Modern Day Mikey

Man, what has happened to Maureen Dowd? I used to like her writing (sort of--I couldn't finish her last book, Are Men Necessary? Thank goodness I got it at the library's used book sale). But in her latest column, she has transformed herself into a whiny, misogynistic fourth-grader, the journalistic equivalent of that cereal-scarfing brat from the old Life commercials. Remember Mikey? In her case, we could change the tag line to, "Let Mikey write it. Mikey hates everybody."

I don't know what Hillary Clinton has done to bother Moe so much other than simply existing--maybe daring to set herself in opposition to the Democrats' golden child, Barack Obama? The impression I'm getting is that Clinton should shuffle off to one side, just like a proper old hag, and let the shiny new person have the spotlight. Her time is over, after all, while his has just begun. However, why should it make any difference to Ms. Dowd if Hillary stays in the race? I presume she's not spending any of Moe's money.

Yeah, I know, columnists have to write about something. But I think Maureen Dowd is a columnist of sufficient stature and experience to produce work with a little more depth and a little less snark. This is an opinion piece, after all. As it is, it doesn't do much except prove that Moe likes to take equally inept potshots at everyone. No reasoning, no analysis, just pithy "commentary," paid handsomely by the column inch. At least I hope it was handsome--the final two paragraphs of this mess are just plain embarrassing and childish.

If Hillary Clinton doesn't win the nomination, I hope to heck she writes a book detailing all the sexist bullcrap of this campaign, and rakes her detractors over the coals. That would be one tome I would be quite willing to pay the hardback price for.