Other commenters mark his passing in the comments to Tuesday night's sunrise post and in this earlier post that day.
This morning I'm seeing Neo's blog post, "RIP commenter 'Mike K'": "RIP Mike K, and all the commenters here who may have died but all we know is that they disappeared never to return."Bissage was a dearly beloved commenter on this blog who disappeared one day, when the uncooperative dear became uncooperative. I've tried to call him back: "Come back, Bissage. We're counting oranges again. Remember? 42. 42. 42..." To no avail.
I appreciate hearing the specific news that a commenter has died, like when Gahrie's brother's dropped into a comments thread: "Hello.... This is my brother gahries account, and it appears this post was close to the last thing he read/saw before he passed away Sunday morning sometime after 130am...."
I miss Gahrie and Bissage and Michael K and many others who died or drifted away and even some of those who left in a huff. They, unlike the dead, can drop back in. Why don't they? It's not for me to figure out. The blog, like life itself, can only move forward, and the day will come when we will all be left behind. So thanks to all — except the actual trolls — who walked along this way as far as they did.
***
I have a tag "Michael K" because I frontpaged his comments a few times. Frontpaging is a whimsical endeavor. I'm sure there are many more excellent comments and there's little chance that these are Michael K's 5 best comments, but these are the ones I'll quote here:
September 29, 2019:
“My wife quit watching Fox News as the news was so boring and depressing, too. I see Althouse is also bored.”Writes Michael K in the comments to “Just another Sunday morning.”
October 8, 2018:
"False memories of sexual abuse lead to terrible miscarriages of justice/To avoid the innocent being convicted, police, lawyers and judges must understand the fickle nature of human memory."...July 25, 2017:
Michael K said: "I initially thought she had recovered memories but I have come to the conclusion that she is lying."
"Psychiatry group tells members they can defy ‘Goldwater rule’ and comment on Trump’s mental health."November 9, 2012:
The executive committee of the American Psychoanalytic Association emailed its 3,500 members, STAT reports....
And Michael K (who is a surgeon) said: "I personally know several who went into Psychiatry to deal with their own mental health problems. One guy was a former surgery resident who went full psychotic and started to be treated by the chief of Psychiatry at a university medial center. That chief of Psychiatry then accepted him into the residency which he finished. He was brilliant but as crazy as anyone I've ever seen."
"He will bring happiness in a pipe/He'll ride away on his silver bike/And apart from that he'll be so kind/In consenting to blow your mind..."..."Fat Angel," by Donovan.... Fly Translove Airways... Gets you there on time... a lyric that sprang to mind as I was reading The Lavender Café, where Michael K said: "I'm hoping to get Chicagoboyz back to posts about airplanes. Politics is a dead subject. The lefties have made their bed. Now, find a job."
June 11, 2012:
"U.S. Secretary of Commerce John Bryson is being investigated in a felony hit-and-run case..."
CBS News reports:... A Commerce Department spokeswoman says Bryson had a seizure. How could a seizure explain the sequence of 3 accidents, with him having a conversation after the first one?....
IN THE COMMENTS: Michael K said: "This how Bob Novak's brain tumor was found. It's too early to make fun of him. And too late, maybe, to make fun of Obama."
Posts
142 comments:
ChicagoBoyz has an RIP posting about Michael Kennedy, including pointing to his blog and other postings about him.
In memory of Chip Ahoy.
One of my favorite comments of his was about Eisenhower, whose wife, Maimie was begging him to stop eating celery, and a surgeon acquaintance found that Ike's intestines were full of it. I later read that in that era, male porn stars would eat celery because there was a folk belief that the rigidity of celery could be... well, I am sure you know where this is going.
Anyway, Doc was a great commenter, as everybody here knows. It wasn't his highest achievement, but it's why we loved him.
Yes, sorry to hear of the passing of Michael K. I also thought of Chip Ahoy and the woman her online name I can't recall but think she had a dog for her icon. Thank you to all the commentariat past and present, for a little daily humanity. It is the little things in life that are most important…
RIP to Doc Kennedy. His information/blather ratio was one to which we should all aspire on this forum. It takes people like him to make a better world. You never had to guess where he stood.
Dr K was a BIG reason why i came to this blog..
I'll miss him. He told us months ago, that he'd be leaving; so not a surprise, but Still sad
"They, unlike the dead, can drop back in. Why don't they?"
I've walked away a few times and drifted back. Sometimes I've been kicked out (each time a different username, alas). And this by Ann who front-paged the comment I'm most proud of in my entire blog commenting "career" (not going to say which because that's a dead giveaway to a previous username.)
Why? I like the back and forth that takes place in the comments here. Some really smart people here. And watching Ann get red-pilled as she matures has been fun also.
I probably have cancer, though. I doubt when I kick over there'll be fond remembrances, but I'll keep rousing the rabble nontheless.
RIP: Michael
Laslo Spatula is missed, and even Garage Mahal and HDHouse (who had good taste in music).
I have missed him - thank you for letting us know he passed away
Yes!
Oh man, I'm sad about Michael K and also Chip Ahoy now.
I miss Crack.
I'm so glad you gave him his own post. We are a strange community here -- we know things about each other yet we mostly won't know when someone leaves forever. It's a melancholy reality.
Rip dr k. Always enjoyed his comments. Did Laslo die or just leave?
Thank you for this post. Very sad. RIP Condolences to his family.
Laslo!
I didn't see other commenters' mentions of his passing - all I saw was that one commenter looked for an obituary and didn't find one. Michael K and I both took a comment break (mine less than perfect - I kept dipping back in) just before the election, and that was the last I knew. I hope he knew about the election result. (I'll go over to neo to check.)
Anyone know anything about Inga? She - if she was a singular "she"; I commented earlier this year that her style had changed so much that I wondered whether someone had taken over her handle - was incredibly irritating this election season and drew out parts of me that I really don't like, hence (in part) my comment break, but she's been here for a long time and, like others, I note her absence.
I see that he did not get to see the election results. And I trust that now he doesn't care about them.
I do not recall an appearance by Michael Kennedy for many weeks. Was he ill for an extended period? I'll miss him. Dr. Kennedy was a man with a solid foundations.
This is a lovely tribute to a commenter. The amount of warmth and sympathy expressed is mildly surprising, but the Good Doctor was -- to me -- always interesting and he brought his unique perspective from that long, event-filled life he lived.
My prayers go out to his family and also as thanks to ALL the rest of you here who share the space and provide your own POV, including our hosts at Meadhouse. We may not agree but I appreciate reading each of you, most the time. As today reiterates for us, Man's time on Earth is short.
Mike provided a higher standard of care. Althouse commiserates in noting his passing, and providing a forum to remember a life well lived. A comfort for those who he knew, served, and shared his time.
Fair winds and following seas, Mike.
I have often wondered about Chip Ahoy. His culinary diversions were necessarily off-topic, but always pleasantly interesting.
RIP
Yeah Laslo was rhetorically funny in a Gary Larson "Far Side"-without-the-comic sort of way.
Left the Blog or on vacation
Will we be missed at Althouse Nation?
Hit Publish with our final breath
A last attempt at cheating Death.
Ruth Anne Adams was many a favorite commenter. I miss Ron too.
Oh goodness, RIP, Michael K.
After observing the chaos from a sister’s unexpected passing I wrote a Word file entitled “In case of my sudden passing.” It includes directions for a number of things that I would normally take care of myself if I had a terminal illness, and it also includes a list of people to contact to spread the word of my death — a contact point for the people I used to shoot with, a contact point for my old friends from work (I retired 9 years ago), which relative in my far-flung extended family can be counted on to let everyone else know, and finally directions for adding one last comment from “Big Mike” on the Althouse blog that begins “This is Mrs. Mike (or Big Mike’s son) — he has posted his last snarky comment.”
But for now I’m still around to laugh at an incredibly funny world, made more so by idiotic things like Dumbocrats.
Laslo Spatula is sorely missed around here. His essays were epic. I also miss mockturtle. She reappeared briefly the other day…and then vanished again.
- Krumhorn
I miss them, and red-headed Lyssa and I’d like see more of Freeman Hunt. I miss Hoosier Daddy and Edjumicated (sp?) Redneck.
I'll miss Dr. K, an intelligent commenter and enjoyable to read. RIP.
And yes, some of the best and funniest people have left in a huff, departed in a fit of pique, or left in a snit. I suppose they wanted a pay raise and didn't get it.
This prompted me to go back and look at that first month of posts on Althouse. I tried to remember when I started reading and occasionally commenting (2007, I think). Who knew the journey that was coming. This remains, by far, my favorite blog and my favorite set of commentors.
There were times Althouse considered ending comments; I continue to be glad she didn't and those of us still here are still here.
I try not to think about the sad day this blog will be left behind, though sometimes I do, so I tell myself just enjoy it day by day for as long as it (or I) am here.
Laslo was still around as of a few months ago as far as I know.
Thanks Althouse.
I appreciate you taking the time to honor Michael K. He was a special guy and a great contributor.
I was a big fan of Michael K. Thanks Althouse. God Bless.
I had noted his absence a few days after the election and wrote a comment about it on our Discord of which he was a member which is what prompted Narciso to find a phone number. I knew that he would have commented on the election results had he been able. When I looked, his last comment on our Discord and here at Althouse occurred on October 17th.
I didn’t read the comments for a long time after I got here, but I do remember during one of the suspensions of commenters corpus that a dozen of commenters were said to be “the dirty dozen”. It left me wondering if I was one and if I was, who were my confederates.
RIP Dr K. I am reminded of the long absence of commenter Daryl (from Chicago, avatar with dark-framed eyeglasses and a cigarette).
Mock is a daily participant in our Discord. I will mention this to her.
"One for me, and one for my homies."
RIP Dr K
Hello to everyone, from Laslo.
I still read Althouse on a daily basis. I have a sincere admiration for what she does, and for how she thinks, and how she freely thinks aloud. I also have a deep appreciation for how she manages this, day after day, with agility and without pause.
And, as always, I read the comments, because there is always something fascinating or insightful to be found (I DO have my favorites).
I didn't intend to step away from commenting for so long. Was feeling burnt out mentally (who knew commenting several times a day could turn out to be exhausting?), but mostly health and life concerns -- my own, my wife, my family, my friends -- had sapped me greatly. I've lost a lot of dear people over the last several years, capped by the loss of my father this past September -- I miss him greatly.
No need to belabor the point -- age brings these things to everyone, eventually, as most here no doubt understand. RIP, Dr. K.
As far as what I have been up to: I still make no-budget movies (at this point my crew has made thirteen features, and several dozen shorts). Have been selected by a lot of festivals, have won some nice awards.
The latest feature, "Brick Force: One Left In The Chamber", is about an 80's-style bull-in-a-china-shop cop who has retired from the force and is facing serious health issues; a silly, absurd comedy about mortality, really. And it busted the budget at about $800.
The thing that makes it most resonant to me is that the lead actor (and dear friend) was dealing with a serious illness during filming: after losing his wonderful wife the year before, his doctors told him last December that he wouldn't make it to summer. But he is still with us, for which I feel so very grateful and blessed.
Which brings me to an Althouse connection. My father -- a reserved man -- watched the film, and said it made him think of "My Dinner with Andre." He did not intend this as a compliment -- it was shorthand for watching a film where everyone pretty much just talked. Not his style.
But it made me think of Althouse and her affection for that movie, so I took it as a compliment, anyway.
Sorry to prattle on so long. Now that I've dipped my toe back in the water I think I might resume swimming...
I am Laslo.
Very sad to hear this. RIP to the good Dr. Kennedy/Michael K. He was one of the first whose comments I looked for regularly when I started reading this blog. Losing someone here is like losing a family member in a way. That disconnected group that I see when I open this blog. I have no idea who any of you are, but over the course of a year I spend more than a small bit of time with many of you. We all do, with each other. And so, when we lose one, we are all a bit less.
I like knowing that he lived a very full life and like to think he was probably even a better guy in person than he was here in this blog.
Sad news about Dr K. His posts were always interesting, informative and relevant.
Looking back for names that scape me, like the name of a commenter from England who lived in Florida and took care of her mother Victoria? Handle Vespurs? or something. I see that Titus and Laslo may have been the same commenter.
@Lem: That was vbspurs. I've seen her over on X, so she's still around.
I Côme to this blog a few times a day — really the only indispensable forum. I adore the commenters— and since I don’t want to be repetitive, I seldom comment. You people have it covered. Thanks to Ann for building the house, no small thing.
Michael K!!!! I come onto your comments and search him out, been sad for his absence, thought/hoped he had just got mad or something and left. thank you for this post honoring him.
My other regular scan here is for Temujin.
Keep Thriving, Temujin! And Ms. Althouse. Keep Thriving, Ann.
I miss him also.
Were you Titus at some point at this here blog?
I miss the guy who posted as an 18th century ghost.
I am very sorry to hear of Mike K's death. I greatly admired and enjoyed his comments: always on point, always IMHO fair and conducive to serious discussion. Just a class act; he will be greatly missed.
Well done
I believe he passed even before COVID, if my memory serves me correctly. (It doesn’t always.) His body eventually gave out.
RIP Dr K.
Laslo, you are....magnificent.
Not much I can add…so RIP Michael K. The Good Doctor.
Michael K will be missed.
Yes. It was not covid related. You can read what happened to him here- http://thingsimadethenate.blogspot.com/
I enjoyed Dr, K's comments and the few interactions we had on this blog. He will be missed.
I remember the way he and Inga used to mean mouth each other; she always came out the loser.
A couple days ago, over on Discord, someone wondered what had happened to the Good Doctor. A search was made, and it became apparent that no one had heard from him since mid October. Among us, we were able to find contact information, and Michael Cervantes apparently got Dr K’s son, when calling the phone number we had found. He relayed the sad news, and that the family had decided against an obituary (which now cost money anyway). And, what would an obituary have said, that his writings don’t say better?
For those with Kindle Unlimited: War Stories: 50 Years in Medicine by Michael T Kennedy, MD, FACS. A very enjoyable read that gives glimpses of the contributor we recently lost.
Titus is missed, with his rare clumbers and hog.
I'm very sorry to hear this. He was one of my very favorite and was responsible for turning me on to Conservative Treehouse during the Trayvon incident.
RIP, Doctor K.
I'm sorry to hear of Dr. K's passing. I and I think many others had been worried when his commenting decreased recently. I appreciate all commenters that seem to just try to and say it how they see it, and Dr. K's felt like that to me. As others have said, his comments were ones that I would look for. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Dr. K, enjoy your time on the other side.
Dr. K had many intelligent and insightful comments over the years. He also let Inga drive him crazy at times for reasons I could never figure out. RIP Brother.
Althouse is a lot like Game of Thrones: don't get too attached to someone, as their presence may be brief.
Lots of names of departed posters, some of whom I don't miss at all, at all.
I am not overly worried about Inga - yet. She gets a lot of abuse here, and I suspect pushes herself out during election season to do her part for her team. Starting in spring of 2016, we got a slew of new posters here, who very much appear to have been trolls paid for by the Crooked Hillary campaign. Esp noticeable was that they tended to work in shifts, appearing here about the same time every day. And, then, after the election, they were all miraculously gone.
Except for Inga, whom I had first noticed in this great influx of Clinton trolls, and who never quite fit in to the troll stereotype. Her timing was off, and hints of a real person kept peeking through. So, I wasn’t really surprised when she reappeared after a short respite. I think that we saw more of her through the 2020 election too. So, if I were a betting person (I am not), I would bet on seeing her again here, after she recovers from the election.
I think from Dr K’s comments, that he believed that she really was a nurse, just maybe not quite what level of nurse. RN? CNA? LPN? Definitely not a NP. Just as doctors can recognize doctors by how they think and talk, and lawyers recognize lawyers in a similar manner, I expect that doctors, who spend their lives working with (and against) nurses, recognize them better than most of us can. And Dr K had over 50 years experience in that area.
I most enjoyed Dr. K’s stories about his earlier years in Chicago
Well dang, that's sad. His was one of the names I always looked for when I scanned the comments. RIP.
mockturtle was a great commenter. I miss her.
I've been expecting this. So sad. RIP, Dr. K.
I'm sorry to hear of his passing. There's no plus side to death, but from the evidence seen here he acquired just about as much of the positive side of life as is possible....I'm in my eighties. Those tolling bells get louder and louder....I'm glad to hear from Laslo and hope he gets his second wind.....We're all pretty much ephemeral, but words written here as not quite written on the wind. They leave trace elements.
When I first started reading Althouse, there was a poster named The Germans Have a Word for It or something like that. I don't recall anything about his content but the name has stayed with me.
I'll miss Dr. K., who never minced his words.
And I miss Buwayo and his inside knowledge of south-east Asia. He didn't return after a short period of severe moderation, or so I remember.
So sorry to hear the news about Michael K. He will be missed. My condolences to his family and friends.
I also wonder about Garage Mahal. I didn’t agree with him often but I always found him interesting. He was a strong voice from the left before the era of trolls and sock puppets.
They, unlike the dead, can drop back in. Why don't they? It's not for me to figure out. The blog, like life itself, can only move forward, and the day will come when we will all be left behind. So thanks to all
Unexpectedly touching and poeticy. Nicely done.
May God bless and keep you and comfort your family, Michael K.
As another former resident of the OC, I enjoy the occasional comments referencing same. I came to appreciate Dr. K’s witty, always relevant comments at Patterico’s blog. The man had a zest for life and much insight. RIP.
I especially enjoyed talking with Michael K about Chicago in the rare old times and discussing military history. Great guy.
P.S. I previously posted here as Roughcoat.
This is sad news to hear. My condolences to his family and friends.
Re huff: I believe some commenters left because they believed their presence was unwelcome and they were being invited to leave. Which is sad because the blog lost some really good commenters that (in my impression) felt lumped into the pile obnoxious. Was it a huff (or a snit as my mom would call it) or simply reading the room?
Garage Mahal did not die....at least I don't think so.
For those who missed Bruce's comment on the good Docs book, here is his Amazon bio:
Michael Kennedy
About the author
Michael Kennedy is a retired surgeon and amateur historian whose own book is listed on Amazon. Astronomy is another hobby and I have seen the 'sombrero' galaxy through a 16 inch telescope. Copernicus and Galileo are both prominent alumni of the medical school at Padua. Several years ago, with my daughter, I stood in the great hall of that institution beneath the busts of the two great men. The history of medicine and science will be enough to keep me busy for the next decade and I will be returning to the Mediterranean for more history this spring. I read four to five books a week and have them stacked everywhere in my home. I can't build bookcases fast enough to keep up.
That brief bio is almost ten years old now but the book is still selling and I appreciate every buyer. I still teach medical students and one of my students from 12 years ago had only a prepublication copy of the manuscript that I had given to students for their comments. He is now a professor in the department of surgery and I was able to give him a copy of the hard cover version from my small store of them. My travels have been curtailed but I have drafts of two other books on my computer and one of these days I will have one ready to publish. I have a series of lectures that I prepared for students, several of which cover topics that are not in the book. One is the medical history of the American Civil War. That one was given at the British Army Medical Corps headquarters, hence the reference to the "American" Civil War."
Bruce:
I've been very curious about commenters here who might be sponsored/paid/supported to comment here. I have heard of the Hillary paid commenters. Do you have more info on this activity? With all the money spent on campaigns, I would expect there to be a lot of them. I am suspicious of commenters who post neat talking points that try not to lie outright, using only lies of omission, half truths, and quotes to dishonest sources.
For possible paid commenters, my first thought is gadfly, who left right after the election, who always toed the Bulwark line, his message discipline was rigorous, but when he stormed off, he called us all reprobates, which made me wonder, if he felt that way, why did he come back most days?
I echo this Owen, with one exception. He used to really get into it with Inga, in his words a "bedpan nurse."
"So thanks to all — except the actual trolls ...".
My kids used to listen to a song;
"God loves all he made,
Even evil trolls ..."
Thank you for letting us know. Michael K. was a gem of a man, and his War Stories book was a great read. He will be missed. And THANK YOU, Ann, for all you have done and will continue to do, along with the ever supportive Mead.
According to the comment Narciso left Michael Kennedy passed on October 25.
I always enjoyed Dr. K's comments. A sad thing to me was the discord between him and a daughter who was an FBI agent, I believe. Wonder if things ever came together between them before his end...
RIP Dr. K.
Great to hear from you, Laslo. Your Youtube channel is hilariously entertaining.
FWIW, I would swear that "Bissage" reappeared under another name more recently than 15 years ago--I was disputing something with, or being criticized by the poster, who mentioned being ex-Bissage in passing.
IIRC it was a prolific, many-nomined, person, many of whose comments were aptly described by others as messages for the Mother Ship.
I could be wrong, of course.
"Anyone know anything about Inga?"
She stopped posting post-election. She also went back and deleted a bunch of her comments re: election predictions and polling. Like RCP was disreputable, the NYT polling was gold standard, women were going to carry Iowa for Trump, how she was going to dance over conservatives anguish here post-election, etc. If you weren't reading pre-election you really missed quite the display.
"The blog, like life itself, can only move forward, and the day will come when we will all be left behind."
That's a rather three dimensional way of seeing things.
RIP Dr. Kay. You were one of the reasons that I regularly review the comments for insights, information, perspective, debate and humor. Ann's thoughtful curation and masterful fisking draw me here, but I stay for the comments, even the occasional Swerve Danson (hope that makes it through the filter) rant.
Inga did what Inga did in 2016- disappear the minute she couldn't argue Trump was going to lose. As I remember 2016 election night she left a few comments crowing about how Clinton was outperforming in red states but by 9 PM had vanished completely. The only difference then and now is that she didn't go back in 2016 and delete the comments, at least I don't think she did.
I have known Michael K as a commenter for over 20 years- we frequented the same blogs the entire time- Patterico, Instapundit, Kevin Drum's Political Animal etc. He will be missed by me greatly going forward.
"I Côme to this blog a few times a day — really the only indispensable forum. I adore the commenters— and since I don’t want to be repetitive, I seldom comment. You people have it covered. Thanks to Ann for building the house, no small thing."
Thanks. It's not a small house, it's an Althouse.
Reading all these wonderful comments about Dr Michael K and other departed members of the Althouse community makes me think that we really should have an Althouse community confab in Madison this summer.
"FWIW, I would swear that "Bissage" reappeared under another name more recently than 15 years ago--I was disputing something with, or being criticized by the poster, who mentioned being ex-Bissage in passing."
Bissage had a distinctive style that was quite lovable to me. Someone else can claim to be the same person, but the person you describe, just in those few words, is not Bissage. I can tell. He was criticizing you and he mentioned being ex-Bissage in passing. That doesn't sound like Bissage at all and it irks me to see the treasured memory of Bissage sullied like that.
Garage Mahal changed his viewpoint shortly before bowing out of the comments here, and it sounded like something drastic happened to change it, though he never revealed what it was. I think he was - or is - a business owner in or near Madison.
Awww. Goodbye Mike K
I was happy to see Dust Bunny Queen and Reader reappear recently, or at least to me it seemed they did. Maybe they never left
I miss The ghost ( Lo these many years) though I always assumed that was Meade. And the cockroach that typed
Sippican Cottage was always interesting, and Bart the chef from Kansas City. I think about Irene when I knit. Darcy. Peter Iron Weights Rails and his love of….hair.
“He also let Inga drive him crazy at times for reasons I could never figure out.”
I saw it as more the other way around. He really got under her skin. I suspect she’s lurking, too embarrassed by all her confident predictions of Kamala’s huge vic.. . She’ll be back when enough time has passed that we’ve moved on to other topics.
RIP Dr K. As others have said, his comments were always sharp and interesting.
“He also let Inga drive him crazy at times for reasons I could never figure out.”
I saw it as more the other way around. He really got under her skin. I suspect she’s lurking, too embarrassed by all her confident predictions of Kamala’s huge vic.. . She’ll be back when enough time has passed that we’ve moved on to other topics.
RIP Dr K. As others have said, his comments were always sharp and interesting.
@Lem Vibe Bandit: vbspurs is very active on X. I engage with her just about every day. I mentioned to her in a comment one day that she was missed on Althouse.
Will miss Michael K’s sharp, essential commentary and his distinctive voice. His takes were a major reason I came here and became more active. Here are three lines of his that made me laugh hard enough to have preserved them:
“When I want a clear explanation of cultural change I always turn to the New Yorker. It would never lie or mislead me.”
“Clinton walking around with a Bible during the Lewinsky scandal is still one of the funniest fucking things I've ever seen in politics. Still cracks me up.”
“Biden is like a tar baby that Democrats can't escape.”
(Hoping all three are indeed his and if I'm wrong apologies to the source)
While I'm always mindful that no one gets to stay here forever, this is very distressing news. Always enjoyed his commentary. He was a very accomplished individual.
That is sad news, indeed. I've been visiting this blog for over twenty years and his comments were always worth reading. I'm guessing that he was in his 80's and his mind was still razor-sharp. A life well lived.
She just moved to Instapundit and I blocked her there too. BTW, I’ve been lurking only because blogger wouldn’t let me post for some reason. Today it is letting me reply to posts.
Nope, I do not comment on Instapundit, why would I? If I wanted to continue to expose myself to Trumpists, I’d do so here, but I don’t. As for Michael K, rest peacefully.
Also reminded of the commenter Francisco.
One of the things that makes this worse here is that many of us are no longer young, and so have the time, in retirement, to while away here (though I started well before).
And Lazlo, of course, if only to let us know that he was still out there making eclectic movies.
“I've been very curious about commenters here who might be sponsored/paid/supported to comment here. I have heard of the Hillary paid commenters.”
Not really. We found out in late spring (I believe) of 2016 that her campaign was doing it, and then, fairly suddenly, we were inundated with a bunch of trolls, who would either disrupt the discussion as much as they could, or dump obviously canned material. My memory is that this caused Ann immense aggravation. Maybe when she first shifted to moderation, which would have been a royal pain, because she was still working. The object of the trolls seemed to be more to disrupt and destroy, than actually change any minds. Making things more suspicious, they tended to work in shifts, around the clock. So, A, B, C might work the day shift, D, E, F work swing shift, and G, H, I graveyard, then back to A, B, C day shift. Then, as I said, miraculously, they were gone. Except for Inga.
Sharp as a Tack?
I think Dr K responded to my comments more than anyone else has done. When my comment was political, he tended to be snarky, even insulting many times. But when my comment wasn't, and mine tend not to be given the make-up of commenters here, his responses were great. And that did not change during the entire period we overlapped.
As a rather pedestrian and intermittent commenter on the Althouse forum, I salute Michael Kennedy, and the many many others among his rank here. I would also like to salute Althouse herself for her truly extraordinary efforts maintaining this blog.
"Garage Mahal changed his viewpoint shortly before bowing out of the comments here, and it sounded like something drastic happened to change it, though he never revealed what it was."
He sounded like he felt betrayed or disillusioned by what he thought of as his team.
Not quite the same thing but from some of your reminisces on the post, The Remarkable Life of Ibelin might interest you if you have not run across it already.
I love your comments Laslo, welcome back
A fond farewell to Dr. Michael Kennedy. He will be sorely missed.
Eternal Rest grant unto him, O Lord, and may Perpetual Light shine upon him.
Yeah, I was thinking about Francisco D earlier today along with ExiledonMainStreet, Ferdinande, Birkel, and AllenS, too. Also Buwaya.
RIP
Dr. K was indeed a great asset here. I have missed him.
I read most threads to the end; however, I rarely comment, because that's about how often I have something to add.
The lack of sound, reasoned arguments here from progressives is very disappointing. Inga is a good example. Loads of assertions, and conclusions that almost invariably fail the test of time. E.g., she was wrong in every regard about everything she said during the Russian Collusion hoax, in ways that were obvious at the time. Yet no apology has ever been forthcoming.
Since progressives are very thin on the ground here, I visit avowedly progressive websites in order to become better acquainted with their thinking.
Roughly 11 years ago, there was a big kerfuffle about a quote in a GQ interview Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty fame that progressives asserted was racist, and that led to his show being briefly cancelled.
The reason I bring this up is that I took on progressives single handedly.. It is a 500-some odd comment thread showing progressive thinking is somewhere between frightening and ridiculous, with extensive detours into outright dishonesty.
(The thread has commenters names in bold, so easy to scan for my comments— I was on a long trip, and had plenty of time in hotels on layovers.)
Anyway, my point here, to the extent it exists, is that I wish there were more progressives here, but the reason they aren't is because their arguments are just so bad, and, therefore, garner substantial abuse.
Yancey: You mentioned a Discord server group. How do I find it?
Laslo: I love reading your stuff. Someone above mentioned you have a Youtube channel. I tried finding it, fruitlessly.
You can find my e-mail in my profile- send me yours and I will send you back an invite.
Some people enhance this blog by leaving. The Doc. enhanced this blog with his wit and insights. He was never boring. God speed Doc.
No sullying intended, just something I recalled.
RIP, Bissage and/or those claiming to be Bissage.
https://www.youtube.com/@laslofilms3789
Thanks for this.
I miss Garage too. His ranting reflected at least what seemed an honest belief in his own words.
Unlike Rich and Gadfly that just copy/paste whatever ChatGPT that Media Matters pays them to.
Wondering if this is him.
https://chicagoboyz.net/archives/72545.html
RIP, Doc.
I usually enjoyed Michael Kennedy's comments, he was extremely well read and had much experience to draw on. The exceptions were when he was ragging on Inga, which I thought pointless and just skipped over. Looking at his Facebook page, he seems to have had a knack for living comfortably and was probably fun to visit.
I sensed that Mike was fading, but can't point to anything in particular. He seemed quite active only a few years ago, so it was a bit of a surprise. I will miss his commentary. RIP Michael.
I also miss Mock. I imagine her roaming the country in a motorhome with a Starlink receiver on the roof :)
Thank you, both.
Thank you for the update on Michael
K. He was a commenter who I thought always added wise thoughts. He will be missed.
Also, thank you to Meade about Chip Ahoy. I’ve always wondered about him. I’m certain that he’s a dude in peace. God does work this way.
Dx4 on Powerline. An odd poster who mostly posted pics of Melania and random birds. Passed recently and is missed.
The same. His Brief History of Medicine is a great read, btw.
The odd commenter who wrote Things Wot I Made, Then Ate was courageous in his final illness and created unforgettable art about his struggles with, and for, his body and life. I found his blog here. I’ve never seen anything like it. I hope it has been preserved.
Don’t go anywhere soon. I enjoy your pith.
Very sorry to hear about Michael K. He was an interesting guy who was always entertaining.
p.s. I’m not dead.
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