lexington (Kushboo) is very fine indeed, and Walden Pond is certainly worth a visit. We tossed a frisbee back and forth over the site of Thoreau’s cabin; I feel certain he would have approved. More on what Thoreau would have approved and disapproved of in the modern world after I finish my reread of _Walden_, which I thought I’d get done by the time I was there, but you know how these things go.

Most picturesque moment so far: strolling around Cambridge, we were caught in a sudden thunderstorm and barely found shelter on a big stone porch adjoining what seemed like it must be an old church, but turned out to be Harvard’s Memorial Hall. I climbed up into one of those gaps between pillars and watched the rain pour down and the mist collect over a fountain at the other end of the green. My theory now is that Harvard’s academic excellence hasn’t so much to do with good students and faculty as it does with perfect _ambience_. They’ve got the whole college campus _look_ down cold.

Finally, the question that shall vex me tomorrow: Boston’s Science Museum has a Lord of the Rings exhibit with lots of props and whatsits from the movies — is it worth $19 to see it?

‘Tis a sad thing indeed: “Gencon”:http://www.gencon.com/indyhome.aspx?file=indy is happening right now, and I’m not there. Last night I dreamt that I was walking up eagerly to a convention center, aware that I hadn’t pre-registered, but excited that I could at least get a day pass and walk through the exhibitor’s hall. But as I got up to the doors I remembered that I was in Boston, not Indianapolis, and a feeling of despair overwhelmed me. (I actually will be in Boston this weekend — that wasn’t some weird DNC fragment making its way into my dream.)

It always sucks when your tribe gets together and you’re not there. I will miss the exhibitor’s hall. I will miss a weekend’s worth of gaming. And I will miss my friends. To make up for what will be an understandable lack of Gencon coverage on the blog this year, let me relate a story from a Gencon past:

It’s Gencon several years ago, and I’m ambling along through the exhibitor’s hall with a couple other people — I think it was Jason and Greg. Actually I’m just sort of following them and absent-mindedly looking at what’s on the various tables. So we get up to one particular table and I haven’t even looked up yet, because I can’t believe what I’m seeing: the whole booth is apparently dedicated to Admiral Motti — the Imperial officer that Darth Vader famously Force-strangles on the Death Star in _Star Wars_. “I find your lack of faith disturbing,” etc. It’s a twenty-year-old bit part, so the idea that there’s a whole booth dedicated to the guy seems a bit much, even for Gencon.

I guffaw. “Check this out,” I say to the guys, my voice dripping with disdain. “Admiral Motti has his own _website_!”

That’s when I finally look up, and realize what Jason and Greg have already realized: Admiral Motti is _right there in the booth_. Or, rather, Richard LeParmentier, the actor who played Motti. “Doh!” I say, or something like it. Jason, God bless him, smooths over the situation by asking Richard some questions about the role, and I slink away to the next booth.

I see that Mr. LeParmentier is back this year as a Guest of Honor. He’s accompanied by several figures of greater note, including David Carradine and — now I _really_ wish I was there — Erin Gray. Come on, “you remember”:http://www.scifi.com/buckrogers/! I had such a crush on her back then . . .

Steve Clemons, author of the fine new blog “The Washington Note”:http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/, makes a “strong case”:http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/000023.html that Democrats are wrong to criticize Bush’s military realignment plan, on both grounds of substance and campaign strategy. Certainly there are grounds for complaint due to the unilateral way it was conducted, but overall he thinks it’s a good idea. He also argues that the focus on East Asian troops should be on Japan and Okinawa more than South Korea.

Go ahead and read his piece for more details; I bring it up because it reminded me of how I once liked Donald Rumsfeld.

Bear with me. As with most of Bush’s cabinet appointments, I was disappointed with the choice of Rumsfeld at first, though I sympathized with his conviction that America should have a smaller, more agile military. It has been increasingly clear that a big part of Rumsfeld’s idea involves farming out as much as possible to private contractors, something _don’t_ agree with — but I’m definitely on board with the basic idea that a smaller, more mobile force is far preferable to the masses of troops and foreign bases that we have now.

After September 11, everyone in the Administration got a clean slate from me. Like everyone, I suppose, I wanted and needed our leaders to be strong and good at this time. And, in retrospect, they were neither. But there was a span of time in there, from the aftermath through the war in Afghanistan, where reporters really _would_ be asking Rumsfeld dumb questions, and his bluntness with them came off as refreshing. That’s when I liked him. Needless to say, it didn’t last.

Fast forward to the Iraq War. Rumsfeld’s OSD ignored both the recommendations of the “Future of Iraq Project”:http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200401/fallows and his own generals and sent in enough troops to win the day but not to secure the peace. We’ve been dealing with the consequences ever since. It seems that part of the reason he insisted on a smaller force was to make some sort of point about how a leaner, meaner military could function. Me, I had taken it for granted that a smaller, more agile force would, by definition, not get into the business of invading other countries in the first place.

Just because the the whole “leaner, meaner” principle was tragically applied to the wrong situation — the full-scale occupation of another nation — isn’t a critique of the principle, but of its application. And just because Rumsfeld stands behind the principle doesn’t automatically make it wrong (though, granted, that’s seeming like a prudent default assumption). Similarly, even if Bush is announcing troop rollbacks with crass electoral timing, and without consultation with allies, it doesn’t mean that base realignment itself is a bad idea.

Kerry’s response to all this was more nuanced than Clark’s — as Clemons notes, Clark said that the proposal would “significantly undermine U.S. national security.” Kerry said that the proposal was presented at the wrong time and in the wrong way. It would have been better, though, to embrace the proposal and present clear statements on how to do it even better, rather than fall into the familiar campaign season pattern of automatic contrarianism.

I’ll always keep a warm spot in my heart for _The Onion_. But I’m not going to be a regular reader any more.

I fondly remember thumbing through a copy of the print version on the streets of Madison, and then seeing the online version get popular. In their archives are some truly towering works of satire, and even these days, “they can still be pretty sharp”:http://www.theonion.com/news/index.php?issue=4033&n=2. What’s driving me away isn’t the content — it’s the ads. Their front page is now a sea of advertisements, and much of what used to be up front you must now click to read, leading to — you guessed it — more ads. It’s not like there’s an ad section, either — on the front page, they’re interspersed with the actual content so as to make it easy to confuse with that content. And they’re _annoying_ ads to boot. Trying to fish out the actual writing has become bothersome.

I’m sure the ads are necessary to support their current business model, which involves lots of employees and a New York office. And I’m not one to always gripe when some institution or another hits the big time. But in this case it’s true: it was better when they were just a bunch of dudes in Madison.

“Way back in February”:http://www.polytropos.org/archives/000302.html, Suanna and I stopped at a mattress store to try some out, but were quickly put off by the hard-sell attitude, the misleading sales flyer, and the general shiftiness of the whole enterprise. Subsequent research and advice from friends has confirmed that this is, sadly, pretty much the state of the industry.

But now there’s no avoiding it: we need a new mattress. So which ones are good? Where can one go (esp. here in the D.C. area specifically) to talk to a non-sleazy salesperson? If anyone has mattress clues, please share them, in the comments or via email. I’ll be sure to give back to the community by documenting our successes and/or failures in this, the most annoying of shopping errands.