My mom just sent me an email informing me that this is where my father gets his news. Actually, he’s an Instapundit and Malkin reader. I caught the Cotillion ladies in his bookmarks as well.
This may be my fault. Two years ago when my dad asked me what a blog was, I sent him to Instapundit knowing it would be an easy web layout for him to grasp with likeminded ideology. I single-handedly fashioned a monster of my father’s former computer illiterate self with nothing but a click of the mouse.
I’ve been lurking for a while but I have to say my daily stops are Instapundit, Volokh Conspiracy, Cathy Young’s blog, here and KOS (although I rarely read the comments anymore – too many nut-jobs). I see a lot of negative statements from the left about InstaPundit but if you actually read him, I think most people would agree with at least 60% of what he has to say. He is actually pretty centrist really. Malkin has some good points sometimes but unlike Glen, she won’t consider a different point of view. I rarely read her blog.
That karma is going to hurt you in your next life.
The site linked above is more intelligently written than Insty or Malkin, so it looks like your dad’s making progress.
Ah, you should have sent him to Little Green Goofballs. That would have scared him off the Internet for life.
Maybe send him to FARK. Just tell him to watch for flying boobies. ;)
That’s not a particularly “intelligently written” statement.
Here’s a resource that might help you understand it, Bill.
(One thing I don’t understand: what Amanda sees in you.)
I do not understand these “jokes.”
Now take back your criticism of Glenn Reynolds or I will be forced to kill you.
With nanobots.
I am with the countess, Fark is good.
With nanobots.
Hah. My superior intellect is no match for your puny weapons.
He reads Michelle Malkin?
I clearly have not been doing my job.
Trish, he reads them too.
My husband’s dad likes to go on about how he gets his news from a wide variety of unbiased sources. But I really don’t know how one can consider conservative talk radio to be a “wide variety”, much less unbiased.
Ehhhh … personally I can’t stand Michelle Malkin. First of all, I am Japanese American so I’m not even going to get started on “In Defense of Internment”. Second of all, what annoys me about her and Ann Coulter is that they bank on their looks so much. They’re pundits, not fashion models, and it bothers me that women have to be “hot” and “sexy” and “beautiful” to do anything these days. When it comes to politics I don’t give a damn what someone looks like, I want to know if what they’re saying is provocative or intelligent.
Political criticisms tabled, I don’t think that Michelle “banks” on her looks. She certainly receives practical benefit from them, but it’s not like that’s a fundamental, cynical component of her calculated appeal as a political pundit.
So I think it’s a bit unfair to condemn a popular attractive woman pundit because a legion of conservadorks continually wet themselves in chat rooms panting about how much they want to marry her because she’s SO BABELICIOUS.
Similarly, I find criticisms about her success as a “minority that is conservative” to be an unfair, no-win situation, no matter what the practical effects of her heritage and ideology.
It’s just sort of an inescapable paradigm.
That’s why I avoid such problems altogether by maintaining visual anonymity. I’d rather not have my stunning successes atributed to my Lorenzo Lamas-like good looks.
Or “attributed,” even …
When introducing my Mom, an intelligent person, to the web, I had the sobering experience of showing her The Onion. Her response really startled me: “They should be careful saying things like this — people might take it seriously.”
Never since have I underestimated the ability of the general public to completely fail to identify sarcasm. What scares me is that she might have a point. All the folks who are currently being added to the rolls of those who get their news from the web are ones who were holdouts, technophobes, naive young kids just coming of age politically, or the underprivileged or politically repressed who are just now getting some sort of net access.
I think back to how naive I was a decade ago before I started getting my information from the “diverse points of view” that the web offers, and I think we’re going to face a huge challenge. I suppose it’s elitist of me to say this, but I really think we’re in for the invasion of the rubes.
But better that than the current state of digital disenfranchisement, I guess.
Would Michelle Malkin or Ann Coulter be so successful if they were old, overweight or unattractive? I can’t think of very many female pundits in general, let alone successful female pundits who are not attractive. I guess the left has Maureen Dowd, but I once found this incredibly annoying site where conservative men were talking about how ugly she was. Not that they disagreed with what she was saying, but just that she was unattractive. Also I note the relative dearth of attractive male pundits, although I guess some women have a thing for Tucker Carlson (myself, I can’t get past the dorky bow tie). Is it the chicken or the egg? Are these women successful because of what they say and their looks are the icing on the cake? Or are they successful because they are attractive and can get legions of conservative men excited? Ann Coulter, IMHO, is the worse of the two, I think she said that she was a “blonde supermodel” and a “pretty girl” compared to ugly liberal women and she always wears miniskirts.
Honestly, I’m just sick and tired of beauty being a qualification, or even considered relevant for a field that is unrelated … I worry about my future a lot. I’m not a deformed or unhygienic eyesore, but then again I’m not hot, and I fear that future employers would always pick a beauty over me.
My dad is an Ann Coulter fan and will say things like “you have to admit she’s the complete package” in regards to her looks. At then my sister and I start screaming while covering our ears.
No way would I give him blog links b/c he’s coming up with enough crazy sh*t as is….
I’m pretty sure that their looks have helped them get TV appearances but I have to wonder if it doesn’t play the other way too. It can’t feel too good when everyone assumes that the only reason you are successful is because of your looks. I’m sure that every successful woman who happens to be attractive has had her talents questioned at some point or another by people who assume she only got where she is because of the way she looks.
I fear that future employers would always pick a beauty over me.
A valid fear. All else being equal, they almost certainly would.
(IE, if there is a candidate with your exact personality, skills, and experience, but more good looking – they’ll hire her.)
Not for all positions, of course. There are some jobs where a woman who “looks too pretty” still isn’t taken seriously, and a thoughtful employer might well opt for the plainer candidate for such positions. But that’s the exception.
I fear that future employers would always pick a beauty over me.
A valid fear. All else being equal, they almost certainly would.
(IE, if there is a candidate with your exact personality, skills, and experience, but more good looking – they’ll hire her.)
Not for all positions, of course. There are some jobs where a woman who “looks too pretty” still isn’t taken seriously, and a thoughtful employer might well opt for the plainer candidate for such positions. But that’s the exception.
I’m tempted to deprogram the radio presents in my mom’s rush limbaugh-tuned car every time I go home, but I figure the damage is already done. I did sucessfully delete fox new channel from her tv for a few weeks. That was funny.
I’ll one-up your elitistness and say that the rubes invaded over ten years ago. (Where were you?)
Back on topic, do people generally want or not want their parents reading their blogs? Lauren, would you prefer your dad be active here? I sometimes think I’d like it if more of my family (or, indeed, anyone) were paying attention to my scribblings, but it’s also possible that will come back to haunt.
Just wondering.
My parents read my blog. It really throws a monkeywrench into my firsthand reporting of anonymous homosexual orgies.
Two of my three siblings read my blog, but my third brother is cut from the same cloth as my rush limbaugh momma, so I haven’t invited all the arguing that takes place in person to my blog. I don’t see a great use in polemic bickering when the two sides are so far apart that the chance of anyone convincing anyone of anything is slim, so I don’t invite it.
By the way. Where’s my friday cat blogging fix!??! Guess I’ll just have to just read stuff on my cat alone…
My dad reads this blog fairly often — I think he Googled me and found it. He was never very into the “blogosphere” before, but I think we’ve been an inspiration to him. Now he sends me emails about law-related blogs he’s found that he thinkgs I might like, and articles that he thinks I might want to blog about (see post above for one example). I enjoy it, although I suspect he wastes time at work reading all this stuff…
Jill, sometimes I feel bad that your dad reads the blog, like I should curb my language or something. Then I realize that my poor mother reads and comments here all the time. Bonus points to me for having never discussed my sex life.
I always thought that “Amanda” was your alter ego for discussing sex.
Yeah, I wouldn’t worry about it. He’s a pretty laid-back guy and drops the occassional F-bomb himself, so I think it’s cool.
He doesn’t comment ever, which is weird. He did once, but I had logged in from his office and forgotten to log out, so it came up as me — I responded with something like, “Dad, log me out!” and he didn’t understand what that meant, and thought I was mad at him for commenting at all. He sent me a very apologetic email, and now I think he’s gun-shy.
Of course, it probably doesn’t thrill him when people (ahem, ROBERT) talk about how Jeff Goldstein wants to nail me. Luckily, I think he only reads the posts, not the comments.
That wasn’t me; that was my dad, logged in as me.
Lauren: I made an assload of money this weekend and I’m going to do it again next weekend!
Lauren’s Mom: Honey, please don’t say “assload” on the Internet.
Lauren’s Dad (if he played here): Mind your language, young lady.
Jill’s Dad: Fuckin’A!
Jill’s Mom: Who is this Jeff Goldstein?
I have no desire to “nail” Jill.
Make sweet sweet love to, okay. But let’s not be all crass about it.
I KID, DAD! I don’t even find her attractive!
Well, I do. But AS A FRIEND!
Good on him!
Unless, you know — she’s into it.
My poor father. He must hate all of you right now.