Fenster writes:
Fabrizio has opted out of politics. That’s a temptation but I remain something of a junkie. I tell myself it is about good citizenship, and that’s partly true, but how much really? And how much is it the society of the spectacle?
I am sure it is a lot more the latter than people like to think. Anything wrong with that? I mean, if Fabrizio could only warm to politics as a kind of reality show, he might tune in more often.
I admit to letting the news wash over me like a warm bath of cat piss, and liking it for the most part. But I feel guilty about it too, and not just because it is cat piss. It’s sort of like forgetting that you can find the divine in the everyday world all around you . . . maybe, just maybe, there is a bigger meaning to the wash? Maybe good citizenship remains a possibility?
It is hard to see the forest for the trees–or, in Orwell’s words, to see what is in front of one’s nose requires a constant struggle. Habit, ideology and groupthink are just oh so tempting.
For years one of my go-to blogs has been Real Clear Politics. I go there still daily. Here’s the problem, though. Now that most pundits are bought and paid for spinners for one side or another, what you mostly get are predigested memes deemed suitable for public persuasion. The Ryan VP pick? Check out RCP from yesterday: it is a collection of propaganda from the two “sides” on the Ryan pick. You will look mostly in vain for non-self serving accounts.
I know the return of middlebrow is not likely, or recommended. And while highly suspicious of pomo, I am not one to believe in eternal verities, and so I understand the logic of letting Fox be Fox and letting CNN be CNN. But a little more in the way of intellectual honesty and integrity would be nice.
Blowhard, Esq.
Callowman
Sherbrooke
Eddie Pensier
Enzo Nakamura
Epaminondas
Fabrizio del Wrongo
Fenster
Brundle Guy
Glynn Marshes
Paleo Retiree
Atypical Neurotic
Question Lady
Sax von Stroheim
Sir Barken Hyena
The Mistaken
Uncouth Reflections 
“Intellectual honesty and integrity”? These days? Gotta look to the blogosphere for that.
It’s a great point more generally: how many paid-pro type opinionators are worth reading these days? I pay attention to very few of them. Blogs and forums and such seem to me to offer MUCH more in the way of fresh, oddball, and provocative reactions and thinking. Most of the mainstream outlets don’t seem to me to add much beyond the slickness of their packaging. (Exceptions, as always, allowed for …)
LikeLike
Agreed that blogs are fresher. Perhaps you can speak with Fabrizio to see if he might change his mind about politics. I am sure he would have a lot to add.
The only problem I have with blog pundits is their vaunted pajamas quality. The more the net evolves to dueling echo chambers the less useful will be the opinions of people who graze there. There is something to be said for facts and reporting. I like the freshness and originality of blog reporting but worry that the news (in the old sense of the word) is being hollowed out.
LikeLike
Politics. I still read about them here and there. I especially enjoy bloggers who kvetch about this or that political issue. But, then, I enjoy kvetching in general. I also enjoy dropping big political turds on Facebook, then watching all my friends argue about whatever issue the turd touches on. (Is that sadistic? Maybe I should examine that…) But mostly that whole scene gives me a headache. I know, I know — it’s supposed to be of enormous, world-defining importance. But so much of it seems to boil down to vanity and ego stroking. People root for and defend politicians in the same irrational way they root for and defend their sports teams. (I’ve also given up on being a sports fan, BTW.) And when I see those talking heads on MSNBC or wherever all I can think of are those crazy ’80s pro wrestling shows featuring the Iron Sheik arguing with Sergeant Slaughter. Trumped-up, phony-baloney stage play, in other words. I certainly don’t begrudge political junkies their pleasures, though. It’s definitely a fascinating forum for examining personality, power, media, etc.
LikeLike
I’m a junkie, no mistake. I mainly gorge on whatever garbage Drudge is dishing up, plus the Daily Mail. Politics is about emotions when you get down to it. I get the same gossipy rush from it that some people get from celebrity coverage. It’s it’s all schadenfreude all the time!
LikeLike
OK, confession time: I’m a recovering talk radio nut. From about high school until my late 20s or so, I listened for hours each day. KABC here in Los Angeles used to be a major powerhouse that showcased a variety of opinions across the political spectrum: Gloria Allred, Bill Press, Michael Jackson, Dennis Prager, Larry Elder. Starting in the late 90s, as the station began moving rightward, so did my politics. (I wrote Prager a fan letter in the 10th grade. He invited me to sit in studio during one of his broadcasts, which was very cool. My dad had to drive me.)
I listened every day for a good 10+ years, easy. When I went back to school, though, I stopped b/c I just didn’t have the time. Plus, I had heard the same arguments over and over ad infinitum that there was just nothing left to learn. I knew what the hosts would say before they even opened their mouths. And my own political leanings were becoming much more libertarian, so listening lost the whole “rah-rah! my team!” aspect. Been about 8 or 9 years since I gave it up.
Like Fabrizio, I get my political/current events news from the web, FB and Twitter mainly. I got sick of listening to music radio so I’ve been listening to NPR the past month or so, but I’ve about reached my limit with all the campaign nonsense.
LikeLike