Cornholio Strikes Again

Heh-heh...

It can't be a coincidence.

A small lake southeast of Lake Stevens has two different names, Bevis and Butthead - almost identical to snickering characters in TV's "Beavis and Butt-head" show.

"That means someone is playing a joke, I think," said Ken Brown, a land surveyor with the state Department of Natural Resources.

Brown said the department calls it Bevis Lake. The U.S. Geological Survey uses that name on its topographic map.

But the U.S. Census Bureau calls it Butthead Lake in its records.

I'm shocked that someone at the government has a sense of humor. I'm also hoping someone puts up a development called Cornholio Landing.

Estonia Kicks Our Butt

Loyal reader RB clued us into the latest rankings. No, not college football -- the Index of Economic Freedom...

For the first time in the 11 years that the Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal have been publishing the Index of Economic Freedom, the U.S. has dropped out of the top 10 freest economies in the world.

In 1998, the U.S. was the fifth freest economy in the world, in 2001 it was sixth, and today it sits at 12th, tied with Switzerland. The U.S. drop in ranking is explained in part by a slightly lower score, but mostly by the good performance among its competitors. The lesson? Stand still on the highway to economic liberty and the world will soon start to pass you by.

The 2005 Index, released today, ranks Hong Kong once again as the world's freest economy, followed by Singapore and Luxembourg. But it is Estonia at No. 4 that makes the point. This former Soviet satellite is a model reformer, setting the standard for how fast countries can move ahead in the realm of economic liberalization. Ireland, New Zealand, the U.K., Denmark, Iceland, Australia and Chile, all relatively recent converts to free markets, also outpace the U.S. this year.

As if you needed another excuse to visit Ireland. For any Democrats out there, please note that France ranks #44.