Billionaires, Bots, and a 'Bloid for Smart People: In Praise of Josh Marshall’s TPM “Talking Points Memo”. Today we have Josh’s analysis of today’s “global authoritarian movement” of Trump, Musk...
Josh Marshall is really very good. And, as others have already noted, much of the same commentary about a sort of beneficial parasocial relationship could also be applied, for many of us, to you.
I was not aware of the idea of parasocial ties. Thank you for your description of the sphere of parasocial relations available through positive, thoughtful internet connections. Through both your writings and the TPM crew (and Hive) my interests and knowledge have been fruitfully expanded. I guess I have more friends than I knew.
And BDL is my para social far-more-senior colleague. Deeply embedded in my wetware. I audit Heather Cox Richardson and Paul Krugman in their large lecture. But I can get a response to a comment in BDL's space; the equivalent of asking a question, sort of.
I have often wondered why the Saudis get a kind of free pass on their human rights abuse. In the U.S. we hear "Kashogi Kashogi Kashogi!" But this is almost a detail. Human rights in Saudi Arabia are about as bad as human rights in Iran. MBS in Yemen is not exactly like Netanyahu in Gaza, but it is close enough to rhyme. But not even progressive Dems talk about this. Why?
Thanks again for the free university's courses on economic history.
Your last paragraphs reminded me that you are one of the unmet friends I have collected over the last 25 years.
In this era of outrage after outrage after outrage after outrage it is hard to maintain an emotional equilibrium and not just give up and go hide in your emotional cave.
Josh Marshall is really very good. And, as others have already noted, much of the same commentary about a sort of beneficial parasocial relationship could also be applied, for many of us, to you.
A beautiful post. Bill Moyers led me to Marshall many years ago
I was not aware of the idea of parasocial ties. Thank you for your description of the sphere of parasocial relations available through positive, thoughtful internet connections. Through both your writings and the TPM crew (and Hive) my interests and knowledge have been fruitfully expanded. I guess I have more friends than I knew.
And BDL is my para social far-more-senior colleague. Deeply embedded in my wetware. I audit Heather Cox Richardson and Paul Krugman in their large lecture. But I can get a response to a comment in BDL's space; the equivalent of asking a question, sort of.
I have often wondered why the Saudis get a kind of free pass on their human rights abuse. In the U.S. we hear "Kashogi Kashogi Kashogi!" But this is almost a detail. Human rights in Saudi Arabia are about as bad as human rights in Iran. MBS in Yemen is not exactly like Netanyahu in Gaza, but it is close enough to rhyme. But not even progressive Dems talk about this. Why?
Thanks again for the free university's courses on economic history.
Your last paragraphs reminded me that you are one of the unmet friends I have collected over the last 25 years.
In this era of outrage after outrage after outrage after outrage it is hard to maintain an emotional equilibrium and not just give up and go hide in your emotional cave.
Subscribe on the TPM website, or subscribe on the TPM Substack?
(Are these handled 2 different ways?)
Thanks for the reminder of TPM. Subscribed.