Comments on: NY Times Pundit to Critic: Fuck You http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/ Wed, 12 May 2010 19:49:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Barry http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1027 Barry Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:08:46 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1027 "...and Friedman himself has hardly been a pundit whose pronouncements are infallible or, on some issues, even mostly correct in retrospect. His self-involvement isn’t off the charts, meanwhile, but it’s plainly strong." Should this read: "Friedman is a pundit whose *correct* statements would comprise a very short book, and who shows blithe disregard for the fact that he's full of it, and has no problem writing arrogant columns on things where he's been very wrong, and the Evul Librulz have been right"? “…and Friedman himself has hardly been a pundit whose pronouncements are infallible or, on some issues, even mostly correct in retrospect. His self-involvement isn’t off the charts, meanwhile, but it’s plainly strong.”

Should this read: “Friedman is a pundit whose *correct* statements would comprise a very short book, and who shows blithe disregard for the fact that he’s full of it, and has no problem writing arrogant columns on things where he’s been very wrong, and the Evul Librulz have been right”?

]]> By: Seth Finkelstein http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1019 Seth Finkelstein Thu, 02 Apr 2009 23:19:18 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1019 C'mon, c'mon - what was The Question? If it was something like "Given all the faults of Old Deadtree Media, shouldn't all journalists be summarily executed and their entrails fed to popular bloggers because the latter are just so much hipper and cooler than you oldster legacy dinosaurs holding back The Revolution, don't you Get It?" - then the reaction might be forgiveable :-). C’mon, c’mon – what was The Question? If it was something like “Given all the faults of Old Deadtree Media, shouldn’t all journalists be summarily executed and their entrails fed to popular bloggers because the latter are just so much hipper and cooler than you oldster legacy dinosaurs holding back The Revolution, don’t you Get It?” – then the reaction might be forgiveable :-) .

]]> By: Jay B. http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1018 Jay B. Thu, 02 Apr 2009 21:24:29 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1018 "But I believe that when it is at its best it plays a vitally important role in our democracy, and flippant, denigrating remarks about it, at a time when it is in economic peril and our country desperately needs serious journalism to sort through this crisis, struck me as deeply unserious." Serious Thomas Friedman on morality of going to war with Iraq: <a href="http://crooksandliars.com/2007/09/13/tom-friedman-suck-on-this-iraq/" rel="nofollow"> "Suck on this, Iraq."</a> Serious Thomas Friedman on Bush's Iraq policy: <i>"It's OK to throw out your steering wheel, as long as you remember you’re driving without one." </i> Serious Thomas Friedman on Bush's foreign policy: <i>"The first rule of holes is when you're in one, stop digging. When you're in three, bring a lot of shovels."</i> Maybe when the pompous ass starts practicing serious journalism instead of insipid editorializing, we might take such exhortations from Friedman seriously. Otherwise, it's funny. Also, he might just have been in a bad mood because he's wife's family's commercial real estate company went <i>flat</i>. “But I believe that when it is at its best it plays a vitally important role in our democracy, and flippant, denigrating remarks about it, at a time when it is in economic peril and our country desperately needs serious journalism to sort through this crisis, struck me as deeply unserious.”

Serious Thomas Friedman on morality of going to war with Iraq: “Suck on this, Iraq.”

Serious Thomas Friedman on Bush’s Iraq policy: “It’s OK to throw out your steering wheel, as long as you remember you’re driving without one.”

Serious Thomas Friedman on Bush’s foreign policy: “The first rule of holes is when you’re in one, stop digging. When you’re in three, bring a lot of shovels.”

Maybe when the pompous ass starts practicing serious journalism instead of insipid editorializing, we might take such exhortations from Friedman seriously. Otherwise, it’s funny. Also, he might just have been in a bad mood because he’s wife’s family’s commercial real estate company went flat.

]]> By: Someone who also attended http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1016 Someone who also attended Thu, 02 Apr 2009 01:09:33 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1016 @Jack Lynes: well said, though I do not feel the "level of discourse" was diminished after he left the building... we all got some sleep and resumed the next day. I completely agree with you regarding the generic and disdainful quality of the talk itself. When he stepped onstage (shoeless), looked up at the big screen showing the back-channel and said "What the fuck is that?" my immediate thought was "... and who the fuck are YOU?" ... and that thought holds. He's an author. Super! And I care... why? There are lots of authors in the world. Teach me something new, open my eyes to something I don't already know, or shut up and get out of the way because you're wasting my time. Also, Larry Lessig and certain born-again-and-again preachers can pull off the dramatic delivery fairly well. Stocking boy, not so much. @Jack Lynes: well said, though I do not feel the “level of discourse” was diminished after he left the building… we all got some sleep and resumed the next day.

I completely agree with you regarding the generic and disdainful quality of the talk itself. When he stepped onstage (shoeless), looked up at the big screen showing the back-channel and said “What the fuck is that?” my immediate thought was “… and who the fuck are YOU?” … and that thought holds. He’s an author. Super! And I care… why? There are lots of authors in the world. Teach me something new, open my eyes to something I don’t already know, or shut up and get out of the way because you’re wasting my time. Also, Larry Lessig and certain born-again-and-again preachers can pull off the dramatic delivery fairly well. Stocking boy, not so much.

]]> By: Isabel Walcott Hilborn http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1015 Isabel Walcott Hilborn Wed, 01 Apr 2009 22:10:25 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1015 You own stock in the Times?!? You own stock in the Times?!?

]]> By: timothy denton http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1014 timothy denton Wed, 01 Apr 2009 21:59:23 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1014 Amen! Amen!

]]> By: Jack Lynes http://dangillmor.com/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/comment-page-1/#comment-1012 Jack Lynes Wed, 01 Apr 2009 21:46:39 +0000 http://dangillmor.com/blog/2009/03/31/ny-times-pundit-to-critic-fuck-you/#comment-1012 My general impression (I was there in the second row) is that Mr. Friedman showed a gross disrespect for his audience. We were not important enough for him to tailor at least a few of his comments to our conference, choosing instead to hype his latest book with the same schtick he uses in any late forum, bandied locker-room talk in an inappropriate way, and all with his shoes off. Ok, his feet hurt. Good thing his pants weren't uncomfortable. I was looking forward to hearing the man recently heralded by the New Yorker Magazine and had high expectations, but instead was grossly disappointed by this diva. The level of discourse at the conference during and after his appearance was greatly diminished that night. I was ashamed for him. My general impression (I was there in the second row) is that Mr. Friedman showed a gross disrespect for his audience. We were not important enough for him to tailor at least a few of his comments to our conference, choosing instead to hype his latest book with the same schtick he uses in any late forum, bandied locker-room talk in an inappropriate way, and all with his shoes off. Ok, his feet hurt. Good thing his pants weren’t uncomfortable. I was looking forward to hearing the man recently heralded by the New Yorker Magazine and had high expectations, but instead was grossly disappointed by this diva. The level of discourse at the conference during and after his appearance was greatly diminished that night. I was ashamed for him.

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