Lileks: C or D?

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http://www.lileks.com/

This is a total toss-up for me. On the one hand, his musings on the bizarre nature of Americana and pop culture are, for the most part, brilliant (except when he rails against the perceived hideousness of the '60s and '70s, which could be tied into the other hand). On the other, he seems to hold an arch-conservative/libertarian point of view that he chooses to express with a horrifically patronizing tone (he uses the term "idiotarians" to describe his archetypal lefty, f'rinstance), and he's gotten pretty creepy after 9/11 (yes, so has the world, but he's exponentially moreso).

― Nate Patrin (Nate Patrin), Saturday, 15 February 2003 02:57 (twenty-three years ago)

gawd. Instapundit links him like every day. Brothers in creepiness I guess.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Saturday, 15 February 2003 03:01 (twenty-three years ago)

Nate is OTM. Also, his actual newspaper column -- the few that I've read -- seem to be very lazily written, compared with anything else on his website.

― Chris P (Chris P), Saturday, 15 February 2003 03:28 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm not a fan of his writing, per se, but I do rather enjoy his "pop art" stuff - especially that artist with the falling panties and celery thing (wish I could recall the name, but too lazy to click the bookmark). And I actually have purchased several copies of his book on ugly food, as gifts for other foodies. It's an excellent way to diet, too, as everything looks so horrid!

― I'm Passing Open Windows (Ms Laura), Saturday, 15 February 2003 04:09 (twenty-three years ago)

Art Frahn, I want to say, is the celery guy. Something like that.

I still have never seen the book "in person". Apparently I hang out in the wrong sections of Powell's...

― Chris P (Chris P), Saturday, 15 February 2003 04:10 (twenty-three years ago)

you are right chris. his site is great for vintage artsy things. had no idea he was a conservative blowhard though.

― That Girl (thatgirl), Saturday, 15 February 2003 04:12 (twenty-three years ago)

Yep - that's right Chris, thanks *grin* I need to get one of those prints and hang it in my playroom.

― I'm Passing Open Windows (Ms Laura), Saturday, 15 February 2003 04:18 (twenty-three years ago)

What, do awkward perspectives and limpid produce get you in the mood?

(I mean, I assume that's what you mean by "playroom"...)

― Chris P (Chris P), Saturday, 15 February 2003 04:28 (twenty-three years ago)

I heart pin up art desparately. But Frahn's just strikes me as plain deparate. I'm an Elvgren girl through and through.

― That Girl (thatgirl), Saturday, 15 February 2003 09:39 (twenty-three years ago)

Nate is definitely OTM. He's got great stuff on his website -- it's one of the best resources for Googie architecture on the web -- but sometimes I wish Lileks would just present his goodies and SHUT THE HELL UP (just like with Martin Parr's Boring Postcards) but I guess some folks can't get enough variations of "it looks like PUKE."

I've read only one post 9/11 thing of his, but it didn't surprise me that he'd sink into a sentimental fatalism, since he's always peddled that.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Saturday, 15 February 2003 12:46 (twenty-three years ago)

For some reason, this more than anything irritated me severely.

― Nate Patrin (Nate Patrin), Saturday, 15 February 2003 15:12 (twenty-three years ago)

The americana humour stuff - Art Framm, the orphanage of cast-off mascots, etc. - is very funny. I looked at his political blog once, and it was run of the mill rightwing crap which you can find anywhere. but hey, all bloggs are fatuous.

Classic for the Orphanage and the Art Framm stuff.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Saturday, 15 February 2003 22:16 (twenty-three years ago)

eleven months pass...

Nate pretty much OTM. I was actually surprised (and immensely dispirited) reading his blog after 911. I think it's related to how I didn't realise that his excellent jaded eye on the seventies crap wasn't being applied to the fifties crap - he genuinely believes it to be a golden age.

His writing about his daughter is actually really sweet, and he hasn't (as I was worried he would) ever tied his politics to "fuck everthing that doesn't increase her chances".

I liked these: http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/03/0203/020303.html

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Wednesday, 11 February 2004 15:49 (twenty-two years ago)

two years pass...

but hey, all bloggs are fatuous.

apart from mine, obviously. Was he always a right-wing lunatic? I was struck by him shiting on about how "we" are at war in the piece on the Dubai port thing, conveniently forgetteing that "we" are not at war with Dubai.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 23 February 2006 11:12 (twenty years ago)

Lileks was one of the first websites that I began to read regularly. It was nice to check in periodically with someone back in the Twin Cities. His photo essays on Minneapolis architecture, WPA post offices, and faded billboards are really nice. He's got an impressive collection of restaurant and motel postcards. And the neat photoshop trick he shows off, where he takes a picture from ground level of something up high and then skews the perspective to make the image appear level and head-on, is definitely pretty cool.

THAT SAID, I had to delete his bookmark in 2004. THe screeds and the completely thoughtless, patronizing and obtuse politicizing finally got to me. If I had to read one more column that basically said:

John Kerry now says that we shouldn't attack first those who may attack us later
[First plane WTC.jpg]
John Kerry feels that torture is too good for captured terrorists, and that they should all receive fair trials.
[Second plane WTC.jpg]
Fair trials. Where were their fair trials?
[bodies falling out of WTC.jpg]

I was gonna flip.

And the guy is just too swarmy. His little end-of-the-night anecdotes where he's sitting on a rock, smoking a cigar, and wonders aloud "Why can't poor people just pull up their bootstraps so that they can do this, too?" makes me wanna punch.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Thursday, 23 February 2006 18:44 (twenty years ago)

He has the annoyingly sarcastic writing style of the smug rightwinger down pat. Do rightwingers all go to Sarcasm College, or is it something everyone learns in the USA?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:17 (twenty years ago)

I really hate the Reagan Bio-reading/National Review/Powerline "Conservative's conservative" stripe of guys like this that Minnesota puts out.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:27 (twenty years ago)

(even though the NR itself isn't so bad sometimes)

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:28 (twenty years ago)

Basically dude are too fucking cowardly to identify with the fascist social-and-domestic policies that they tacitly endorse, so they do nothing but hawk and react to the left.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:30 (twenty years ago)

not to mention the laughable myth of fiscal conservativism, which means fucking nothing. It's just an empty signifier.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:34 (twenty years ago)

Now, now, Daniel.

http://www.minnesotaboundstore.com/images/products/lg_nicehoodie.gif

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 24 February 2006 00:37 (twenty years ago)

I've decided that Dan Goodsell's The Imaginary World is lileks.com without all the horseshit.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Friday, 3 March 2006 01:46 (twenty years ago)

six years pass...

Lileks runs into Richard Lloyd of Television in a bar.

― Elvis Telecom, Monday, 29 October 2012 06:01 (thirteen years ago)

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