THE SPINE AUGUST 18, 2009
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The New York Times has just published seven encomia for Bob Novak, who was called "the prince of darkness" for very good reason. But the Times headlines this feature saying just the opposite, "Goodnight, Sweet Prince of Darkness," more or less denying it all. Among the grievers are John Podhoretz, Fred Barnes, our very own and mawkish John Judis.
Thankfully, Matt Cooper dissents--but only Cooper--because of the nasty taste left by Novak sitting home free while Judy Miller went to jail for what was surely a lesser crime. After all, Novak printed the names; Judy didn't. (Now, I believe that none of this was a crime. But all this is old history except for Joseph Wilson and Valerie Plame, who are presumably still living off the fake heroics.)
The fact is that Novak was a mean-spirited reactionary. He had not an ounce of sympathy--let alone, empathy--for those whom life and odds did not treat kindly. Yes, he was a converted Catholic, and he converted to that strain associated with Francis Cardinal Spellman, the ugliest strain that found root in America.
And he did not even write well. What he thought about Jews and Israel was, so to speak, the icing on the ice.
Blessed is the righteous judge.
6 comments
I have to agree with peretz on this one. I am naturally disinclined to speak ill of the dead - note my careful comments on John Judis' Plank post - but it is hard to screw up any real strong feelings of loss when a guy like Novak passes. He was such a crass and disagreeable guy. That face and that smarmy manner. Yuck.
But, in respect to his loved ones, I will shut up.
- thejauntyboulevardier
August 18, 2009 at 7:29pm
I think that an intersection of circumstances gave Joe Wilson his fifteen minutes of fame, and one can disagree over the content and the style. I think "false heroics" is unfair to Plame, however, who was a career CIA officer doing her job, who did not voluntarily go public on anything, and who was dragged into the limelight by a verngeful VP's office determined to drag Wilson down (and that wanted to obscure the trail of the Niger visit itself, which led right back to Cheney, from whose shadow NSC the desire for an investigative trip emerged in the first place).
- ironyroad
August 18, 2009 at 8:05pm
Although Novak didn't enrage me as he did some, I didn't much care for him. He did have an unpleasant manner.
As my father would have said, "If you were an asshole when you were alive, dying can't change that."
- selish70
August 18, 2009 at 8:12pm
The Washington Post and other news outlets are reporting that the journalist and political commentator
- Anonymous
August 18, 2009 at 8:28pm
I don't know, but I think the fact that Mr. Peretz doesn't like him, makes me like Bob Novak a little bit more.
Marty is normally a pretty good judge of character and has introduced us to some sharp and original thinkers. Most of the wirting he recommends is time well spent.
I think a little stubborness is needed and this independence upsets Marty. But as readers, we like it when there are opposing views and a little bit of a challenge.
- CRS9TNR
August 18, 2009 at 8:54pm
"I think a little stubborness is needed and this independence upsets Marty."
Who cares what upsets him?
" But as readers, we like it when there are opposing views and a little bit of a challenge."
Speak for yourself, there are genuine challenges in life, and then there are artificial ones.
- J. Dyer
August 18, 2009 at 9:49pm