Welcome jeremylott.net readers. As you know, J-Lo graciously let me run amok on his blog for the past two weeks. If you waded through that pabulum and still wanted more, I salute and thank you. As you can tell, Punditry by the Pint is still somewhere between the alpha and beta versions. Hopefully, over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be able to whip it into a proper blog.

“Why,” you may be asking yourself, “would a guy from Alabama start a blog? Do the internets even reach that far?” Well, yes, they do. I’m still working on the answer to the first question, though, but mostly it’s to force myself to write every day with the hope that practice makes perfect, or at least entertaining. Other than that, it’s nice to have my own soapbox on which to shout at the world, or anyone who will listen. These virtual soapboxes, aka, the blogs hold a distinct advantage over actual soapboxes in that it’s easier to conceal the fact that I may be a crank–hard to do when you’re standing on a box in the middle of a sidewalk.

If you know me from my DC days, you may think that the title is awful-familiar, like one word off from Gene Healy’s excellent blog, Punditry by the Pound, housed over at America’s Future Foundation. In this case, imitation is the highest form of flattery and I figured that with all the pundit-themed blogs out there, one more wouldn’t hurt. Gene is a friend and former colleague and he has promised not sue over intellectual property concerns.

The other inspiration for this blog comes from alcohol, specifically beer. Bourbon is a close second, but since drinking it by the pint isn’t generally socially acceptable, we’ll stick w/ beer. Lest you think I’m a complete drunk, let me explain. The pubs and taverns of bygone eras were places to meet, greet, socialize and what have you, kind of like today. The combination of people and alcohol in a convivial atmosphere also produced lots of commentary, philosophy, politics, literature, poetry, economics, science, et cetera. Public houses were incubators for great ideas and great art. Personally, I have had some of my best conversations in saloons and taverns. Those Romans were onto something, when they said, “in vino veritas.” My point is that bars used to be for something other than live music, karaoke, darts and pool, though all of those things can be quite enjoyable at times, even karaoke. Heck, the American Revolution started in taverns in Massachusetts and Virginia. The Inklings, a literary society that included Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, regularly met for pints and discussion at The Eagle and Child in Oxford. I could go on and on, and I will in subsequent posts, but for the time being suffice it to say that I hope to recreate the pub atmosphere on this blog and maybe, just maybe, produce something useful, but at the least entertaining. So, if at all possible (i.e., not barred by law or humorless bosses), pour yourself a pint of creamy, delicious beer when you read this blog and enjoy!