Blogiversary X: 10 Posts That Shook the World

(or Slightly Amused a Dozen People)

(Gentlemen of great erudition and culture. GIF version of the bottom one here.)

Earlier this year, this blog turned 10. I haven't had much time to write this year (or the past few years), but I'm still keeping the blog lights on as a repository for my infrequent posts.

As usual, I'll be recapping major posts and categories since the last blogiversary, and in this case, all 10 years. This is mainly so I can find the stuff later; I don't expect anyone to read through this entire post, let alone all the linked pieces, which amount to far more than 10 posts. However, if you've got a load of free time to read long blog essays, you're in, um, luck?

The Nature of Liberalism

I suppose this section could be more robust, but I always think this stuff should be fairly obvious.

"Some Reasons I'm a Liberal" (5/5/08): All that bleeding heart stuff (and more).

"The Social Contract" (7/21/10): Some basic civics, seemingly forgotten (or rejected).

The Nature of Conservatism

Trying to suss things out.

"The Chart That Explains It All!" (3/12/07): Authoritarian conservatives don't play by the normal rules of good governance, and it's a mistake to pretend otherwise.

"Concern Trolls for Nixon" (9/3/08): Don't fall for their shtick.

"The Most "Conservative" Films" (4/7/09): Examining the reductive, ideological approach of many conservatives toward film (and art in general).

"The Persistence of Ideology" (6/3/09): Trying to sum up modern conservatism through its approach to economics, foreign policy and torture.

"Diagrams on Conservatism" (7/3/09): Visualize the insanity.

"The Five Circles of Conservative Hell" (7/21/10): From "preserving cultural privilege" to more fearsome depths.

"Engaging the Opposition, and A Wingnut Checklist" (8/30/10): Trying to assess whether engagement is worth it (issues I'm still pondering).

"The Stupid-Evil-Crazy Vortex" (11/10/10): Diagnosing the problem.

"The Four Types of Conservatives" (7/30/12): "Most conservative political figures break down into one of four broad groups. They are Reckless Addicts, Proud Zealots, Stealthy Extremists and Sober Adults." An in-depth investigation. (Film at 11!)

National Politics

"Diagram Madness" (7/15/09): Trying to visualize the American political spectrum, using some unconventional models.

"American Politics Seen as a Japanese Monster Movie" (11/29/09): Pretty silly, but the analogies kinda work.

American Political Insanity Explained (2/9/10): An attempt, anyway.

"Attack of the Plutocrats" (7/18/10): Contextualizing wealth inequality and the pushes to increase it.

"We Cheat the Other Guy and Pass the Savings to You" (7/25/10): The game is rigged, and certain parties think that's a good thing (or blame the wrong people).

"Voting and Political Activism" (11/5/12): Less about the 2012 election specifically than a looong look at political activism in general and the prospects of change.

"Lucky Duckies and Fortunate Sons" (8/14/14): Why some people are reluctant to acknowledge that the game is rigged.

Our National Political Discourse

Media critiques of why political coverage is often inaccurate and shallow.

Color Commentary (3/15/07): A chromatic depiction of how the corporate media presents "balance."

"The Bullshit Matrix" (3/16/07): Truth, lies, bullshit and their many variations.(I keep coming back to the themes of this one.)

"False Equivalencies" (4/5/07): Arguably the worst fault of media coverage.

"Silent Questions" 8/12/09): "The questions we ask determine the answers we receive. The specific form of those questions, and the assumptions they hold, further shape our answers."

"Common Ground and Equal Blame" (1/6/11): The inadequacy of saying 'both sides do it' without more detail (or when it's flatly inaccurate).

"Defining "Common Ground" in Diagrams" (1/7/11): A follow-up, with pictures.

"Partisanship, Policy and Bullshit" (7/6/11): "Partisanship" isn't necessarily a bad thing. Policy matters. And media outlets have incentives for generating bullshit.

"Both Sides Do It: Partisanship Redux" (8/1/12): A follow-up post, taking a closer look at the popular "both sides do it/are equally to blame" brand of bullshit.

"But Paul Ryan Seems Like Such a Nice Fellow" (8/11/12): A journalist focuses on rhetoric and charm and ignores policy to conclude that Paul Ryan wants to help the poor (and isn't a scumbag).

"Civil Both-Side Bipartisans" (10/21/12): Another crack at the "both sides" scourge, urging "honesty over civility, accuracy over politeness."

"Our National Political Discourse" (12/1/13): An attempt to "visualize how our national political discourse should work, and discuss how it does work instead."

"The Bullshit That Civilly Dare Not Speak Its Name" (7/25/14): A civility meter has its uses, but a good bullshit detector is far more valuable.

"Artificially Equalizing Unequal Views on Inequality" (8/17/14): A case study of a journalist going into contortions to blame both sides equally.

"The Fallacy of the Golden Mean" (8/19/14): A "both sides" reader.

The War Series

I've periodically written pieces in an ongoing series on war and related issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder. The most significant posts are:

"How to Hear a True War Story" (5/29/07): Truth and fantasy in war stories.

"Iraq and Vietnam: Selling the Stab-in-the-Back Myth" (8/30/07): Old themes resurface.

"That Pesky Violence in Iraq" (12/5/07): I wrote multiple posts on Iraq, including several on the "Surge." This one noted that a decrease in violence was most welcome, but a decrease to a mere 575 attacks per week shouldn't be celebrated as success and vindication.

"Day of Shame" (2/5/08): My contribution to a blogswarm on the anniversary of Colin Powell's presentation to the United Nations to sell the Iraq War.

"The Poetry of War" (3/19/08): Looking at contrasting war poems (among other things), as part of an Iraq War blogswarm.

"John '100 Years' McCain" (4/9/08): The more extensively one examined McCain's statements on Iraq, the worse he looked.

"Brave Cowboys of the Junior High Lunch Room"(5/29/2008): The insecurities that drive war cheerleaders.

"War and the Denial of Loss" (11/11/09): This piece was the culmination a six-post series for Armistice Day, and should be read after the others. I'm still not entirely satisfied with the opening, but this post probably comes the closest to what I tried to accomplish during my brief teaching stints, in terms of encouraging reflection and making connections.

"Asymmetric Inhumanity" (5/30/11): The urge to dehumanize.

Only the Faithless Suffer (11/11/12): Denying suffering and blaming the victims.

"The Dogs of War" (11/17/13): Looking back at the Iraq War and some of its most dishonorable cheerleaders.

"The Courage to Make Others Suffer" (5/25/15): Among a certain breed of pedigreed dolt, going to war is matter of fashion.

Torture

I've done a fair amount of research on torture and wrote a number of posts (if not as many as some others, and not as many as I wanted to). It's an essential subject but it also burnt me out a bit, given all the maddening obfuscation by culpable parties and their apologists. The full category is here, but the most significant posts are:

Jack Bauer versus Maher Arar (7/3/07): Torture apologists overwhelmingly cite fiction and dire fantasies about ticking time bombs while ignoring actual reality about torturing innocent people.

"Torture Watch 2/19/08": A roundup and summary of important pieces on torture.

"Using Justice Against Us" (11/7/08): Examining bad arguments by John Yoo against due process. (I originally posted this at the Campaign for America's Future, but their template and formatting subsequently changed, so this is a repost at VS from March 2010.)

"Tortured" (12/5/08): A poem.

"Rivkin's Protean Logic on Torture" (3/12/09): A long dissection of one of the most slippery of torture apologists.

"Sensory Deprivation Op-Ed" (4/20/09): A close reading of a key op-ed by prominent torture apologists who conveniently omit that they could face criminal prosecution for the actions they're defending.

"The Torture Flowchart" (4/23/09): An attempt to visualize the insanity, and how many opportunities there were to stop.

"Torture Versus Freedom" (5/15/09): An attempt to address and debunk all the arguments for torture, with heavy use of supporting links. The "further resources" section links significant books and articles.

"A Venn Diagram on Torture Apologia" (5/21/09)

"The Torture Apologia Chart" (6/2/09): An attempt to summarize all the major arguments for torture. (I never got around to revising this into a full debunking tool, because it would be a significant undertaking to do it properly, but the links in "Torture Versus Freedom" serve most of that.)

" I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" (7/31/09): Exploring the deadly certainty of torturers and "the comforting violence of Jack Bauer."

"Why Does Liz Cheney Hate Civilization?" (3/10/10): Examining the then-latest round of fearmongering 'If you investigate my daddy you're all going to be killed by terrorists' bullshit.

"They Could Not Look Me in the Eye Again" (11/11/11): Pondering dehumanization and cruelty in the contexts of war, torture and racism.

"Greater Context for Zero Dark Thirty" (8/15/13): A long consideration of the filmmakers' artistic choices and the facts and context they ignored.

Tolerance and Freedom

Several of these posts were written for the (mostly annual) Blog Against Theocracy.

"The Social Tolerance Charts" (3/13/07): The misunderstanding of "tolerance" by many conservatives. (I've explored this issue many times since.)

"The Religion-in-Society Charts" (3/14/07): Looking at religious tolerance specifically.

"The Conservative Brain Trust Takes On: Freedom of Religion!" (3/29/07): Supposed conservative intellectuals prove extremely unclear on the First Amendment, especially when those icky gay people are involved.

"The Case for Writing More Accurately About Religion in America" (3/29/07): Dissecting Time magazine's poorly reasoned cover story, "Why We Should Teach the Bible in Public Schools."

"How Many Deities Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb?" (4/6/07): Humor and religion. (Some video links have since gone dead, alas.)

"Faith and Certainty" (4/6/07): For some people, religion doesn't make them more reflective, humble or open; it makes them more rigid and self-righteous.

"The Truth By Any Other Name" (3/23/08): Respecting different metaphors for living.

You Damned Kids Get Into My Church (1/8/10): Religious narcissism, or narcissistic religiosity.

"I'll See Your Jesus and Raise You 10,000 Buddhas" (1/12/10): A follow-up, because Ross Douthat sheds whine, not light, and "there's no virtue in discussing religion stupidly."

"The Meek Shall Inherit What's Left of the Earth the Mean and Dumb Destroy" (4/21/11): The religion of conservatives John Shimkus and Ann Coulter versus that of Stephen Colbert.

"Surely the Constitution Must Match My Theocratic Beliefs" (4/7/12): Rick Santorum versus the Founding Fathers.

"My God Can Beat Up Your God (Defining "Tolerance")" (4/9/12): Most of the time, when conservatives say "freedom," they really mean "privilege."

"Control, Punish and Shame" (3/31/13): The impulses of religious social conservatives.

"You're Intolerant of My Intolerance!" (8/20/14): Another crack at the issue, this time focusing on gay rights.

Specific Political Analysis

"Will GOP Senators Face Consequences for Lying to the Supreme Court?" (7/12/06): A deep dive into some dishonorable behavior involving the Hamdan v. Rumsfeld decision about due process and the congressional record.

The Aryan Minstrel Show (8/8/06): An extensive look at the performance art of hatred from Ann Coulter. (I still need to fix some old broken links.)

"Dance of the Straw Men" (10/12/06): "Of all the faulty argument patterns typically employed by the GOP, the most popular by far is a straw man argument with an ad hominem attack nestled inside."

"The Knaves of the Bush Administration" (3/20/07): Considering the Bush administration by way of King Lear.

"A Recap of the Sliming of Graeme Frost" (10/19/07): Chronicling the attacks on the 12-year-old survivor of a horrific car crash and just how nasty mainstream American conservatism has become.

"That Fragrant Horse Race Coverage" (1/13/08): Examining the blatant stupidity of media coverage of the 2008 early primary elections.

"That Damned Liberal Racism" (1/24/08): Looking at bad faith and idiotic discussions of race, centering on the 2008 election.

"The Passion of Saint McCain" (9/3/08): The Republican National Convention's depiction of John McCain as suffering Jesus (while simultaneously trying to sidestep the whole torture thing).

"Where's Bush?" (9/4/08): The disappearing of then-President Bush from the 2008 Republican National Convention.

"With Thy Father's Permission" (9/9/08): Motherhood and patriarchy sanctified at the Republican National Convention.

"Not One Person Called Giuliani a Douchebag" (12/8/09): Dissecting the disingenuous "he didn't use the magic words" political attack that's still popular among conservatives.

"Extremism in Defense of Nihilism Is a Vice" (7/28/11): Contextualizing the debt ceiling hostage situation and pointing out the striking extremism of conservatives.

"Why We Can't Have Nice Things" (12/7/12): Looking at the fiscal "compromise" and an ongoing trend of tremendous bad faith (and horrendous coverage of all this).

Satire and Humor

"Proof of Iran’s Perfidy Provided by Anonymous Experts!" (2/13/07): A skeptical, satirical look at another round of saber-rattling.

"Valentine's Day (The Death of True Love)" (2/14/08): This rant about what's probably my least favorite holiday elicited some strong responses. (Nonpolitical, apart from some dated and largely pointless political references.)

"Hall of Fame Material" (1/14/09): Looking back on the Bush presidency, and contrasting expectations for him with those of sports fans for their favorite team (in this case, the then-woeful Detroit Lions).

"Anti-Terrorist Fantasy Dream Team on the Case" (5/20/09): Obama recruits Jack Bauer and Wolverine, because "a fictional threat is best met with decisive fictional force."

"A Field Guide to Political Creatures" (8/14/09): A sillier look at wonks, hacks and zealots.

Film

I've written several hundred reviews (most of them short, some more expansive) generally as part of a post-Oscars roundup, a preblog tradition. Those are easiest found by scrolling through the Oscars and film categories. (A post examining the conservative ideologue's approach to film is linked above.) Some obituaries and retrospectives of note:

"Sven Nykvist 1922–2006 (9/25/06): The work of one of film's greatest cinematographers.

"A Moment of Silence: Ingmar Bergman (1918–2007)" (8/9/07): Looking back at the work of a cinematic giant.

"Kurosawa Exhibit" (12/10/08): Considering another of cinema's masters.

"Éric Rohmer (1920-2010)" (1/26/10): Appreciating the subtleties and sublimeness of Rohmer's work.

"Roger Ebert (1942–2013)" (4/12/13): A look at the film critic and his prose.

"Ray Harryhausen (1920–2013)" (5/20/13): The stop-motion magician.

Banned Books

I try to write a post for Banned Books Week every year (and comment on current events, if relevant). To date, the most extensive posts in this category are:

"Just Another Concerned Parent Firing Librarians" (9/12/08): My most in-depth post of several on Sarah Palin's unsuccessful censorship attempts as Mayor of Wasilla.

"Fahrenheit 451" (10/3/08): A look at the novel and recent attempts to ban it.

"Banned Books Week 2010" (9/27/10): Choosing not to read something is fine; banning entails preemptively making that choice for everyone else.

"Banned Books Week 2011" (9/25/11): Efforts to ban works by Aldous Huxley and Sherman Alexie.

"Banned Books Week 2014" (9/27/14): Kurt Vonnegut and Slaughterhouse Five.

Other Arts

"Who's on First?" (5/7/08): My experiences rehearsing and performing the famous sketch. (I've done it about a dozen times now.)

"Creativity" (7/10/08): A piece about protecting and nurturing the creative impulse.

"Ar Eirinn Ni Neosainn Ce Hi" (3/17/09): This St. Patrick's Day post on one of my favorite Irish songs still gets hits occasionally.

"Iain Banks" (6/5/13): An assessment of the Scottish sci-fi and "straight" fiction author Iain Banks, who unfortunately died in 2013.

"Pete Seeger (1919–2014)" (2/12/14): An appreciation of the folk singer and activist.

I really should write more about theater and poetry, but I try to post something for National Poetry Month in April every year, and I'm always happy to plug the wonderful Favorite Poem Project.

The Holocaust

Each year, I write a post for International Holocaust Remembrance Day and sometimes write related posts about current events. The most significant posts in The Holocaust category are:

Holocaust Remembrance Day (2006): A roundup of Holocaust materials.

"International Holocaust Remembrance Day, 2008": A look at the Nazi propaganda (including films) used to sell their T4 "euthanasia" program, a precursor to their death camps. (Some film clip issues, alas.)

"International Holocaust Remembrance Day, 2009": Music from composers persecuted or killed by the Nazis.

"Godwin's Law" (4/21/09): Considering its value and limitations.

"Deny Me Health Care or Give Me Death" (8/16/09): Conservatives misrepresent history to compare giving people health care to Nazi killings.

"If This Is a Man" (1/27/10): A look at one of the best Holocaust memoirs, Primo Levi's If This Is a Man (Se questo è un uomo), better known in the U.S. as Survival in Auschwitz.

The Jon Swift Roundup (and the Rest)

For the past several years, I've continued a tradition started by the late, great, Jon Swift (pen name of Al Weisel) – the best posts of the year, picked by the bloggers themselves. The category is here.

I've also cross-posted or guest posted at Crooks and Liars, Hullabaloo, the Campaign for America's Future, and the dearly departed Blue Herald. (At times I miss the series Right-Wing Cartoon Watch that ran there, but it was a ton of work.)

That's about it. At times, the site name "Vagabond Scholar" strikes me as stuffy or pretentious – and it doesn't fit my sillier nom de blog – but I picked it in the spirit of curiosity and searching, not pretending to know all the answers. (More background's here.)

Thanks to everyone who's stopped by over the years, and happy blogging.

Blogiversary IX: Nine and Half Posts

I don't have much time for writing, alas, but yeah, this blog is still going. It turned nine back in late July. Thanks to those who have stopped by for my infrequent posts.

As usual, I'll give a (brief) retrospective of posts since the last retrospective.

"Our National Political Discourse" is an attempt to "visualize how our national political discourse should work, and discus how it does work instead."

"The Dogs of War," a piece on the vanity that drives blithe cheerleading for war, was my post for Armistice Day last year.

I can blame guest-posting for Digby for most of my activity. The VS versions of the significant posts are "Lucky Duckies and Fortunate Sons," "Artificially Equalizing Unequal Views on Inequality," "The Fallacy of the Golden Mean" (a "both sides" reader) and "You're Intolerant of My Intolerance!"

My annual post-Oscar film roundup (a pre-blog tradition that continues) appears in parts One, Two, Three and Four.

My post on Pete Seeger is probably the most significant in the too-full Obituaries category.

Finally, on the good karma front, I've done my usual stints for Mike's Blog Roundup over at Crooks and Liars, and there's the 2013 Jon Swift Memorial Roundup.

Peace, good art, and happy blog reading and writing.

Blogiversary VIII: Eight Posts a Week

(Early bloggers tried out new identities, struggled with format and display issues, and competed for attention on the Internet with… other interests.)

Last month, this blog turned eight. Projects in the alleged "real life" have cut into my writing time, but occasionally I get around to posting something. (Not eight posts a week, though!) Thanks to those who have stopped by.

As usual, I'll give a retrospective. I did get some political analysis done, probably most notably in Both Sides Do It: Partisanship Redux," "Why We Can't Have Nice Things" and "But Paul Ryan Seems Like Such a Nice Fellow." A long piece, "Voting and Political Activism," attempted to put those recurring arguments on how to vote that the left-leaning love to have into greater context. (The main point: Voting should be the capstone of political activism, not the extent of it.)

For Armistice Day, "Only the Faithless Suffer," (part of an occasional, ongoing series on war) looked at the lies we tell ourselves to allow human suffering.

My post for the Blogswarm Against Theocracy this time was about social conservatives' need to "Control, Punish and Shame."

Moving on to culture and history, there's my annual post-Oscar film roundup (a pre-blog tradition that continues) in parts One, Two, Three and Four. For National Poetry Month, we looked at "Gods and Marble." For International Holocaust Day, the subject was the unconventional game Train.

Unfortunately, the obituary category was pretty full this cycle. (The most in-depth pieces were probably for Roger Ebert and Iain M. Banks.) And I never like adding any posts to the category blogger deaths.

Finally, on the good karma front, I've done several stints for Mike's Blog Roundup over at Crooks and Liars, and there's the 2012 Jon Swift Memorial Roundup.

Peace, good art, and happy blog reading and writing.

Blogiversary VII: Seven Posts in May

Blogging is not writing. It's just graffiti with punctuation.
– Contagion

A few days ago, this blog turned seven. It's been another year with little time to write and plenty of backlogged major-posts-in-the-works that would, uh, knock your socks off if you were only the type to wear socks, you hippie. Still, thanks to everyone who's stopped by for my occasional (mostly long-form) blogging. (At least I got in three film references above!)

As usual, I'll give a retrospective. Guilt has its uses, such as prodding me to finish "The Four Types of Conservatives" (another entry to the Chart Project). "Extremism in Defense of Nihilism Is a Vice" dissected the conservative extremism and bad faith driving last year's debt ceiling hostage situation.

"They Could Not Look Me in the Eye Again" looked at issues of dehumanization to commemorate Armistice Day 11/11/11.

"Surely the Constitution Must Match My Theocratic Beliefs" examined the ignorance and religious narcissism of Rick Santorum, while "My God Can Beat Up Your God (Defining "Tolerance")" dissected the whole "You're intolerant of my intolerance" shtick. (Both posts were for the annual Blog Against Theocracy.)

My annual post-Oscar film roundup is in four posts as usual, starting here (scroll through "older posts" at the bottom to read the rest).

For Banned Books Week, we looked at efforts to restrict Brave New World and Sherman Alexie. For National Poetry Month, we featured pieces by the recently deceased Adrienne Rich. For International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we looked at a Nazi board game.

Finally, in addition to spreading the luv during a few stints at Mike's Blog Roundup over at Crooks and Liars, there was the Jon Swift Memorial Roundup 2011.

I also spent a fair amount of time redesigning the blog. If you're a regular reader and have VS on your blogroll, and I haven't reciprocated, feel free to write me or leave a comment. Cheers, and happy blogging!

Blog Redesign

The VS blog redesign is now live. I've been tinkering with it off and on in the background for a while. There are some drawbacks to the latest Blogger layout interface, but it's much easier to share posts and scroll through category archives.

Recreating my blogroll took some time. Regular readers and commenters should find themselves included. If you're not, and you'd like to be, shoot me an e-mail or leave a comment. I did trim some folks who retired, took their blogs private, or haven't posted in a long time (say, six months or more). Folks who come out of retirement are also welcome to contact me to be restored... not that, um, being on my blogroll will give you much traffic, but most people like the shout-out.

I haven't been able to write much this year. (Perhaps I should also turn more of the long comments I leave elsewhere into posts here.) Regardless, I prefer to post occasionally than retire and un-retire endlessly. Other blogs have breaking news covered very well, so I prefer posting long form pieces when I can, along with the odd short piece. Anyway, I'll probably tinker with the site more, but the basic functionality should be good to go. Happy blogging and reading.

Blogiversary VI: Occasional Return of the Blogger

As of yesterday, this blog turns six. I've had much less time to write since last year, alas, but I hope that will change in the next few months. Thanks to all those who have stopped by for my occasional (and mostly long-form) blogging.

I'll do my usual retrospective. Since last year, I added a couple of entries to the Chart Project (an attempt to visualize issues), "The Stupid-Evil-Crazy Vortex" and "Defining Common Ground in Diagrams."

The latter post was mostly a recap, and a companion piece to "Common Ground and Equal Blame." Both posts are part of an ongoing series on false equivalencies and "both sides are equally to blame" balderdash. "Partisanship, Policy and Bullshit" is the latest entry. (I suppose "Engaging the Opposition, and a Wingnut Checklist" sorta dovetails with the general theme.)

As for other "series," the post "Asymmetric Inhumanity" was my one addition to the War Series.

This year for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, I wrote about Judith Magyar Issacson's memoir, Seed of Sarah.

My annual post-Oscars film roundup can be read here (for now).

Finally, my good deed for the year was organizing the Jon Swift Memorial Roundup of the best posts of the year, chosen by the bloggers themselves, in honor of the much missed Jon Swift/Al Weisel. I'm planning to do it again in late December. (Start working on those best posts!) Maybe by then I'll have updated my blogger template...

Blogiversary V: The Internet Hamsters Strike Back

It's my fifth blogiversary, not worthy of Methuselah status, but a fairly long time in blog years. It hasn't been my most prolific blog year, although there's been a late flurry of activity, and a few highlights before that. Thanks to everyone who's stopped by, or otherwise supports small blogs or "long form" blogging. Here's my traditional retrospective round-up (mainly so I can find the damn things later).

For Armistice Day 11/11, I published a series of seven posts as part of an ongoing War Series. Many dealt with WWI and its connection to more recent conflicts, from poetry, to propaganda, to personal grief, to the psychological needs driving disastrous war strategies, to the human excrement that is the chickenhawk. The most notable entries were "Giddy Minds and Foreign Quarrels" and "War and the Denial of Loss." (After kicking a few of these pieces around for a long time, I was happy to get them done, however roughly.)

On the torture/human rights beat, I've fallen woefully behind (and have been doing research for some new, perhaps overly-ambitious, pieces). However, there was one notable essay, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" (a.k.a. "The Comforting Violence of Jack Bauer").

"American Politics Seen as a Japanese Monster Movie" is a personal favorite. Then there's the more serious "American Political Insanity Explained."

The Chart Project, an ongoing attempt to visualize issues, had two new entries, "The Social Contract" and "The Five Circles of Conservative Hell." (Just in under the wire!)

I sat in with other bands again guest-blogging (we got some good folks out here in L.A.). From those stints, the best entries were "Silent Questions", "We Cheat the Other Guy and Pass the Savings to You," the satirical "Field Guide to Political Creatures" and a look at teabagger insanity, "Deny Me Health Care or Give Me Death." (I should also mention "Attack of the Plutocrats.")

The latter built on one of my previous, cheery Holocaust posts, since conservative invocations of the Holocaust are about as counter-historical and darkly ironic as you can get. This year for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, I focused on Primo Levi's exceptional memoir, If this is a man (normally known as Survival in Auschwitz here in the States).

On a lighter note, I did my traditional post-Oscar film roundup, most easily viewed though the Oscar category and scrolling down.

Thanks again to everyone who's stopped by. (I hope to finish some long-simmering pieces sometime in the next few months.) Al Green will sing us out:

Blogging

Where does the time go?

I've had my hands full, and blogging has been even lighter than usual lately. I'm hoping to be posting more regularly again after September 12th. I have several posts on torture in the works (no surprise). In the meantime, consider perusing the many excellent blogs on my blogroll...

Blogiversary IV: A New Hope

(The full strip is here (backup here), and is about Gingrich. It's funny 'cause it's true and all that.)

Another year, another round-up. Thanks to all who've checked out my sporadic, eclectic, (mostly) long-form blogging. I remain a part-time blogger and this remains a small blog, but I've received some very generous links since the last blogiversary, so thanks again for that - and to everyone who strives to honor the spirit of Blogroll Anniversary Day.

Since last July, I've spent a fair amount of time on the human rights/ torture beat. The most notable (and passionate) post of that group is "Torture Versus Freedom." Meanwhile, "The Torture Apologia Chart" and "The Torture Flowchart" attempt to visualize the insanity. "Rivkin's Protean Logic on Torture" is a long dissection of one of the most slippery of torture apologists. Finally, "Tortured" attempts a more artistic approach. Whew.


The satire category has been thinner this round, but there is "Anti-Terrorist Fantasy Dream Team on the Case," plus "Hall of Fame Material," a semi-satirical look at sports lover Bush and his, um, stunning legacy.


Apart from the cheery torture stuff, the most substantial essay is "The Persistence of Ideology."

"Diagrams on Conservatism" and "Diagram Madness" continue my efforts to visualize issues.


I wrote several posts on the iconography of the Republican National Convention, from the disappearing of Bush to "The Passion of Saint McCain" to "With Thy Father's Permission" (on Sarah Palin and Cindy McCain). I followed the unfolding story of Palin's unsuccessful attempts to ban books pretty closely, but the core post was "Just Another Concerned Parent Firing Librarians." (Meanwhile, I'll confess a fondness for the post "Concern Trolls for Nixon.")

My International Holocaust Remembrance Day post this year focused on music by those killed or persecuted by the Nazis. ("Not Like Us" dealt with present day bigotry, and then there's a post on the uses and limitations of Godwin's Law.)

Moving on the arts, in film, there's the annual film roundup, a post on a local Kurosawa exhibit and a dissection of National Review's best "conservative" films.

I haven't covered poetry that much this round, but I did squeeze in the arts on the holidays. My 11/11 Armistice Day post centered on the war poetry of Siegfried Sassoon. MLK Day looked at OyamO's great, little-known play I Am a Man, and St Patrick's Day focused on one of the prettiest Celtic tunes you've likely ever heard. I wrote a few posts for Banned Books Week, including one on my pick for 2008, Fahrenheit 451.

I did a fair amount of sittin' in with other bands since last July. I think the best of the first Hullabaloo stint are "The Sporting Life" and "Cokie's World." (I cross-posted the second stint stuff here at VS.) The best of the Campaign for America's Future set is "Using Justice Against Us," examining John Yoo's dissembling.

Meanwhile, there's the dearly departed series Right-Wing Cartoon Watch over at Blue Herald - both the series and the blog are currently on hiatus. Near the end of this incarnation of RWCW, the installments were epic in length (even by my standards) and not for all tastes, and I don't miss how much time they took to assemble. However, I learned a great deal researching for the series, and it was a neat way for me to comment on stories I couldn't cover in real time and to link some fine debunking work by other bloggers. It also allowed me to track most right-wing talking points for over two and half years. Plus, I just love the fine American tradition of political cartooning. I still might revisit it, but we'll have to see how a cartoon-less series plays (unless other arrangements can be made).

In any case, thanks again, and Ray will play us out:

Blogging

What with subbing at Mike's Blog Roundup at Crooks and Liars and a few looming deadlines, blogging here has been even more infrequent than usual. However, I hope to return to my normal level of infrequency in July.

Blogiversary III: The Sequel

("I question your choice of metaphor here.")

So, uh, happy blogiversary to me – out of the terrible twos and into the tremulous threes! My blogiversary post last year provided a mini-roundup and the thin blog history. (I also seem to keep linking two posts from that year, since "The Bullshit Matrix" and "False Equivalencies" seem to apply to just about all political coverage.)

Anyway, many thanks to those readers who've stopped by, and to all those bloggers who observe the spirit of Blogroll Amnesty Day. It's been nice, especially as I'm a part-time blogger. It's also been fun to get to know more blogger-type people online and meet some in real life.

For this year's mini-roundup, let me see. I still need to finish up the War Series, but "Day of Shame" and "The Poetry of War" are the most substantial new entries.

Of the many posts on Iraq, "John "100 Years" McCain" is probably the most significant (more on the neocons in "Iraq and Vietnam: Selling the Stab-in-the-Back Myth" and "Brave Cowboys of the Junior High Lunch Room," among others).

Of the many posts on torture (I know, another cheery subject), the most exhaustive is the "Torture Watch" roundup from February.

"A Recap of the Sliming of Graeme Frost" was a similar resource post. Yeah, it's hard to keep up with all the internet scrums.

If mini-manifestos are your thing, here are "Some Reasons I'm a Liberal."

"That Fragrant Horse Race Coverage," "That Damned Liberal Racism," "Richard Cohen and the Fabulous Hair" and "Skippy and the Mystery of the Mystery of the Missing Journalism" covered the silliness of our political coverage (among other posts).

Meanwhile, "A Pox on One of Your Houses," "Somehow, This Seemed Appropriate" and "Post Postmortem Post" chronicled the internecine warfare in the liberal blogosphere as the primary season entered the Thunder Dome stage.

In film, there's the 2007 Film Roundup and an appreciation for the great departed Ingmar Bergman. The poetry category still cries out for more entries.

The International Holocaust Day post this year dealt with Nazi propaganda films and the T4 program (although I wish I could have supplied more clips).

Oh, yeah, there's also a post over at the Campaign for America's Future, "Hogwash," and the Right-Wing Cartoon Watch series over at Blue Herald.

Still, I think I got the strongest reactions from a Valentine's Day rant and a post on creativity, which together sorta capture the silliness I prefer in real life and my philosophy of corrupting the youth of America though art, literature and all that cultural stuff.

And on that note, here's my poem pick for this year, for all fellow travelers:

#448

I died for Beauty - but was scarce
Adjusted in the Tomb
When One who died for Truth, was lain
In an adjoining Room

He questioned softly why I failed?
“For Beauty,” I replied -
“And I - for Truth—Themselves are One
We Brethren, are,” He said

And so, as Kinsmen met a Night,
We talked between the Rooms -
Until the Moss had reached our lips -
And covered up - Our names –

— Emily Dickinson, 1862

(On to next year!)

Fool's Day 2008

Happy Fool's Day! It's a good day to read or watch a comedy, or better still, a satire. We're always in need of Shakespearean fools who speak truth to power, especially given the idiots and knaves we have in high places. At the very least, please take a moment today to mock our preznit. Really, it's your duty as an American.

(Cross-posted at The Blue Herald)

Blogiversary

Originally, I wasn't going to bother with a blogiversary post unless I got to a fifth year, but two years is a long time in the blogosphere. So — umm — yay! Whoopee! Here's to the terrible twos! (It was actually back on July 27th, but I was out of town and wanted to have some actual new posts up before writing a blogiversary post.)

I can't pretend to be the most punctual blogger (case in point), nor one of the most prolific, nor one of the most trafficked (although Blue Herald is doing pretty well). And if Hamlet was right when he quipped that "brevity is the soul of wit," then I must confess myself witless. (I'd certainly love more time to revise and tighten my prose.)

Still, I think I can claim some variety, at least, among my 300+ entries. If you've got a lot of time on your hands, here's some highlights.

Of the blog essays, my favorites are probably "The Aryan Minstrel Show" (on Ann Coulter), "How to Hear a True War Story,", "False Equivalencies" (part of a media series I'd like to finish), and "Knaves of the Bush Administration."

For original digging, there's "Will GOP Senators Face Consequences for Lying to the Supreme Court?" and "Adam Reilly Repeats John Carroll's Mistake."

In the too-slim satire category, my favorites are Proof of Iran’s Perfidy Provided by Anonymous Experts! "Help Fight Math Illiteracy!" and "Political Football Theater."

The Blog Against Theocracy category features a bevy of posts, the most popular being "How Many Deities Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb?" (about comedy and religion) and "Faith and Certainty."

The faulty logic category contains a number of posts, but "Dance of the Straw Men," examining Bush's favorite faulty argument technique, is probably the most entertaining.

The posts in The Chart Project feature diagrams and graphics to explore key issues. I think of them mainly as foundational posts to reference later, although "Color Commentary" takes a funnier tact. The others are "The Chart That Explains It All!" "The Social Tolerance Charts," "The Religion-in-Society Charts," "The Bullshit Matrix" and "The Conservative Brain Trust Takes On: Freedom of Religion!"

The questionable metaphors and analogies category is positively overflowing, with comparisons to Groundhog Day, Harry Potter, A Few Good Men, Darth Vader, Bull Durham, some Matrix-Plato's Cave thing, and... the McLobster sandwich?!?

The film category mostly consists of the Oscar/year-in-review round-ups (although those cover over one hundred films in the past two years).

There's also several posts in the poetry, education and the Holocaust categories.

My vote for the most bleeding heart liberal post is "Elegy (and Call to Arms) for the United States Constitution, 9/28/06." (Every blogofascist and DFH needs at least one!)

Finally, there's the series Rightwing Cartoon Watch, which I've been posting over at the Blue Herald site (I've been working on the next installment). Whew!

This blog started from my habit of e-mailing out an Oscar/film round-up every year, sending out round-ups of news stories during the run-up to the 2004 presidential election, and a nasty habit of compulsive essay-writing that expensive therapy perhaps could cure. At some point I'll have to write more about theater, poetry, film and all that, y'know, cultural stuff. I know it would make my conservative friends happier. (Did I mention that Bush is probably our worst president ever, and certainly among the worst five?)

As to the title of this blog — there are times I wonder why the hell I picked it. As I wrote early on, I've long thought it would be a fun name for a column, and later learned it was the title of a biography about historian George Santayana. I have a wide range of interests, and until a few years ago, I had spent most of my life moving around (seven states, three continents) studying or teaching. I think of a "scholar" as one who values the life of the mind and the arts, is driven to learn more and who tries to be honest, not someone who possesses all the answers already. There's a saying that "I don't trust the man who says he's seen the light. I trust the person who's still looking." That said, sometimes "Vagabond Scholar" strikes me as a stuffy or pretentious blog title that doesn't quite fit with the more satirical posts or my nom de blog, but I guess it sounds vaguely more respectable than "Semiliterate Bum."

As one more tribute to the recently departed Tommy Makem (and the "Drinking Bacchus" painting by Guido Reni above), here's one of my favorite poems. I first heard it on the tape of a Makem and Clancy concert, and have a hard time reading it without an Irish accent.

Get Drunk
By Charles Baudelaire

One should always be drunk. That's all that matters;
that's our one imperative need. So as not to feel Time's
horrible burden one which breaks your shoulders and bows
you down, you must get drunk without cease.

But with what?
With wine, poetry, or virtue
as you choose.
But get drunk.

And if, at some time, on steps of a palace,
in the green grass of a ditch,
in the bleak solitude of your room,
you are waking and the drunkenness has already abated,
ask the wind, the wave, the stars, the clock,
all that which flees,
all that which groans,
all that which rolls,
all that which sings,
all that which speaks,
ask them, what time it is;
and the wind, the wave, the stars, the birds, and the clock,
they will all reply:

"It is time to get drunk!

So that you may not be the martyred slaves of Time,
get drunk, get drunk,
and never pause for rest!
With wine, poetry, or virtue,
as you choose!"

(The French original can be read here. Of course, conservatives know better to learn a foreign language, let alone French! )