Bill Kristol Not Even Trying Anymore At New York Times

If you've read this morning's op-ed from Bill Kristol in the New York Times, feel not alone. You are correct: it does, in fact, make no sense at all. Indeed, the piece is a perfect circle of nonsense. And yet, I understand it perfectly. Bill Kristol's contract to write these columns is about up, he probably won't be back, and he's doing his best to play out the string with as little effort as possible. This week is a special triumph for that mission: it's a column in which the columnist basically filibusters himself.

The basic ingredients are two big news stories that lack any meaningful connection, a smattering of insight that a bunch of people already had, and the conjunction, "but." Here's how it goes:

• Bill Kristol watched Fox News Sunday, a show he is on.
• He recaps a section of the most recent edition of the show he is on.
• He restates something asinine he said on said show (Dick Cheney telling Pat Leahy to "go fuck himself" is "a beautiful statement of justice.")
• He wanders around for a while.
• "Have I praised the "Surge" in the past five minutes? No? Okay! SURGE!" (Twiddles nipples.)
• BUT!
• Rod Blagojevich! He's been in the news, right?
• Adds some funny lines from the wiretaps.
• As noted by others, Blago's wife is a foul-mouthed Cubs hater.
• Fills more column space by including several lines of Rudyard Kipling.
• As noted by others, Blago stopped short of a self-aware line in that poem.
• As noted by others, HAIRBRUSH JOKE.
• As noted previously, Blago was on wiretaps.
• THOUGHTFUL MOMENT: "Hmm. I wonder if Dick Cheney has ever read Kipling?"
• EUREKA: "Woo! I tied this all together! Off to copyedit."

Anyway, the New York Times has abused their readership by printing Kristol's effort-free nonsense for a year, and they've benefited from it because every time he's penned something, people everywhere react with outrage or mocking or fact-checking or criticism, and that's precisely why he was hired in the first place -- not for quality insight, but for the clicks that come from hosting a weekly intellectual highway accident. So, out of fairness, I'm including a link to this mess, but I urge you: do not click it. You'll only be giving the Times what it wants. Trust me: Bill Kristol wants you to read this about as badly as he wanted to write it.

Comments

[Manx]

The only polite word I can think of to describe Kristol's column is desultory.

[listeningpost]

Since HuffoPo breathlessly reports his every comment, maybe they can lure him here.
Personally, I don't see why anyone cares what his opinions are. He's sure to reverse himself every few months, or days, anyway.

[stagebandman]

I quit giving him any credence after the "serial liar" comment, years ago. Why does he even matter anymore? He surely doesn't to anyone here.

[thdrunknmunky]

AND I REFUSE! He'll get no click from me!

[rocketman69]

New York Times.....­.sinking ship

Writing articles..­.....polis­hing the brass on said ship.

Bill Kristol...­..... smart enough not to polish brass on sinking ship.

Smarter than Linkins for realizing that it IS a sinking ship.

[realpolitic]

And how much was the stock price of News Corp. down, the parent company of Fox News? Plenty!

[DoctorWhoDat]

Looks like Bill Kristol doubled his intellectual efforts. His IQ might match his age now.

[aznurse]

Jason, You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din.
I read the column this morning and I almost commented on it, but, then I thought, why bother?

[strangerinthenight]

No hard feeling but I hope not to see Bill Kristol again - in print or on TV. I just never understood how he defended Bush and Cheney. So I am just glad it's almost over for him. This is the kind of pundit whose defense to this administration is an assault on reason.

Thanks to Gore for that phrase " assault on reason".

[WonderingNThinking]

Because you state how you never understood how he defended Bush and Cheney, it doesn't sound like you know that he heads the PNAC.

[ajax2]

William Kristol and GW Bush have something in common besides the obvious, they're both examples of the Peter Principle bought to you buy Legacy. Kristol isn't losing it or not trying. He doesn't have it, never did. His writing shows a great lack of historical prospective and scholarship. Everything he writes must fit in to his right wing dogma so circles become his art form narrative, a Thomas Friedman without brains.

[NicoloM]

Kristol is part of the Propaganda machine. These hacks have little talent, less reasoning skill, but they leverage their fame into big money in the propaganda portion of the MSM. And then they feed off each other's fame.
The question is, why are the thousands who blog on HuffPost afraid to admit the obvious? Without recognizing the disease, it is harder to begin the cure.

[bknott]

I love Kristol's column, but I shouldn't be eager to read the NYT every Monday just because I want to read what the idiot says.

It's time to pull the plug. If I want to laugh at a walking punchline, I'll start watching reality TV.

[ElBruce]

I love that photo, by the way. It almost looks like he's trying to think.

[Colmore]

He always looks constipated to me.

[FR]

Good one! Trying, probably not succeeding.

[dartagnan]

"I'm tryin' to think but nothin' happens!" -- Moe Howard

[DRaymond]

In Bill Kristol's fantasy world 'because he merited it' constitutes a 'cogent defense'.

And most of his 'column' consists of repeating the transcript of a TV show.

[tahoegal]

Bye bye Bill. You won't be missed.

[ghostdance]

The most unpopular Republican is better than the most unpopular Democrat?

Better comparisons would be Ted Stevens or Duke Cunningham with Blago.

Defaming Kipling as having no sense of judgement or decency...­they could only get away with that slander with a dead guy!

[levisol98]

i am not a conservati­ve.billy the k is not big enough or smart enough to fill his father's (irving)shoes

[WonderingNThinking]

And Bill is not a conservative. He is a neocon - big difference.