Blogroll A-Z: Ace of Spades HQ

YOU ARE VISITING THE OLD MALKIN(S)WATCH. THAT'S FANTASTIC. PLEASE VISIT THE NEW MALKIN(S)WATCH WHEN YOU GET A CHANCE.

First things first: I recently had a knock-down drag-out discussion with the commenters on Ace of Spades HQ, and it was quite civil; enjoyable even. "AbuGonzales" didn't fare as well, but when you pick a name like that, you gotta expect it to push a few buttons.

Second things second: The first thing I noticed the first time I visited Ace of Spades was the header. Go look; throwing Ace a couple hits won't hurt anything. I have always hated that H.L. Mencken quote:

Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.

But then, I've never really liked H.L. Mencken. First of all, "upon his hands"? Upon? I dunno about you, Henry Louis, but when my hands are bespitten, it's because I spat on them, not upon them. Semantics aside, there's another big problem with the quote, especially when used by a conservative: Doesn't it basically describe an insurgency? Doesn't it imply that any hard-done-by person is actually entitled to fight back? With deadly, even gruesome force if necessary? Or does that right only apply to Americans?

Well, I get the feeling that's pretty much where Ace is coming from. Not to mention the fact that the quote rings doubly hollow coming from someone who's, apparently, fighting the war from behind a keyboard.

A couple of other things stand out to me: Ace is fond of using buzzwords before they really become buzzwords: "legacy media"; "paleoconservative." Yes, very clever. Also very telegraphic: This overuse of "new" buzzwords is very illustrative of how participants in the Conservative echochamber are anxious to continually manipulate frames. Fortunately, our friends at Daily Kos are working hard at reframing - read the site.

The other thing that stands out to me at Ace of Spades can be summed up in two words: Paul Anka. Ace is obsessed with Paul Anka. Well, obsessed is too strong a word, but not by much. It all comes from a recording in which...well, you can listen, or not. It's all too boring for words, actually.

As is this edition of Blogroll A-Z, so let's end it here with a summary. Ace of Spades HQ: Neocon jingo-rama.

Previous Editions: a small victory