What the hell has happened to Michael Kinsley (slate)?

[DemLikr]

"This is not meant to be a partisan observation. Bush's predecessor was, if anything, a more flamboyant liar."

The above is from his article in today's Slate. Kinsley apparently believes that lying about blow jobs is more "flamboyant" than lying about WMDs and killing tens of thousands of people needlessly.

His last Slate article showed similar slippage...I'm afraid he's slithering to the dark side in his old age.

Thoughts?

[FlashHarry]

1. Well, it is kind of more 'flamboyant' to lie about a hummer...

More rock-star-like, I guess. Bush's lies, on the other hand, are the type that normally emanate from Bond villains who are trying to take over the world. Less 'flamboyant,' maybe--but far, far more dangerous.

[Kolesar]

2. flamboyant is kind

Note that Kinsley is calling Bush a liar also. Kinsley is almost implying that Bush is more of a work-a-day, uninspired liar.

[Terwilliger]

6. thats what I read

and some people still have obsessions

[elfin]

3. He has Parkinson's

It is probably interfering with the amount of time and energy to be as prolific and insightful as in years past.

[pretzel4gore]

4. kinsley has parkinsons?

what a horrible little man....

[Kolesar]

5. Why do you call Kinsley horrible?

He has done some great writing over the years. He was brilliant on the old Crossfire.

[Terwilliger]

7. huh???

sheesh!

[tom_paine]

8. Customery dichotomy of the Amerikan Empire

On the one side, left-center journalists (who sometimes are actually half-worthy of the name) who are still trying to be fair and somewhat even-handed, and who ae trying to carry on, however ineffectually, the journalistic standards of the Old American Republic.

On the other side Party-Loyal Right-Wing Sub-Media propagandists who are as predictable in their positions 99% of the time as the Defenders of Stalin. No attempt at ethics, no attempt at fact-check, no dissenting voices or even-handed criticism. As Krugman said, they are propagandists, pure and simple.

(to be fair I did see Johnah Goldberg once weakly try to "criticize" conservatives in an echo of the Free Press of the Old Republic, but it was tepid weak and overwhelmed by the customary vicious lib-bashing--see even now I cannot stop KNOWING what THEY are)

[CBHagman]

9. I don't like the knee-jerk Democrat-bashing

It mars otherwise good columns. E.J. Dionne is guilty of exactly the same thing. In a column about Bush's dishonesty, he felt it was first necessary to make a couple of digs at both Al Gore and Bill Clinton. Come on! Do any of these columnists feel it's necessary to mention Iran-contra, the HUD scandals, the disastrous Africa policy, and the other tragedies/follies of the '80s whenever they refer to Ronald Reagan? It's the lazy, follow-the-pack mentality of using Gore and Clinton as poster boys for dishonesty, and it shows a shaky grasp of both morality and proportionality. I hate this nonsense, and we should call the writers on this.

[chiburb]

10. I wouldn't focus on that one sentence...

His whole article was a Bush Bash, and long overdue.

On edit: That sentence was actually from a Washington Post column, not Slate. You can read it here:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63096-2003Sep11.html

[Paragon]

11. This is crap

Why take one sentence out of context? Try reading the entire essay:
http://slate.msn.com/id/2088198/

[DemLikr]

13. I did read it, Paragon. Take a chill pill.

God, seems so many of us at DU are ultra-cranky these days. Go take it out on a Republican.

[Paragon]

15. Just defending a liberal

Your post was the "cranky" one...and misleading.

[Cocoa]

12. Kinsley is one of the best Bush critics

A few of his columns belong at the very top of the most effective and true attacks on Bush. He's written fearless columns attacking Bush mercilessly at times when not very many others were saying anything.

[Terwilliger]

14. Your analysis is problematic

given your partisan slant, an objective characterization of Kinsley "slipping" to the "dark side" is comical, since he was in the firing line when Clinton was attacked every day, and he defended your boy