BTW, David Brooks eats Babies. (Well, some people say he does.)

[TayTay]

David Brooks wrote about the whole Hotel Room requests yesterday for the NYTimes. (4/2/06) He, ostensibly, was writing about Cheney as well, but he is obviously afraid of Cheney and so decided to be mean to Sen. Kerry instead.

He can bite me.

Honestly, look at this:

I’ve long argued that the first time you see the Kerrys you think he’s normal and she’s weird, but after you observe them for a while you realize that inwardly he’s the weird one and she’s normal. This is confirmed by Teresa Heinz Kerry’s entirely sensible hotel requirements list: good air circulation, flax bread and chicken Caesar salad with lots of garlic. When I saw that Mrs. Heinz Kerry prefers Starwood Hotels’ Heavenly Bed, I felt that surge of solidarity we all feel toward those whose hotel mattress tastes are identical to our own.

Inwardly? What the hell does that mean and how does David Brooks (whom some people say eats babies, btw) know that people are weird 'inwardly'? Maybe he's psychic or something. (BTW, I heard from a friend of a friend that a maid who cleaned up after him at a hotel saw Baby slippers and there was no baby in the room. Suspicious, I think.)

[_dynamicdems]

1. The link? OH, I want to respond to this one. n/t

[TayTay]

4. It's behind a firewall at the NYTimes site

Which is just as well. (Alleged and completely unconfirmed but whispered about baby-eaters should be behind firewalls.)

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/opinion/editorialsandoped/oped/columnists/davidbrooks/index.html

Sigh! And he can't use the JK acronym. That's deeply offensive. (I only use is sparingly myself.)

[_dynamicdems]

6. He's going to get a long and detailed description of prostate cancer AND

my sincere wish that should he ever have any serious illness such as Senator Kerry did that he face it as bravely and with dignity as the Senator did. Special requests my ass. The man was recovering from a life threatening illness and he was on the road something like 16 hours a day!

And will you look at the smug mug on the guy! I hope he rots in the hottest circle of Hell.

P.S. Never say "bite me" to a rabid DOG.

[karynnj]

7. The article and email are behind Times select

Here's the link to respond to Brooks - but they've put it in the times select area (as well as the article itself).
http://select.nytimes.com/membercenter/ts_davidbrookform.html

Tay copied most of the Kerry part - here's the other:

Political and corporate aides have all the requisites for success except the most important one: a complete absence of self-irony. Intellectually superior but personally thwarted, the staffers respond to this disharmony in the cosmic order, first by mixing their affection for their bosses with rich veins of ridicule. (What else are we to make of the Kerry aide's assertion that hotel in-suite movies "make JK very happy"?)

I doubt the staffer writing to turn on the phone and movie access had any intention of ridiculing Kerry. Note - he mentions movies but not the phone.

Here's the link to the article.
http://select.nytimes.com/2006/04/02/opinion/02brooks.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fDavid%20Brooks

[_dynamicdems]

10. I'm signing up for the free trial subscription just so I can read it all

and give the bastard a piece of my mind. This hotel request thing has been something I haven't even wanted to TALK about because it makes me so damn angry. This is the final straw.

[Mass]

2. David Brooks is the one who is weird.

[TayTay]

9. Yeah and not a gentleman at all

He talks about beds and another man's wife in the same sentence. I think he has problems. (Honestly, if he has a thing for Teresa he should just get over it. As if THK would ever talk to him. He's weird. And that baby thing is a big turn-off.)

I am actually in a really good mood today. But still, the impropriety of it all. The Times have allowed their standards to slip. Making all that noise about JK, just so he can imagine that Heavenly Sleeper and...

Oh, oh, oh, it's just awful.

[_dynamicdems]

Ick! Totally ick. n/t

[_dynamicdems]

12. Dupe. Now how did that happen? n/t

[karynnj]

3. I sent a response yesterday to him

Mainly pointing out that:
- that it was clearly a staffer to staffer memo
- the no tomato prducts, spicy food, chocolate part, clearly says for the time being
- Kerry was campaigning a month after surgery and there are plenty of references to his being a chocoholic. So in essense, Brooks is calling him weird because he was likely following doctor's orders. (Unless not liking celery is enough to be labeled weird.) I wish I would have added that if he wants to see weirdness look to the WH or that Teresa and John deviate from normal, only in being abnormally good and abnormally brilliant, but I was being good.

I said the result of the article was to lessen my respect for Brooks.

I was going to reference the Iowa study of hospitality workers - but I couldn't find it.

[_dynamicdems]

15. I'm going to sock it to him on prostate cancer.

Gonna creep the guy out if nothing else. I don't think he can be made to feel bad, but he's male (well sort of) so a frightening description of the surgery and what the possible consequences of it might be enough to give the bastard nightmares.

I did this to my repug brother after he picked on JK for a sagging face (those horrible photos taken during his recovery). My brother has never again said a thing about Senator Kerry's appearance. All he said was, "I didn't know he had cancer." I felt a little guilty doing that to my own brother, but I'm not gonna feel bad at all about what I say to this Brooks asshole.

[karynnj]

19. Those pictures were really bad

That the RW knowingly used them with later healthier pictures to claim Kerry had Botox (and miraculously retained lines and movement in his forehead). I'm sure their intent was to force the Kerry campaign to have to bring up Kerry's cancer or have to deal with people questioning this.

These are not decent people.

[_dynamicdems]

21. The indecency of it is what got to me.

And it makes me so furious that so many stupid people bought into the whole Botox thing. His face was sagging because he lost a good deal weight and already had a thin face to begin with. All the botox in the world won't give you a face lift. He put on weight and the sags went away. No miracle there, just a man taking care of his health after major surgery (with lots of TLC from THK). It is really disgusting how people can be so mean-spirited.

You are probably right that it was their intention to move the focus to his health, without appearing to do so, of course.

[karendc]

34. It wasn't just botox comments

In Iowa there were reports of people calling up and telling caucus-goers that he was dying of cancer. Just fyi, Bob Dole was so pissed about it, he told the campaign when he heard about it. Apparently, the same thing had been done to him in '96.

[_dynamicdems]

35. Anyone who would do that is filthy, vile scum. n/t

[karynnj]

36. Another Democrat did this?

That is really pathetic. I just hope it was a free lance effort - bad as that would be - because that is just disgusting.

[karendc]

37. There were rumors

But absolutely no evidence of who did it. So it could have been one of the other candidate's staffers or campaigns, or it could have been Freepers trying to sow dissent. There are always those who pose as supporters, who are on other payrolls.

[TayTay]

38. Gawd, how awful

And, I am sad to say, how not really surprising. Sigh! Sad commentary on the bitter times we live in.

[ProSense]

5. Doesn't he realize it's weird to have devoted time to writing this? n/t

[whometense]

8. This column really raised my

blood pressure yesterday.

Wrote a post to relieve it: http://toughenough.org/2006/04/utter-vacuousness-of-david-brooks.html

[ProSense]

11. Great post! n/t

[karynnj]

13. Really nice post

Even if Kerry had the world's most bizarre eating preferences, he still wouldn't have lied us into Iraq, created very scary deficits, partied when a city drownd then dragged his feet on providing adequate aid, shredded the Constitution and worked to create a Presidency that verges on a dictatorship. The sociopath that Brooks supported did that.

[whometense]

16. Amen.

It kills me that Brooks seems to think that writing such tripe in a breezy tone makes it all a big joke we're in on together. It's not, and we're not. As you said, he supported that sociopath. He wrote lie after lie about Kerry in that same breezy inside baseball tone that let us all know that all the kool kidz knew these things about Kerry, and what?? are you still taking him seriously as a candidate??

Brooks has a lot to answer for. His writing strikes me as insincere. At least someone like George Will has principles behind his spin. Brooks is empty.

[karynnj]

17. Then he will likely follow it up with one of his insanely

annoying columns on values, where all our values are wrong and all the conservative values are right. Many conservative people are very upright, moral and caring - but by and large their leaders aren't.

I have never seen Brooks note any hypocrisy on their part or note any actions on the part of liberals that go against his view of the world. If he was sincere, it would seem that he should have been impressed that John and Teresa Kerry quietly with no PR personally helped Mississippi - and if it were not for Trent Lott no one would know. Even his official actions went beyond what he had to do. Contrast with Barbara Bush's donation that was earmarked for her son's company.

[TayTay]

14. Excellent post!

Very well done!

[_dynamicdems]

22. Go get em, Whome! Great post. Always a pleasure to read

ToughEnough. Your writing lives up the the moniker. Good stuff.

[whometense]

24. Thanks, DD!

We aim to - rile them. ;-)

I love your writing too, by the way.

[Island Blue]

18. The "story" that refuses to die.

During the past week or so, at least half of the Google Alert stories involving JK or THK have been about about this topic. (Or so it seems to me.) My fear is this - these are the types of stories that people will remember, even if the stories are half-truths or out-right lies. These are the stories that people will repeat to their friends. These are the types of stories that will pop up again in '08 if JK runs again, NOT stories about how John Kerry was right about everything he talked about during the '04 campaign (and beyond).

The right-wing is very good at making politics about the personal. Bill Clinton is immoral and over-sexed. John Kerry is aloof and finicky. George Bush is god-fearing and "one of us". John McCain is a maverick. Hispanics want to take your job. Gays want to recruit your children. So what if they are wrong about EVERYTHING? A lot of people obviously believe what they hear without digging deep enough to discover the truth.

I think the main purpose of stories like this is to deflect from the debacle that is the Bush White House. This kind of things makes me crazy(er).

[politicasista]

23. Bingo!

Unfortunately, the stereotype overseas is that Americans are dumb cause they "selected,re-selected" an illiterate, incompetent, war criminal.


I think the PR people need to hurry up and get Kerry and Momma T's story out there.(if Kerry wants to run in 08 before the rest do).

The knives are clearly out and if they don't let the country see their story in their own words (like the camapaign should have done in 04), then he may or may not be in a good position for 08.:shrug:

I know it's early, but people see stories like this, and think it's true. I know people that bought into the "aloof, boring, stiff" thing.

[wisteria]

20. Groan, this list was so two weeks ago. This guy is a little late to

the party.

You know, I had someone tell me that no one cares about what Kerry did or does, and they think the press wasn't much interested in him. Yet, we see pieces like this and wonder why they would bother commenting on someone who no one is interested in.

[_dynamicdems]

25. First draft of my e-mail to this guy.... am I being too nasty?

I think that it is sad that a man who is recovering from cancer is lampooned for being a non-hedonist because he drinks bottled water and nutritional drinks. I don’t know if you have ever been diagnosed with cancer yourself or if you have had a loved one suffer from this disease, but it certainly is not a laughing matter. At the onset of his presidential campaign, Senator Kerry underwent a radical prostatectomy. It was a conventional surgery, which means that he was sliced open (from navel to pubic bone) with a razor-sharp scapel, his prostrate gland was completely removed and then he was stitched back together. After a too-short recovery, the senator hit the road and maintained a grueling schedule right up until the election.

Surviving cancer depends on a lot of factors and taking care of ones self after cancer treatment is crucial. Eating a healthy diet is important, especially if you’ve had a substantial weight loss. After cancer certain foods taste different and this varies per individual. Additional factors such as stress or a heavy schedule can also affect appetite. The now healthy Senator Kerry is actually quite hedonistic in his love of chocolate and has a weakness for chocolate chip cookies and Burger King Whoppers. As his campaign progressed, he ate a lot of Fireman’s chili and last week he chowed down on some ziti and meatballs (tomato sauce) at an event in Mass. My guess on the celery: either it tasted funny after his operation, it upset his post-cancer digestion or he just never liked the chewy, green stuff in the first place. Is this really more important than say, the WAR in Iraq?

I’m sorry that it disappoints you that a 60ish man recovering from cancer (and running for President, by the way) isn’t into sex, drugs and rock and roll. Well, not the drugs anyway. Didn’t Bono just give him a guitar and isn’t he married to a very sexy woman? Hey, life on bottled water can’t be all that bad. And let’s not forget he’s filthy rich. He flies planes, snowboards, windsurfs, plays hockey and women can’t take their eyes off of him (this is QUITE true, I assure you). Dude, you should have it so good. Let’s see how much of your youth is left when you hit 60. Something tells me you will be one of those guys who settles for the comfy bathrobe.

[karynnj]

27. Sounds good to me

As you said it would be heavy on the cancer surgery info. The last paragraph should at least get him thinking.

[_dynamicdems]

30. I went a bit easier on the cancer surgery info than I'd planned on.

This guy isn't going to feel bad about what he wrote, but I hope that he does think a bit and wonder about what he's gonna have to face when he hits sixty. Judging from the photo: baldness is in his future.

[karynnj]

32. Also per the biography, he graduated college in 1983

which makes him probably around 44 years old. Consider how Kerry looked in his first Senate term, then consider the Brooks picture. (Consider how in this very article he compensates for this - the candidates are like Macy's parade balloons moved by the (presumably smarter) staffers. I understand his obsession with Kerry - while not saying it - Kerry is smarter, more dignified, more athletic, more principled person, and far more likely to attract attention than he ever was or will be.

[_dynamicdems]

33. Yup. He was born in 61, which makes him 18 years younger than

Senator Kerry. My sister and brother-in-law are in their sixties and I KNOW how difficult the everyday things you take for granted become progressively more difficult with each passing year. The aging process is tough on even the most fit and that's barring any health issues.

The senator and his wife are simply incredible people. They both work so hard and I worry about them because what they do is for us. While I applaud the Senator's work, there is always a bit of pain when I realize that he could be enjoying life instead of busting his butt for us. Yeah, I know he enjoys what he's doing and I know he's pretty driven, but still...

Recently, I had a photo taken with the senator (at that event in NH). I felt a little bad afterward because it hurt to ask him for even such a small thing after all he's already done. I said to TayTay, "I feel kinda bad asking him to pose for a photo like he's a trained seal or something." My son-in-law saw the photo and commented about the senator looking exhausted, how his eyes were half-shut. He also said that on the television he could see how tired the Senator was. Of course he was, he was at his third event of the day. That made me ache a little bit. I thought of Teresa who had been at both earlier events and felt a stab of concern hoping she was feeling okay.

What touched me was that my son-in-law who calls himself a republican even though he voted against Bush in 2004, saw the senator as a human being. Most people don't see the humanity behind public figures. They expect them to jump through hoops and always be perfect but they never, ever realize that these public figures are human beings too. Berate them, poke them with sticks. They are not people: they are politicians. They are here for our amusement. We can hurt them all we want and like puppets they will withstand our attacks and endure the humiliation with plastic smiles.

[Island Blue]

28. I like it, but I would leave out the sentence,

"And let's not forget he's filthy rich." Other than that, I think you did a great job of educating Mr. Brooks!

[_dynamicdems]

29. You're probably right about the rich part.

I was just trying to rub it in. :evilgrin:

[_dynamicdems]

41. E-mail to David Brooks

I had to sign up at the NY Times to be able to send this to him, but it was worth it. Sometimes you just need to vent, if you know what I mean.



Dear Mr. Brooks,

It is rather amusing and somewhat sad to find the columnist who "speaks about the issues that shape his perspective" engaging in commentary about Senator Kerry’s dietary and travel requirements. Perhaps this is not your fault. We have become a society that is filled with inane diversions: we are nothing so much as we are a nation obsessing on the trivial while the really important issues get shoved aside. We’re not the first to do so. Didn’t Nero fiddle while Rome burned? Or was that George W. Bush reading a story about a goat?

Mr. Brooks, you can make your digs about staffers and their relationships to their employers. You can turn from serious issues to the tabloid. This is simply a matter of economics: give the people what they want and you will reap the benefits. If we didn’t want garbage, you might actually write about something of serious consequence. Nonetheless, there is one line you should not have crossed: you should not have berated a cancer survivor for watching his diet after his surgery.

I think that it is sad when a man who is recovering from cancer is lampooned for being a non-hedonist because he drinks bottled water and nutritional drinks. I don’t know if you have ever been diagnosed with cancer yourself or if you have had a loved one suffer from this disease, but it certainly is not a laughing matter. At the onset of his presidential campaign, Senator Kerry underwent a radical prostatectomy. It was a conventional surgery, which means that he was sliced open (from navel to pubic bone) with a razor-sharp scapel, his prostrate gland was completely removed and then he was stitched back together. After a too-short recovery, the senator hit the road and maintained a grueling schedule right up until the election.

Surviving cancer depends on a lot of factors and taking care of ones self after cancer treatment is crucial. Eating a healthy diet is important, especially if you’ve had a substantial weight loss. After cancer certain foods taste different and this varies per individual. Additional factors such as stress or a heavy schedule can also affect appetite. The now healthy Senator Kerry is actually quite hedonistic in his love of chocolate and has a well-documented weakness for chocolate chip cookies and Burger King Whoppers. As his campaign progressed, he ate a lot of Fireman’s chili and last week he chowed down on some ziti and meatballs (tomato sauce) at an event in Mass. My guess on the celery: either it tasted funny after his operation, it upset his post-cancer digestion or he just never liked the chewy, green stuff in the first place. Is this really more important than say, the WAR in Iraq?

I’m sorry that it disappoints you that a 60ish man recovering from cancer (and running for President, by the way) isn’t into sex, drugs and rock and roll. Well, not the drugs anyway. Didn’t Bono just give him a guitar and isn’t he married to a very sexy woman? Hey, life on bottled water can’t be all that bad. He flies planes, snowboards, windsurfs, plays hockey and women can’t take their eyes off of him (this is QUITE true, I assure you). Dude, you should have it so good. Let’s see how much of your youth is left when you hit 60. Something tells me you will be one of those guys who settles for the comfy bathrobe.

[JohnKleeb]

26. David Brooks is the one who wanted a Dean Vs Bush race

so it would be a WASP vs WASP race right?

[LittleClarkie]

31. The fact that they on the right still see benefit in talking about him

gives me hope.

[ProSense]

39. Oh look!

Monday, April 3rd, 2006

In case you missed it

Yesterday on Face the Nation, conservative columnist David Brooks spoke about the November elections and revealed that, about two weeks ago within the conservative circles he travels, the realization emerged that the Democrats will take back the House. This is a conservative voice citing private conversations with Republican leaders. This is a sign that all of our work highlighting the incompetence of the Republican party is having an impact. Let's keep up the fight to make sure we bring accountability and a responsible government to Washington.

I appreciate all the hard work that many of you have exerted to make a difference on this blog and in your communities. I understand several people have experienced problems with registering and commenting on this site. I just want to let you know that we are working to iron out some of these technical difficulties and hope to bring more dedicated voices to this site.

http://www.conyersblog.us/archives/00000417.htm

[karynnj]

40. Interesting find

It may well be that he sees Kerry as a threat, then. It's not like nothing real happened in the world and he need something for one of his 2 columns a week.

[JI7]

42. I HATE DAVID BROOKS

every fucking article of his starts out as if he would be taking the liberal side, but they all end up with his own stupid shit head fucking right wing conclusions.

i hate the fucker himself also. he is a wannabe intellectual among his ignorant right wing pricks.

i don't read any of his articles anymore because i get disgusted and angry .

[JI7]

43. what does Brook's think of Laura lauging at dying Americans

while crying over Hillary's white house decoration ?

fuck you Brooks. you disgusting piece of shit. Laura fucking Bush gets outraged at fucking decorations. yet she doesn't give a shit about soldiers overseas, the people dying from Katrina etc.

Brookes you disgusting piece of shit i know how much you love to get the attention from the ignorant right wing crowd that views you as some kind of intellectual which their side lacks. but your just an asshole. a disgusting piece of shit . FUCK YOU.

[beachmom]

44. Arghh -- of course, my local paper had to print this one

I don't think this one is as damaging as that Sowell column from last year printed in my paper that inferred that Kerry didn't get an honorable discharge from the Navy. I just read Brooke's column and kind of forgot it almost immediately after I finished it. It's all speculative, of course, and pretty mean to staffers, in general. Great letter, DD!! I don't feel compelled to write a letter for this one, because it completely lacked any substance whatsoever. How about you Fedup? Do you feel an LTE brewing in you?