South Dakota Politics as Political Discourse

My Keloland Colleague Professor David Newquist frequently criticizes bloggers and the people who post comments on blogs. Case in point:

Blogs express the nature of the personalities and character of those who produce them. By their very nature, blogs tend to attract the obsessively narcissistic. They are easily identified by the self-preening and self-stroking of the ego. They inspire a lot of derisive snickering of which their authors seem unaware.

And while blogs are by their nature geared to certain perspectives, what separates the valuable from the worthless is the difference between those that do attempt to inform and discuss and those devoted largely to disparagement, denial, and malignity.

I humbly submit that the threads attached to the last several posts of mine are an example of blogging at its best. I cannot claim the major credit for this. I like to think that my posts are thoughtful and well-informed, even if and when I am wrong. I declare that many of my interlocutors have presented excellent examples of what political discourse should look like.

To be sure, I attract the occasional hothead and/or airhead, both for and against my positions. But I would single out A.I. and Miranda as having gone out of their way to post many thoughtful and bold challenges to my ideas, expressed in a perfectly civil way. Many other thoughtful people have participated, some once or a few times. I would also mention my old friend BB, though he has been absent of late.

I post this to pat myself and my interlocutors on the back. They, at least, richly deserve it.

Comments

[A.I.]

We really must start bringing tea and crumpets! I hope none of become hot heads or air heads even if some of what we write may be termed hot air.

Seriously, thank you for the kind words.

[Todd Epp]

"You damn bloggers get of my lawn!" exclaims Professor David Newquist.

[Todd Epp]

"get off my lawn." Though getting "of" the lawn might be fun too.

[Todd Epp]

"You darn bloggers get off my lawn!" exclaimed Professor David Newquist.

[KB]

I put A.I. in charge of tea and crumpets. Epp can provide the Newquist jokes.

[A.I.]

In truth, I prefer beer and sausage or wine and cheese.