I took all the Atlantic blogs (except Marc Ambinder, which has good reporting in it) off my RSS reader last week. They’re just too much of a big round-robin fluff-fest for me, plus I can’t shake the creepy feeling that one day I will watch Luke Douthat and Liz Goldberg discuss Rand Suderman-McArdle’s principled, centrist Unity ’44 candidacy. Garbage like this from Josh Green (via all the other people who trashed this — Oliver Willis, Atrios, etc.) makes me glad I did:
So LeBron James is abandoning Cleveland for sunny Miami. That’s a tough break for Ohio sports fans. But what effect might LeBron’s departure have on Ohio’s politics? I think it helps the Tea Party, for reasons I’ll lay out.
This combines the sports metaphor cliche with Slate-style “how `Mad Men’ helps John McCain” analysis. And while we’re on sports metaphors, here’s a double groaner from Howard Fineman:
The president is swinging for the fences because that is what home-run hitters do. He hopes (expects) voters will reward him for the effort. Hence, his focus on the toughest topics in the broadest way. To switch sports analogies, if he were an Olympic diver, he’d always be attempting the dives with the highest degree of difficulty. If the execution isn’t perfect, he gets a higher score anyway.
If we’ve got to use sports metaphors for politics, couldn’t we update them a little bit? Maybe some references to steroids and Pancake Houses?
Karl
Taking Fallows off your RSS reader is strictly a mistake. He doesn’t even fluff-fest.
Mark S.
Pancake Houses? I must’ve missed that one.
I’m enjoying reading all the sportswriters dissing LeBron, but if I’ve learned one from sportswriters, once you win a championship those guys will be back on their knees in no time (e.g. A-Rod, Kobe).
DougJ
@Karl:
Pulls his punches, though.
Sly
Can we start using political metaphors for sports?
Cleveland fans are about to feel what John C. Calhoun felt after the Nullification Crisis of 1832. BOOYAH!
Mnemosyne
Is it bad that I have no idea who the hell LeBron James is other than he plays basketball? Why am I supposed to care about him?
Morbo
Well that tears it; I’m never having kids.
Xecky Gilchrist
@Mnemosyne: This.
BombIranForChrist
George W. Bush was like, baseball? Because, like, his head was round? Like, totally. Back me up here, Dudehat and Sullen.
demo woman
Huffington Post is running the LeBron James, tea bagger angle also, too. Myself I think he is a talented, egotistical traitor. But that’s just me. I never pictured
hishim as a tea bagger.Yutsano
@Mnemosyne: You should have been at my work yesterday. That place STOPPED at 6 pm. All the guys were circled around the TV hanging on LeBron’s every word until he actually spoke. I stopped caring about the NBA even before the Seattle sale/move mishegas, so I wasn’t too happy about it. Then I read that fucking piece of nonsense and about gagged. Conflation should not be done by amateurs. In other words, can we move on now plz?
burnspbesq
I’m waiting for one of the Villagers to write “Obama was caught LBW by an ingenious delivery from Boehner.”
cat48
Are you certain Fineman wrote that about Obama as it sounds way too positive from him?
This is what he usually dishes out:
Brett
I took Andrew Sullivan off my Google Feed a couple of weeks back as well, although it wasn’t because of the circlejerk. Rather, it was because he was generating a crap-ton of posts, and I was tired of opening up my Google Feed to see that he’d just pumped out 57 posts in the last 45 minutes.
Amy
This bit about a graphic designer and a missing cat is far more compelling.
burnspbesq
Got a fundraising letter from John Hall the other day.
Hey, Congressman, things are a little tight. How about if I go out to a bar tonight and play “Dance with Me” on the jukebox? You still get mechanical royalties, right?
Zandar
I’ll say here what I said this morning about Josh Green’s stupidity:
1) Polite response: That seems like a rather pointed insult to the people of Ohio if you ask me. There are real problems in not just Ohio’s economy but all over the tri-state (also relative, that includes the Cincy IN-KY-OH tri-state, the Cleveland PA-WV-OH tri-state, and the Toledo IN-MI-OH tri-state areas) and people have bigger problems to worry about.
2) Cynical response: LeBron pantses Ohio on national TV, it’s got to be Obama’s fault, right? That’s a bit of a reach. Smacks of Obama Derangement Syndrome to me. Quelle surprise to find this in The Atlantic.
3) Really Somewhat Angry response: So you’re basically saying “Hey Ohio, this is the second really famous black man who screwed you over in the last 18 months”, huh? You, uh, really want to go down that particular road there, Josh?
Mark S.
@Brett:
That’s why Sully never lasted very long in my Google feed.
burnspbesq
@Morbo:
Neither is Douthat, unless he acquires some social skills. Thought experiment: imagine Douthat hitting on Ayla Brown. Try not to hurt yourself laughing.
Bruce (formerly Steve S.)
Oh, a lovely ball from Reid!…………….flick on by Pelosi!……………Obama first times it–GOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh dear! The offside flag is up!
Hunter Gathers
I would like it if the following things happened to team members of the Village:
A vicious chop-block to the knees
A 95 MPH pitch that hits them in the neck
Getting spiked while sliding head first into second
Getting Theismanned
What happened to Bryce Florie
Anything that happens in a minor league hockey game
And finally, getting released from their contract because they are too old and can’t play anymore.
Is that enough sports metaphors for you, you Village DoucheBags?
john b
ta-nahesi coates is pretty consistently thoughtful in his posts and his commenters are pretty reasonable as well. IMO at least
Bootlegger
@Sly: LOL
How about farm metaphors for politics:
“Obama likes to milk the meanest cow.”
“He’s not afraid to put all his eggs in one basket.”
“He likes the manure pile well away from the house.”
Bootlegger
@Bruce (formerly Steve S.): That’s a terrible call!
Bootlegger
@cat48: Or, “Obama doesn’t like the fastball.”
Marc
Coates is well worth reading and doesn’t categorize easily. Ditto Fallows. And I find Sullivan an interesting read.
Green is an embarrassment, Goldblog and Crooks loathsome for different reasons, and McArdle is an argument against a just God.
nepat
You took off Coates and Fallows and left Ambinder? WTF?
cat48
@Hunter Gathers:
Ouch! Good ideas!
Three-nineteen
I second the TNC love. I know he was in on the “I respect him but” bandwagon last week, but his is not really a political blog, so those kinds of posts are few and far between.
[email protected]: I thought Douthat was already married? Seems to me the barrier to his having kids would be the utter distaste he seems to have for sex.
Tom Levenson
@nepat: Word. T-N C is a consistently good writer heading for greatness. (see Confederate History Month, e. g.)
Fallows may occasionally pull punches, per DougJ, but he’s smart and he actually reports — and he’s been doing so long enough to have areal body of expertise, which is exactly what the diaper brigade refuses to acquire.
cat48
Fineman also covered another sport by Obama:
Anya
Doug, I cannot believe you’re lumping Fallows with the other wankers. He is thoughtful and informative. I can also forgive THC his latest transgression because his other stuff is a must read (civil war).
Jim C
@burnspbesq:
Imagining Douthat hitting on anyone is difficult to do without laughing.
I didn’t figure I’d be stumped by a sports reference in this thread. Ayla Brown. Learned something new.
Josh
Anya, TNC is a journalist; THC is a drug. Both fun to spend time with, I’m sure.
Gravenstone
That Green quote made me literally /facepalm. I mean, honestly WTF?
DougJ
@Anya:
My take is this: they’re opinion writers and they all pull punches when it comes to each other. That’s a no-no for me.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
@burnspbesq: Screw that. Obama is gonna walk up the pitch and drive that short delivery for six.
Martin
I read that Green piece as weak snark, FWIW.
Redshirt
Now I know how the Pilgrims felt.
Anya
@Josh: haha. I blame it on whatever horrible thing is happening that makes my posts vanish into thin air.
dmsilev
@Jim C:
For good reason. Google ‘Chunky Reese Witherspoon’ to learn the story about what happened the last time Douthat tried hitting on someone.
dms
Tom Hilton
@DougJ: I see–he doesn’t do enough ‘tough’ lefty posturing for ya. Well, that was never very important to me, so I think he’s worth reading.
Edit: And as others have said, TNC is always worth reading. Coates and Fallows are each worth a dozen Duncan Blacks.
JenJen
As a life-long, yes-I-still-live-here, born-and-bred Buckeye, may I please tell whichever shitknob out-of-state pundits who are pushing this horseshit to go get fucked right in their peehole?
Too harsh?
Hannah
Ta-Nehisi Coates is well worth reading.
dmsilev
Oh my. From the very beginning of the comments of that article:
Looks like someone isn’t aware of all internet traditions.
dms
Tom Hilton
@DougJ: you mean like Fallows and Coates saying they disagree with Goldberg (and carefully explaining why) instead of calling him a moronic wanker (or whatever)?
Seriously, what would the latter add? (And I say that as someone who enjoys and indulges in invective as much as anyone here.)
Anya
@DougJ: I see what you’re saying, but making their worthless colleagues cry, should not be a requirement. I can understand how it can be hard to humiliate the immoral assholes you work with. Also both TNC and Fallows strike me as gentle souls.
Are you back from your elitist getaway?
ricky
As white America fades into minority status, I long to hear our aging, plodding Congressional leaders referred to as “wily” and “scrappy.” I want to hear that Obama has “a high political IQ” and that George Will writes as he throws, “like a girl.”
daveNYC
Accuracy?
Johio
I think taking Coates off is a huge mistake. He can write. Sullivan I read some and ignore some. I don’t care for his Palin obsession, but his series of posts on late term abortions after Tiller was murdered last year was very moving and not like anything I saw anywhere else.
burnspbesq
@That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal:
Right over McConnell at silly mid-off. Which is, of course, the only position one can imagine McConnell playing. McConnell and silly go together like bangers and mash.
Maude
@cat48:
The US is known for long distance runners?
Learn something new every day.
Anton Sirius
@Martin:
Your interpretation of the piece is charmingly naive.
Green is the same guy who claimed to be a teenage Rush fan who grew up to be a political junkie, yet a) didn’t know how heavy an influence Ayn Rand had on Neil Peart’s lyrics, and b) referred to one of their biggest songs as “The Spirit of the Radio”.
The guy’s one very tiny notch above the likes of Stephen Glass and Jayson Blair, really. He’s far clumsier in his dishonesty than his Village brethren.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
@burnspbesq: Actually, that explains a lot. The Republican caucus is positioned entirely between silly mid-off and deep backwards point. (Cantor may be deep backwards square.) They have plenty of slips.
The question is whether or not they can take wickets quickly enough with this aggressive positioning. If the Democrats don’t get too aggressive and just poke deliveries to mid-wicket, plenty of balls should go for four.
Tom Hilton
@daveNYC: is there anything inaccurate about their actual responses to Goldberg?
I understand that vilifying Goldberg would be way more emotionally satisfying to the likes of us, but it wouldn’t add anything to the content of what they said.
burnspbesq
Although I like to think that if Obama saw McConnell at silly mid-off, he would drill him in his ugly mug.
For those of you scoring at home, silly mid-off is approximately equivalent to a third baseman playing 50 feet in front of the bag with a left-handed batter up.
burnspbesq
@That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal:
Good strategery. Take two days to get to 600, then declare and bring on the fast bowlers Emanuel and Grayson.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
@Anton Sirius:
Eh, no. He wrote one song based on “Anthem.” He has since said something to the effect of, “Look, I read one story by her, I liked it, and wrote a song about it. I had no idea she was crazy.”
Honestly, you think the guy that wrote the lyrics to “Closer to the Heart”* was heavily influenced by Ayn Rand?
*Just to name something from that same era; I could point to “The Big Money” or almost anything off of Snakes and Arrows
jl
I like the very last suggestion, if the scope could be expanded to include pancakes and waffles, french toast, beignets and donuts. IHOP, Waffle House, Cafe du Monde, Dunkin, McDonalds and BK.
I want to hear about the political divide symbolized by Traditional Waffle House Families and Effete Cosmopolitan IHOP City Singles. Sure, Fast Food French Toast Sticks Hipsters like Obama, but will they turn out to vote?
I want to read stuff like that.
Edit; and more bowling and archery metaphors, also too.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
@burnspbesq: I’m predicting they can force a follow on.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
Actually, the more I think about it, the Republicans clearly believe that they’re playing an ODI, while Obama recognizes that this is a test.
Comrade PhysioProf
Fineman is the fucking worst. He is the Jamarcus Russell of political commentary.
burnspbesq
@That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal:
Obama and Ponting: separated at birth?
Svensker
OT, but speaking of sporting life — we seem to have a, ahem, very dead groundhog under our shed, judging from the smell and the number of flies. The shed (which was here when we bought the joint) has a concrete base and is not movable. Any ideas for cutting down on the odor and the flies? (Question is, is it just the mom, the mom and all 3 pups, or a variety?)
Is it wrong to celebrate the death of a fellow creature? Particularly one that is quite cute? And fat from eating ALL MY VEGETABLES?!
The smell, she is not so good, tho.
Vince CA
Do I get credit for knowing the reference to the blog post is a The Decemberists song from Picaresque? And if it’s not, it should be.
Also, what’s with all the rat-fcuking over these basketball players and their obscene salaries and where they’re going to play and if they’ll win a championship and… barf? Why do I care again? I turn off NPR when people go off on this carp, don’t make me change the channel on BJ, too.
Svensker
@Comrade PhysioProf:
Oooh. Brutal.
FlipYrWhig
@Tom Hilton:
I don’t read the Atlantic bloggers, but I wanted to chime in to say that Atrios has completely fallen apart. His comment sections have always been horrendous. But now his own material is just obnoxious. Short, unreflective, whiny, and obnoxious. There’s no point in reading him anymore. Every time I think to check back again, I’m just aggravated.
Quicksand
The one I’m really sick of (and yeah, blackjack is not EXACTLY a sport) is “double down”:
“The new TV ad doubles down on that promise, and strives to remind voters that Deal has already put his money where his mouth is on the topic of immigration.” (TPMDC)
“The British Court of Appeals refused the British government’s attempt to respond to a suit from Binyam Mohamed and other former Gitmo detainees by claiming only the government and the judge could see the evidence–effectively the stance the Obama Administration has now doubled down on.” (emptywheel)
“Former Arkansas governor and current Fox News personality Mike Huckabee has doubled down on his use of the term “ick factor” to describe gay relationships” (Wonk Room)
“Now, with arms crossed firmly, and a pout upon his lips, Risen
doubles downtriples down in his efforts to show those mean pajama jerking bloggers that he is too the boss of them.” (Poor Man)“GOP Rep. Steve King doubles down on Obama’s pro-black, anti-white “default mechanism.”” (Plum Line)
“Not willing to settle for being a garden variety half-wit, Hemingway doubles down when McGinnis’ son replies sarcastically to an email from Politico’s Ben Smith” (TBogg)
“Arizona doubles down on discriminatory laws.” (Yglesias)
“In a fight for his political life back home in Nevada, Harry Reid is doubling down on Health Care Reform.” (TPM)
. . . and many, many more. Never mind coastal drilling, can we have a moratorium on this?
Also, why am I suddenly craving fried chicken and bacon?
debbie
Ohioans may not be the brightest bulbs, but they’d never sully their sports with mere politics. The teabaggers are barking up the wrong tree if they think they can capitalize on LeBron’s leaving.
I think his opting for a better chance to win a title over more money is pretty commendable for someone in professional sports. Cleveland had 7 years to build a better team to back him up, and they squandered it. They have only themselves to blame.
MikeJ
@burnspbesq: The Ashes start again in November. Just in time for post election analogies.
Tom Hilton
@FlipYrWhig: yeah, I agree with your assessment, and I have the same experience whenever I go there. He’s never been a master of the long form, but he used to be really valuable because he would call attention to stuff everybody was ignoring. Except now tons of other people are calling attention to the same stuff, so there’s not so much value anymore, which makes his faults (which may have always been there, or may have grown over time–I dunno) all the more obvious.
grandpajohn
So 2 days in a row the main news topic is some basketball player deciding where he wants to play? And people wonder why the country is going to hell in a handbasket .
burnspbesq
@Comrade PhysioProf:
Why are you insulting JaMarcus Russell?
Chat Noir
@Hunter Gathers: This is awesome. LOL.
/bows in an “I am not worthy” way
MikeJ
@grandpajohn: I consider it a step up from the constant coverage of competitive eating we had for days before the basketball todo.
grandpajohn
@debbie: A miracle happens, a professional athlete puts something besides money as a top priority and what happens , everybody gives him a load a shit. Well once we achieve third world status because the population of this country decide to excel in stupidity, they want have to worry about the money because there won’t be any.
What the hell is all this ultra greed paranoia about anyway. Once you have all the money you can possibly spend in a reasonable manner during you lifetime, why the hell do you need more,
PS what debbie said, why is he a traitor just because he wants a ring. as she said they screwed away 7 years to build a team, how long is he supposed to be loyal to management that gives fuck all about him?
Tom Hilton
@Quicksand: that first one, besides using the double down cliche, also mixes metaphors pretty egregiously. Maybe “…put his Double Down where his mouth is” would have been better.
Overused though it is, I think ‘double down’ can be useful in certain limited situations, where its connotations of recklessness and gambling (not just redoubling efforts or resources) are appropriate. For example, back in 2008, my slogan for the Republican ticket: “McCain/Palin: double down on crazy!”
Roger Moore
@That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal:
Fixt.
FlipYrWhig
@grandpajohn:
It took on the morality-play atmosphere it did because he’s been a hero to the state of Ohio since he was like 11 years old.
Quicksand
@Tom Hilton:
I agree that “double down” can be a perfectly valid, quite evocative, expression.
But that metaphor . . . perhaps like a certain bunless deep-fried fast-food creation . . . is best enjoyed in moderation.
Roger Moore
@Quicksand:
Good point, especially because much of the time people are using the metaphor inaccurately. Doubling down just means you’re doubling your bet in a case when you (presumably) have a good chance of winning. A lot of the time when people say “double down” they mean that somebody is going much further than that, and “goes all in” would be more apt.
Nellcote
So the elite east coast Villagers are dissing “flyover country” again. Way to live up to the stereotype!
Nylund
I hate how the Atlantic is one giant circle jerk. Is it written into their contracts that they must link to, and speak praisingly of each other? Some people like TNC seem pretty reasonable, and then you get those “reasonable” people suggesting a link to some “well-thought out” article, and you click it, only to be sucked into a black hole of McArdle’s stupidity that you can’t get out of until you waste an hour in her comments pointing out the long list of logical fallacies, misunderstood theories, and misrepresented facts she passes off as analysis and wisdom.
But I must give McArdle credit. Her stupidity and lies are so overwhelmingly horrific its hard to walk away. One feels compelled to try to inject some reason and truth into the debate. Its like that XKCD cartoon.
Jay in Oregon
Someone at Eschaton made this point already, but from the article:
It’s good to see someone admitting that the Tea Party is just about being angry.
b-psycho
This “traitor” shit with Lebron is annoying.
That is all.
slag
I’m definitely keeping Ambinder because DougJ’s right on the reporting. Fallows every now and again for tech-related stuff. And TNC every now and again because I like his “talk to me like I’m stupid” posts. But I finally read my last Palin-related post from Sullivan last week. Too. Much. Wankery.
As for the rest of them, the number of incisive and interesting posts has pretty much always been far outweighed by the fluff. Not enough hours in the day for me to care about what they have to say.
kommrade reproductive vigor
Well, you can’t say he doesn’t warn potential victims that massive wankery is about to ensue.
That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal
@Roger Moore: I refuse to acknowledge the existence of Twenty20. “Reality based” only goes so far.
Roger Moore
@That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal:
That’s fine. The Republicans aren’t terribly interested in reality, either. Besides, I think that Twenty20 as a metaphor actually overstates their planning horizon. Most of them aren’t really thinking beyond the moment, which is why they’re trying for a boundary on every bowl.
Redshirt
I love Sully’s Palin postings. I think he’s going to bring her down, cuz it was all some sort of strange lie, one way or another. A big lie – a career ending lie?
stormhit
If only Fallows and TNC swore like Taibbi, then they’d be worth reading. Snark and juvenile rage is so important.
Bootlegger
@FlipYrWhig: One of my favorite Husker Du albums.
Bootlegger
@stormhit: Gonzo journalism, ironic that it is the only honest journalism left.
jwb
But DougJ, you are supposed to read these asshats so I don’t have to.
Zagrobelny
I understand why you would dump the rest of them, but TNC is one of the best bloggers out there. I still remember his post about Obama’s parents before the election. He’s doing good stuff on the Civil War right now, too.
silentbeep
How could you not read TNC? I’m serious. I just don’t understand taking HIM off.
DougJ
@jwb:
I’ll still read McArdle and Goldberg, just not via RSS. And the others aren’t asshats.
Cloudspitter
DougJ, could you please address why you’re ceasing to read TNC? You seem to have a consensus here that he’s worthwhile, which I won’t bother contributing to right now (though I could).
SGEW
Just registering my surprise that you would take Fallows and Coates off of your daily read.
I mean, I often have serious disagreements with the way that you express your opinions (and some of the opinions themselves), Doug, but that doesn’t mean I’ll stop reading regularly.
Evil Bender
I’m also firmly on board the Coates’ bandwagon. Unique, clear voices are rare enough, and the thoughtful engagement he fosters over there is compelling as well. Several times a week he’ll post something beautiful, educational, and thought provoking.
Corner Stone
There are so few things in life that are so clear, so useful as a metric.
But anytime someone says they have great respect for Goldberg as a reporter ~ that’s one of them.