So many Q’s and A’s you might need hair of the dog

Today’s question:

If a person who is entitled to Secret Service protection goes to jail would he or still get that protection?

Nobody knows. The person in question probably would be placed in protective isolation and not turned loose in the general prison population.

It is ultimately up to Congress to decide who gets Secret Service protection.

Can the vice president of the United States be named to a Cabinet position?

In most administrations, or at least in most recent administrations, the vice president is a member of the cabinet.

Or are you asking if the vice president could serve as Veep and also be appointed Secretary of Whatever at the same time?

Possible, I suppose, but highly unlikely.

Why were cemeteries in the Old West called Boot Hill?

Some were and some weren’t. Some were at first called Boot Hill, but later renamed with more conventenial titles.

The idea was that some Old West towns were so violent and death so common that to save time the deceased were buried with their boots on.

If a major outranks a lieutenant why does a lieutenant general outrank a major general?

This gets pretty confusing and it probably be best for everyone involved if you tried not to worry about it. But since you asked …

There was a time when some armies included the rank of sergeant major general, the most junior of the generals.

Over time, the title was shortened to major general and since the position was already below lieutenant general the rank held.

What is the origin of the phrase “hair of the dog?”

Hair of the dog — the idea that drinking alcohol will cure a hangover — comes from the days when people believed the cure for rabies was eating a bit of hair from the rabid dog. This, of course, is nonsense.