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April 07, 2006
Original sinful silence, heard here first!
I really like Andrew Sullivan, and I've been reading him for years -- long before I started blogging. But he can be so unfair! Especially when he complains not about what Glenn Reynolds says, but what Andrew Sullivan says Glenn DOESN'T say. (Not the first time, either.) I think it's like, totally unfair that Glenn Reynolds got so much attention for not saying anything about Tom DeLay's departure, while I got no credit at all for not saying anything. This is all the more egregious because I really didn't say anything. Not. One. Word. That's right. Classical Values fiddled, while Tom DeLay crashed and burned. Are there no standards? Doesn't anything matter anymore? I mean, normally I wouldn't have complained. Because after all, both Andrew Sullivan and Glenn Reynolds are big bloggers. Huge bloggers. In terms of traffic, I'm barely a blip on the screen compared to either one of them. I can't expect Andrew Sullivan to care about my commissions or my omissions. (And expecting Glenn to attack me for what I didn't say would be even more absurd.) But in this case the unfairness is compounded by the fact that once -- just this once -- I honestly feel that I was more deserving of Andrew Sullivan's attention than was Glenn Reynolds. That's because Glenn actually did comment about Tom DeLay's departure. Not just with another "Heh. Indeed." or an "I BLAME PORKBUSTERS." -- but with a serious discussion in the Guardian. Yet my silence is ignored, while Glenn gets all the credit for silence that not only was never his to begin with, but never could have been! My silence was not only louder, it was first! (What? Does being first no longer count?) On top of that, I said nothing when I should have said something, because I actually knew about Tom DeLay's decision! (That brings my silence to the willful and intentional level, and deserving of the strongest possible criticism.) Considering all these facts, Andrew Sullivan's continued silence about my silence is very puzzling indeed. Should I take it personally? While I hate to make excuses for my conduct, perhaps I could blame "too much drug-addled '60s nostalgia" and burned out brain cells. But I'm not shooting for anything like Sully's "Malkin award." Or even a nomination. (Besides, Michelle Malkin has been so kind to me that I'd feel more honored than insulted. And my omission deserves the latter, not the former.) UPDATE: My silence has finally gotten the attention it deserves! Thanks Glenn and welcome all! (Andrew Sullivan has the right to remain silent, of course . . .) posted by Eric on 04.07.06 at 02:00 PM
Comments
Thanks. What Sullivan does to Michelle Malkin is much more unfair, though. Instead of criticizing what she says (or allegedly doesn't say), he brings up this "Malkin Award" business whenever some crackpot opens his mouth. Thus, Michelle is criticized not for what she says, but for what other people are saying. Sigh. Yes, once again I tried to be nice. Eric Scheie · April 7, 2006 05:15 PM Where is my recognition? I don't blog at all. How can you have more silence than that? silentobserver · April 7, 2006 05:30 PM Please. The "Malkin Award" and its ilk are hilarious. Lighten up. Aaron · April 7, 2006 05:31 PM Silence is golden. As is this post. :) Sissy Willis · April 7, 2006 05:57 PM I was for the silence before I was against it. John Kerry · April 7, 2006 05:58 PM Or was I against the silence before I was for it? John Kerry · April 7, 2006 05:59 PM Inspirational! "Sound of Silence" would be a good name for a song. P. Simon · April 7, 2006 06:05 PM I think Andrew, like Angelyne, just likes anyone mentioning his name, no matter what the context beautifulatrocities · April 7, 2006 06:11 PM Also, there's always the Sully Award for Witless Hyperbole beautifulatrocities · April 7, 2006 06:14 PM That was a très cute post. Made me smile. Andrew may have ignored you, but at least you weren't accused of hammering him! Dan (AKA GayPatriotWest) · April 7, 2006 07:25 PM Andrew Sullivan is also starting to oppose the Iraq War. I question whether he is even a conservative at all. Tester · April 7, 2006 07:30 PM Maybe you ought to apply to the Feds for a subsidy for not saying anything about it, just like the subsidies they give farmers for not planting crops... Doc Duke · April 7, 2006 07:32 PM So is this what is meant by a DeLayed reaction? triticale · April 7, 2006 07:32 PM Really. When criticizing Sullivan, it's generally better to forego the hammer in favor of penetrating the body of his work. Robbie · April 7, 2006 07:32 PM If its any comfort, I've never noticed anything you have ever said, even if you didn't say anything. Patrick (gryph) · April 7, 2006 07:52 PM As long as we're talking about classical values, have you ever wondered with countries admire American value systems, and which don't? The answer may surprise you. Tester · April 7, 2006 08:02 PM Why is Sullivan silent about your silence? Shouldn't he be castigated for that? exhelodrvr · April 7, 2006 08:55 PM "A side note, I found a good article on how to debate anti-Americans who oppose the Iraq War. Techniques on how to win the debate in just 2 sentences." Excellent post Tester! The only way that the conservative viewpoint is to truimph is to seperate the world in two. Those with us vs. those against us! No matter what anyone tells you it's black and white. Right and wrong! There are no shades of grey! There is no nuance! Be a divider, not a uniter! Francis · April 7, 2006 09:02 PM Francis, I'd rather be divided from the unhinged left. Here is a great cartoon about unintelligent leftists who claim to have 'nuance'. Tee hee Tester · April 7, 2006 09:11 PM Francis, What you said is the type of thing I would expect from someone who is secretly against America and rooting for the terrorists, yet does not want to get caught. I bet you think the Iraq War is the worst atrocity ever committed in the history of humankind. Juku · April 7, 2006 09:15 PM I quit reading Sullivan years ago when it became obvious that President Bush's opposition to gay marriage caused him to do a 180 in his views vis a vis the war on terror When President Bush came out against gay marriage I noticed immediately that he'd changed suddenly and dramatically. I read Sullivan everyday before that, but within a few weeks I quit visiting his site altogether. He became shrill, clearly reversed in his views, and a spineless handwringer who saw defeat and disaster at every turn. He became Chicken Little and everything we did was wrong. The handwringing and second guessing became unbearable and as a result he lost me forever. And now people I know quote him to me and try to tell me that he's a conservative. Ha! Sullivan is a joke and no one on the right takes him seriously anymore. We all saw the reversal he made when President Bush came out against gay marriage. Sean · April 7, 2006 10:43 PM You were silent about Tom Delay? So what? Not only was I silent, I closed my eyes whenever an article about DeLay flickered across my screen. Which got tough when the Yankees game had a rain delay. Dumb and blind, that was me. And proud. Tom Maguire · April 7, 2006 11:01 PM Sean's right. Sullivan abandoned the war when he realized Bush wasn't fighting for the right of homosexuals to commit sodomy while married to each other. Seems he overlooks the fact our enemies want to, and do, kill homosexuals as a matter of law. Oh well, go figure. I guess its a matter of priorities, eh? Tim · April 7, 2006 11:33 PM Sean, my thoughts exactly. From regular reader to disgusted over his obvious hypocrisy. I wish everyone would just ignore him. Which, mostly, they do, though the Blogfather's responses are always amusing. And here I was going to be silent. Who's Tom DeLay? Ridolph · April 7, 2006 11:34 PM Not only was I silent, but unlike you I kept quiet about my silence. I didn't broadcast the fact of my silence to the world, demanding recognition for my silence! Oh wait, I just did ... Evil Pundit · April 8, 2006 01:58 AM Sullivan is always looking for the dog that doesn't bark. So much so, I wonder if he's secretly hetero and gets down to keep the checks rolling in. Lonetown · April 8, 2006 07:24 AM Heh. Maybe I scare Sully, being "strangely silent"? *grins* De Doc · April 8, 2006 08:57 AM Silence, properly nuanced, is far more effective than tinfoil hats. J. Kerry · April 8, 2006 11:11 AM Could you please expand on how you were silent first? (I accept that you were silent better.) Are you older then Glenn Reynolds? (That would do it, but I have no idea of your relative ages.) tim maguire · April 8, 2006 01:52 PM . . . B. Durbin · April 8, 2006 02:36 PM Now I'm confused, damn it! I was born in 1954, and Glenn Reynolds was born in 1960. Which would appear to mean that my silence was first. Except the more I think about it, the less sense it makes. Which came first; the silence or the noise? I was making noise for six years before Glenn was born. But that means that during the first six years of my life, he was silenter than I was. And he was also silent before I was born. What could be more silent than the failure of existence itself? And who failed to exist first? Just because I was born first, does that mean that I failed to exist first? how are we to pinpoint when the failure of existence first occurs, or fails to occur? Maybe someone with a better grasp of these things can explain. I hate it when commenters make me think, damn it! I've strained myself! And on a weekend at that! Eric Scheie · April 8, 2006 04:15 PM Criticizing Instapundit is the Sullivan version of sweeps week on the tube. JM Hanes · April 9, 2006 10:10 PM >I wonder if he's secretly hetero and gets down to keep the checks rolling in. Coincidentally (or not?), that was Frank J.'s filthy lie about Andrew Sullivan. Complete with photoshopped evidence. Marzo · April 10, 2006 04:48 PM Now, now! This blog does not tolerate attacks on anyone based upon allegations involving sexual preferences . . . Eric Scheie · April 10, 2006 08:43 PM |
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You really nailed how absurd Sullivan's protests are. It is tough to put it just the right way. Nice!