tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post1855918319465036412..comments2024-03-28T09:14:20.479-05:00Comments on driftglass: The Return of The Piddlerdriftglasshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09379167083253389153noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-38178116580076200652010-08-27T15:23:13.367-05:002010-08-27T15:23:13.367-05:00The italicized sentence at the end of Paul Krugman...The italicized sentence at the end of Paul Krugman's columns will be missed. David Brooks is off today. Doesn't that just make you smile?<br /><br />If you can find out his hat size, I might be able to talk my wife into sewing the embroidered silk pillow for Mr. Brooks. <br /><br />peacecheaptalkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-90424995306185176752010-08-27T15:20:11.636-05:002010-08-27T15:20:11.636-05:00What's especially infuriating to me (in partic...What's especially infuriating to me (in particular) about this one is that it's a very cryptically-stated version of that same old canard about how suffering is good for you (for values of "you" not equivalent to "members of the ruling class") because it builds "character" or some such hogwash. Speaking as a handicapped person whose <i>normal existence</i> includes pain that would have Bobo snivelling in the corner like a terrified little boy who's been raised by a father heavily into the cult of machismo, this kind of crap reads to me like the same sort of crap we usually hear -- those of us lesser mortals who don't happen to be millionaires or richer should be <i>grateful</i> for our adversity, because it makes us somehow <i>morally superior</i> in a vague undefined way the rich are never particularly eager to experience -- which is also a damn good attempt at making sure the peons don't storm your gated community one moonless night and decide to stick your head on one of the gate's decorative wrought-iron spikes. Shit <i>all over</i> that noise.<br /><br />Taking that particular twisted argument and then inisisting that we peons outside of the Sensible Centre ought to somehow summon the strength of imaginary character to do the sort of self-examination he assumes would perforce cause us to admit (despite the pain) how wrong we are is <i>especially</i> perverse, and is also the sort of triple axel of emotional blackmail.Interrobanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14073177798747299275noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-31402183999388738072010-08-25T18:14:40.241-05:002010-08-25T18:14:40.241-05:00"Perhaps one day, the rabble they've buil..."Perhaps one day, the rabble they've built and unleashed will come for them? Tarring & feathering might be too good for some."<br /><br />Shoot, as much damage as these scumbags have done, I'd almost be in favor of elephant-crushing...<br /><br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_by_elephant<br /><br />...if I weren't the mild-mannered sweetie I am, now...;)deeringnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-61824309520978681032010-08-25T18:12:17.514-05:002010-08-25T18:12:17.514-05:00Thanks, guys!
1) It's amazing how Hitler had...Thanks, guys! <br /><br />1) It's amazing how Hitler had _so_ many enablers who were like Brooks.<br /><br />2)Dr. Alice Miller, who studies the mindset of child abusers and how that can propagate itself through its victims, pretty much has Brooks nailed in the above link. I'd give a million to have been a fly on the wall during his childhood--musta been ugly. :P<br /><br />3) And the excellent James Wolcott noted that MAD MEN's recent storyline about the hero's daughter Sally shows this mindset in action--and how "moderate" wingers like Brooks, Dreher, and Douthat would love to bring that shit back. <br /><br />http://www.vanityfair.com/online/oscars/2010/08/two-images-struck-the-lighter.htmldeeringnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-68485322144979915132010-08-25T17:03:53.334-05:002010-08-25T17:03:53.334-05:00I forgot to give kudos for the lovely literary lea...I forgot to give kudos for the lovely literary leaping there in the post itself... so kudos. (There's a Bradbury celebration out here in LA, so that's especially timely.) It ain't incidental, either, because a central point in most DG posts on Brooks is that Bobo is a fairly smart guy, well-read and traveled.... He's seen some of the beauty of the world, and has a wonderful gig, yet has consciously chosen to serve more powerful, evil men instead.Batocchiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02193752396025012825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-53263055814127612652010-08-25T16:35:34.134-05:002010-08-25T16:35:34.134-05:00I don't say it nearly often enough, but I have...I don't say it nearly often enough, but I have absolutely the <b>best</b> commenters anywhere. Imagine if this is what the exchanges sounded like on Sunday morning on every network?driftglasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09379167083253389153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-90929130579283874142010-08-25T15:49:21.880-05:002010-08-25T15:49:21.880-05:00I understand where Busted is coming from, but it&#...I understand where Busted is coming from, but it's what Deering said – Brooks is genuinely destructive. Plus, depending on what circles you move in, or the political savvy of your friends and family, you run into either folks like Bobo all the time, or folks who think he's really sensible. And that can be absolutely fucking maddening, just like any piece by McArdle or Richard Cohen or David Broder or... Ask not for whom the Bobo toils; he toils for thee. <br /><br />I actually popped over here because I was hoping DG would cover this one, which I first saw mocked over at Sadly, No, where I commented: And now that David fucking Brooks has written that column, I'm sure he'll finally, unflinchingly, cover the Bush regime's horrific torture program.Batocchiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02193752396025012825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-3555169306702122152010-08-25T15:39:30.616-05:002010-08-25T15:39:30.616-05:00Wait, DG, is it possible the Email-er mentioned in...Wait, DG, is it possible the Email-er mentioned in your Aug 13 broadcast is Brooks himself? I recall you recommended a fearless moral inventory to that person too.Melnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-87236811456806573432010-08-25T15:06:42.801-05:002010-08-25T15:06:42.801-05:00Ostensibly to Busted:
Yeah, and you live in a Wea...Ostensibly to Busted:<br /><br />Yeah, and you live in a Weasel Den off the beaten track where you will never encounter Brooksians in their natural, yet superior, habitat.<br /><br />It's a DENSITY issue you can't begin to appreciate.<br /><br />In short, David Fucking Brooks is a cheap tool. ---I know you understand those. With every breath he takes, every word he rakes, he's buggering YOU.<br /><br />Unfortunately, this cheap tool is hooked up to and into the New York Fucking Times which also puts him "in demand" for the pundit panels.<br />His duty is to make crazy sound reasonable. He does this by LYING.<br /><br />Nice work if you can get it, but we can't afford it. So every time Drifty takes him apart, he's less put together. Every Fucking TIME.Rehctawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07995444077162800445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-42838379659251605752010-08-25T13:05:56.936-05:002010-08-25T13:05:56.936-05:00What Busted said. Plus, Our Miss Brooks was reall...What Busted said. Plus, Our Miss Brooks was really not so bad, for its time.chautauquanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-50648214525329771812010-08-25T08:06:12.384-05:002010-08-25T08:06:12.384-05:00@deering, not only "empty men" but willi...@deering, not only "empty men" but willing (sometimes gleeful) co-conspirators.<br /><br />Perhaps one day, the rabble they've built and unleashed will come for them? <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSPWXQhh6-A" rel="nofollow">Tarring & feathering</a> might be too good for some.<br /><br />SPServing Patriothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14984393452206039835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-72684542208572019002010-08-25T05:28:49.259-05:002010-08-25T05:28:49.259-05:00I can't speak for driftglass, but I suspect th...I can't speak for driftglass, but I suspect the reason he follows Brooks is because men like the latter are extremely dangerous. Their hollowness and weakness are their strength--in sounding reasonable and moderate they constantly shift the center to a dangerous extreme. It's not the flashy dictators you have to watch so much--it's the empty men like Brooks who make them sound reasonable and sane.deeringnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-44576728358322183882010-08-25T05:25:27.523-05:002010-08-25T05:25:27.523-05:00Hey, drift!
For a psychological view of Brooks...Hey, drift!<br /><br />For a psychological view of Brooks' behavior, check out: <br /><br />http://thesacredmoment.blogspot.com/2004/03/roots-of-horror-demand-for-obedience.html<br /><br />Sounds about right to me...:)deeringnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-4842794081284140042010-08-25T03:31:44.290-05:002010-08-25T03:31:44.290-05:00After all these years Drifty, I have to ask.
Why d...After all these years Drifty, I have to ask.<br />Why do you bother with this pussy motherfucker?<br /><br />It doesn't matter how he scrambles the eggs for his milque toast and oat meal of a column, it is the same <br />shit sandwich every fucking time.<br /><br />Let me let you in on a secret,<br />I have never,I mean never ever, read one of his columns.<br />Do you know why?<br />Because it is a fart in a hurricane.<br />I could give a rat fuck what that wimpy fucking weasel thinks,or says.<br />The same goes for all the other bobble heads that drive you crazy.<br />I could give a fuck what passes for information coming out of the Mouse circus because it is all class warfare propaganda and it has no impact on my life.<br />I don't live in their bubble and it is like watching a piss poorly written Soap Opera.<br />Tune in next week so you can see what happened last week until the last thirty seconds and then tune in again next week, ad infinitum.<br /><br />The shit never changes.<br /><br />Fuck Bobo, give yourself a break. His schtick has been old for years.<br /><br />You are too good of a man to be wasting time on that genital wart.<br />Although, I do have to say, you do one hell of a job of farting right back at him.<br />If he ever read all the shit you have written about him he would tuck his tail between his legs and go begging for a job at some right wing think tank no one has ever heard of.Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15695733883033137146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-88656658250366317542010-08-25T00:11:52.700-05:002010-08-25T00:11:52.700-05:00My favorite:
But, in general, the culture places ...My favorite:<br /><br /><i>But, in general, the culture places less emphasis on the need to struggle against one’s own mental feebleness. Today’s culture is better in most ways, but in this way it is worse.</i><br /><br />Shorter DFB: I yearn for the good old days when people knew their place in society. And where's that damn shoeshine boy? *snap* *snap*Rokethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17409177509254516312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11363027.post-39274427020097922002010-08-24T23:22:37.210-05:002010-08-24T23:22:37.210-05:00I Couldn't agree with Brooks more. I've be...I Couldn't agree with Brooks more. I've been blogging for over four years, arguing regularly with both the left and right over that time and I am continually astounded at their complete failure to understand the depth of the metacognition deficit they suffer. I wondered if I might be similarly afflicted?<br /><br />To find out, I recently spent several hours in quiet meditation specifically to ponder the weakness in my own thinking and what I should do to compensate. After several hours of reflection and deep introspective analysis I had an epiphany - <i>there was no weakness in my thinking</i>. No one was more surprised than me to learn this, but I admit - it was a relief to understand that I am in fact - right. <br /><br />Since then, I've decided to dedicate myself to helping others to understand the depth of their metacognition deficit by explaining clearly and forcefully exactly how wrong they are.mwhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11181222537529037359noreply@blogger.com