Though I do not see her as the anti-Christ that many bloggers do, Maureen Dowd is largely a glib, fatuous, fantasy-liberal boob.
In a rare case of demonstrable sentience, however, Dowd has gone 1-for-2 in her latest columns. On the 13th she exhibited an actual sense of how blogs work and a modicum of respect for the format in calling bullshit on the various Democratic presidential candidates' attempts at bloggy spontaneity and candor:
- In a lame attempt to be hip, pols are posting soggy, foggy, bloggy musings on the Internet. Inspired by Howard Dean's success in fund-raising and mobilizing on the Web, candidates are crowding into the blogosphere - spewing out canned meanderings in a genre invented by unstructured exhibitionists.
It could be amusing if the pols posted unblushing, unedited diaries of what they were really thinking, as real bloggers do. John Kerry would mutter about that hot-dog Dean stealing his New England base, and Dr. Dean would growl about that wimp Kerry aping all his Internet gimmicks. But no such luck.
Instead, we have Travels with Tom, Tom Daschle's new blog recounting his annual August pilgrimage around South Dakota. Trying to sound uninhibited, he says he has "no schedule and no staff" and promises readers "amazing experiences" with "fascinating people."
On Aug. 7, he revealed, "I visited the Orthopedic Institute in Sioux Falls today and was given an informative tour." The next day, "I continue to be impressed with small business people who struggle to offer their employees health insurance."
Bob Graham dubs himself "the original blogger" because he has filled more than 4,000 color-coded, laconic notebooks over the last 30 years with a running diary of his every move, from ingestion of morning cereal to debarkation from a plane. (A typical Graham entry: "3:20 p.m. - Take bus to hotel.")
Boring crap is boring crap - microcosmic minutiae CAN be compelling if the writer imbues its revelation with personality, fresh perspective, and some manner of insight. Or it can just be boring crap. Dowd, to her credit, knows the latter when she sees it. And how's this for subverting the spirit of blogging, which is nothing if not personal:
- John Kerry has given more grist to critics who label him aloof and insincere by assigning staff members to write his cheesy blog. (It's like trying to prove you're a sportsman by making an aide go fishing for you.)
She even came up with a pretty good joke. Damn, you can't write ANYONE off these days - if Maureen Dowd can write a good column, I may have to actually pay attention to assholes like Andrew Sullivan and Atrios. Shit.
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Article comments
1 - ast
I'm glad it's you and not me who has to read Ms. Dowd's output. I decided a while back that life is too short to waste time reading drivel. She's great at turning clever phrases, but her basic principle is cynicism. What is she trying to persuade us other than that we can't trust anybody.
Nice foundation for a democracy.
2 - sydney smith
Once upon a time, Dowd's column was the principle reason I bought the New York Times, but something happened to her after 9/11. Her columns stopped making sense. She would write eloquently about the evil of terrorism, but seemed confused when it came to doing something about it. It's as if she's determined to keep living in a pre-Sept 11 world, when it was so easy to lampoon the President as a goofy dumb rich kid. But the world is different now, and the goofy dumb rich kid proved to be more than adequate when it came to dealing with terrorists. Dowd just can't accept that, and it's affecting her judgment - and her writing - terribly. I wish she would get over it, because she really is a delight to read when she's in good form.
3 - Eric Olsen
Thanks Syd, I think you're right about when she went badly astray - odd how things affect people.
AST, I actually rarely read her anymore, I saw just the headline about blogging and assumed she was going to screw that one up, and was surprised when she didn't. Then I read today's and saw all the usual sins. But the blogging column gives some hope...
4 - pilsener
Eric - I fully agree with you on the MoDowd glackout column. But I disagree with you on her blog cloumn. I think Mo was making fun of blogs in general. Her take wasn't that just the Demo candidates blogs were lame, but that the idea of the unenlightened doing blogs was lame.