14 Comments
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

"Eagleburger could enjoy being known as a former Secretary of State even though he only was officially one for a few weeks". That is like the Roman custom of getting consuls to retire early so that some crony of the emperor could be appointed a "suffect consul" and thereafter, just like Eagleburger, swank around saying he'd once held a consulship.

Expand full comment

Kudos to the clever pun on "bicamerally".

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

An interesting fact (at least to me) is that when Biden was born there were still men alive who fought at Gettysburg and Antietam and who themselves were born during the administration of president James Polk in the 1840’s. Polk was one of the few presidents to voluntarily serve only one term (1845-1849). Although Biden is old for a man, our nation is still relatively young and those honored veterans serve as a link between a president who chose to do the right thing and one too blinded by his own selfish self importance to choose it. I am a year older than Biden and therefore also linked to those veterans but I luckily still have a mind that can comprehend the truth. He doesn’t.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

The topic of Lawrence Eagleburger greatly deserves further exploration IMO.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

Eagleburger was close with Kissinger during the Nixon Administration. Whether he was privy to the Nixon/Kissinger Triangular Diplomacy gambit wherein the schism betwixt the USSR and Rojo China was to be exploited is unknown to me at this time. The Straussians were actively infiltrating DOD and State during this period. I'd like to think Kissinger would have little use for the pampered and dense neoconservatives and their unyielding desire to impose a feudalistic regime on Russia. Henry the K was an Acolyte of the Dark but he wasn't stupid.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

My father applied for all three of our SSNs at once in 1968, long before the IRS made it mandatory for dependents. Our numbers are in alphabetical order of first name, but I don't know if that was his doing or SS's. As the youngest, I'm still pleased I became first for once and always.

If Eagleburger did likewise, he probably made some bored bureaucrat's day, once he got over his confusion, but he's lucky the government didn't screw up the junior LE's presumably different addresses.

As Dad's executor, I've sent documents to the County Register of Deeds and the Treasury EE bond people. The first thing they both did was scan everything, but the Fed's scanner bleached out the County's embossing, so they now want me to darken it for them--which is probably less likely to go wrong than them finding the original after 2 months. The nice ladies at the County gave me everything back and suggested a way to save $20 in probate costs, while demanding more documentation.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

I'm delighted that you included the Eagleburger quote at the end, which has long been one of my favorite things ever. "First of all, it was ego" is fantastic. I always figured the Sobchak character was basically John Milius, but your analysis also makes some sense.

In any case, Walter Sobchak is one of the all-time great comic characters. Pretty much all his lines are hilarious, and brilliantly delivered by John Goodman. "Is this your homework, Larry?"

Expand full comment
author

My impression is that John Goodman as Walter Sobchak in "The Big Lebowski" is the all-time greatest character acting role ever, blowing away, say, even Claude Rains as Captain Renault in "Casablanca."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjbPi00k_ME

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

> heavyweight boxing champ George Foreman, who named all of his five sons George Foreman (Jr. through VI)

George also sired five daughters, but only one of them is named Georgetta, with the others being named Natalia, Leola, Freeda, and Michi.

---

Eagleburger was also Carter's ambassador to Yugoslavia, but that was a function of his foreign-service background, not a political appointment per se.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

Well, as a matter of numbers, maybe Mr. Biden is looking at the few months Mr. James Polk lived after he was succeeded by Mr. Zachary Taylor. That could scare anyone who is older than the current median age of death for men in the United States. There's still things for Mr. Biden to do, etc., apparently.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

I've read Walter was based on the Coen's friend John Milius (particularly the gun play). Perhaps there was a little carve out for Eagleburger too.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

Goodman's Sobchak was definitely the Great Milius.

Expand full comment
Jul 10Liked by Steve Sailer

In addition to the clear physical resemblance, Walter's refrain of "Am I wrong!?" is taken directly from how her father speaks.

Expand full comment
Jul 11Liked by Steve Sailer

Wasn't it supposed to be Milius?

Expand full comment