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David Frum compliments lefty bloggers—watch for flying pigs
Posted on March 20, 2008 by Douglas Bell
Dave Stone/The Eagle
The January-February issue of National Interest, a mainstay of America’s neo-con commentariat, has two aspects of note. First, it is the last issue listing Conrad Black as a member of its advisory council. The reason for his departure, other than the obvious, may include the fact that his decidedly former pal Henry Kissinger is the publication’s honorary chairman. The second aspect, much as it galls me to say, is an intriguing piece on the influence of the blogosphere on American foreign policy debates written by former White House speech scribbler and big-time Conrad Black apologist David Frum.
Frum argues that, in their rush to bury the Bush administration and install a pure laine leftist regime, the populist left has split away from the sensible left. This, of course, means reducing the entire neo-commie enterprise to the same schizoid state as the right (Country Club Republicans vs. The Neo-Cons vs. The Christian Right) under Bush/Cheney. In the end, David Frum, who has made clear his misgivings about Mr. Bush, actually (gasp!) compliments lefty bloggers: “The populist protesters of 2007 are far more informed and far more sophisticated than their predecessors of 1973, who were in turn a major improvement over those of 1950, 1935 and 1920.”
What next? Obama/Frum 2008?
• Foggy Bloggom [National Interest]
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Comments
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ValC March 20, 2008 at 11:25 a.m.
It's always interesting to hear from David Frum. I have often wished I could have listened in on dinner table conversations between David and his mother. Two such talented people, it would have been fascinating.
However, it seems to me that people at either extreme of an issue tend to have some very similar behaviours. You don't have to look any further than this blog to see, for example, personal and spiteful remarks directed by either side against the other. It's not just lefties who do that. Righties do it too.
GravityLevity2 March 20, 2008 at 12:08 p.m.
Frum's piece is long and ponderous, pedestrian in its writing style, and unduly portentous and musty in its tone. Mark Twain he ain't, nor even Conrad Black.
I'm allergic to the dust and mold of literary staleness, so this piece didn't make me laugh, or ponder, it made me cough: hack hack hack
Lit_200 March 20, 2008 at 12:34 p.m.
Have to agree with Grav/Lev, this is the longest single piece Doug Bell has run and it's thick, heavy reading. I don't see any flying pigs. The compliment is actually pretty weak: today's lefty bloggers are better than those in the 1990s, which were better than those in the 50s etc. with the inference that "you guys are getting better but you still aren't very good." Personally, it has always seemed to me that the lib pubs in the US always had the high ground.
Reads like a wet, woolen sweater.
Fintan March 20, 2008 at 12:50 p.m.
Could this be a harbinger of things to come? Frum may see that the neocon evil, like nazism, is approaching the end of the road and is laying the groundwork for reinventing himself as someone who actually cares a little about ordinary people, the environment and all those things that the neocons so despise.
The other sign of realism is that the neocon outfit have dropped His Lardship from their editorial board. The Nazional Poop still hasn't updated their bio of him. I suppose they'll wait until after his appeal has been rejected, just to keep up the appearance of decency.
LOL
It's late Thursday evening here and they're getting ready to roll up the sidewalks for the deadest day of the year.
Happy Easter to all from a decidedly frosty Helsinki.
Barbara_in_BC March 20, 2008 at 1:57 p.m.
Rats are jumping off the sinking ship of Neoconservatism. Next we'll be seeing P. J. O'Rourke and Christopher Hitchens switching sides AGAIN.
Pen1 March 20, 2008 at 3:04 p.m.
The good thing about this sad business is that it has put the thuggish racist "Cory Privatera" out of circulation for a while. Fintan - from hit and run thread
No, I just got back from Mexico, hey the guy who got hit in the mini van by Black's son should be glad he was not back in Sri Lanka, his donkey could have been killed had this accident happened there, further the police would have arrived 12 hours later on goat back with a bucket of raw sewage to put out any flames caused by the accident. The first thing I read after getting off the plane was the article in the Sun on page 2 yesterday with a picture of that pathetic turd world immi playing it up for the photags with his kneck brace. Doesn't he know that Conrad Black is in prison and he'll be lucky to get a food stamp and a can of yogurt out of this!
Barbara_in_BC March 20, 2008 at 4:46 p.m.
Got a comment about David Frum "Cory"? Or are you only full of Barbara Amiel-style racism?
leaf March 20, 2008 at 6:27 p.m.
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jade_lee March 20, 2008 at 7:48 p.m.
Leaf is in love.
GravityLevity2 March 20, 2008 at 8 p.m.
leaf is madly, badly in love
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