Commenter Rheinhard worked hard to get this up last night, so how can I not promote it to more prominence, and so everyone can see the inimitable Molly Ivins?
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
Off topic: PZ, I have to tell you, you’re a liar.
You said you would be posting less now that classes have started. If anything, you have redoubled your efforts.
:)
No, not really — I’m spending less time on the blog. You’ll notice that most of what I do right now is link to all this stuff people send me.
I feel a little guilty about it. I’ve been reading these great science papers, and haven’t been telling you about it — I might have to do something more substantial in the next week, just for palliation’s sake.
Gee, thanks PZ! I’m honored.
I think the main thing here is not the politics but just the warmth, humor, and earthiness – something we desperately need more of in our punditocracy of all political stripes!
I love Ms. Ivins and her work. RIP Molly. You’ll be missed.
Oh, here’s a link to a pretty good article on Molly …
From an idiot at anncoulter.com:
They seem to be above not speaking ill of the dead. But don’t dare anyone speak ill of Reagan ….
Times like this I wished I believed in an afterlife, wherein Molly would come back to haunt them.
Interesting tidbit. I few summers ago I was teaching American history to some high school kids. I stressed the importance of knowing the past so that you can tell when you are being lied to. We used Molly Ivins and Calvin Trillin articles as a starting point for dissecting lies in the media. I certainly won’t miss her and unfortunately someone else will spring up to take her place.
JScarry:
Yes, Molly Ivins was excellent at dissecting lies in the media.
If that’s not what you meant, I feel sorry for your students and hope they rise above the misinformation you apparently presented to them.
If there was life after death, my father would be in the recieving line. I will so miss her writing.
Molly Ivins was one of the few Texas treasures I could really be proud of, as a Texan myself. She will be missed.
Mithrandir
I find it amusing that you would propose that we don’t teach our kids how to think critically. Any of the syndicated columnists would do to teach children how to question what they see in print. Ivins just happens to be one that appears in a local paper from time to time. As an example, the first Google hit on her articles turned up one from January 20, 2006 where she throws out a series of statistics purporting to say what the majority of Americans want. No source. They sound rather unrealistic at first glance, so the first thing to do is look at how they are presented. “The majority (77 percent) thinks we should do ‘whatever it takes’ to protect the environment.” Clearly people don’t think that or there wouldn’t be so many SUVs and trucks on the road. So can we find the source of this statement. Are there any real statistics about what people think about the environment? What would a valid question look like? More importantly, just because Americans favor something doesn’t make it the right thing to do. In the same article she implies the minimum wage should be raised. What are the implications of that? How many teens and immigrants will lose their jobs? What would be the motivation of someone who wants to put have people lose their jobs. Who benefits from higher minimum wages? Has the government ever implemented price controls that worked?
You could do the same thing for any of her columns. Or most of the other political columnists for that matter. The point is that if you don’t know a little history and economics (and statistics helps) then you won’t know when you are being manipulated.
I find it amusing that you would propose that we don’t teach our kids how to think critically.
Wow, talk about missing the point, whoooooooosh!
For a dissenting view, from a possibly less biased perspective, here’s a tribute from The Rude One himself.
If you are familiar with the gentleman’s oeuvre, the relative lack of vulgar terminology should seem, at the least, remarkable.