Ideologues in Extremis

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Mr. Klein, as an observation, the information in this post would have been more helpful if it was titled "Ideaologues in Ascendancy" and was written about four years ago. There were more than enough examples of idealologues at that time.

But it wasn't, which is why Talking Points Memo and Glenn Greenwald and others have a permanent place in political news and commentary. (I'm being aspirational on your behalf.)

One other note: is my understanding correct that you don't read the Swampland comments posted by your fans like me but you read comments by people who call you "cretinous"?

Like, why Jews--who should really just, uh, get it about who this guy really is--actually, hmmm, seem to favor Obama at about the same rate as they favored other Democrats in the past.

this is the point. jews and many others should get it and not blindly vote for democrats and especially not for obama.

a man who would take a passing--and deeply irrelevant--acquaintanceship between Barack Obama and Ayers, and try to make it a central issue in this absolutely crucial campaign, with the accompanying canard from the Embarracuda that Obama had "palled around" with terrorists.

it isn't passing or irrelevant. obama got his political career started in ayre's living room. he gave money to acorn and ayres' favored groups. he wrote a blurb for an ayres' book. obama lies about his relationship woith ayres. obama stayed in wright's church and lies about what he knew re wright and the church. obama has been very comfortable with those who support palestinian terrorists and criticize israel.

check out http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=205653 for another of obama's relevant acquaintances.

Joe, just to establish my bona-fides: I am a genuine fan of yours, read your blog entries, columns and articles regularly, and think in general do excellent work. In particular, I think that you are absolutely correct about American Jewish neo-cons, and the disaster they have been for America and Israel, and I don't think that is in any way anti-Semitic, because if it is, well, I'm another self-hating Jew. So, if you'll trust me that I'm, in fact, on your side, and not one of the crazies that infest these comments, then I hope you'll trust me when I say... I thought you were drawing an equivalency between Ayers and Ifshin, too.

I knew about the Ifshin story (first from Michael Lewis, though I may be mistaken; it could have been you) and so immediately knew who you were talking about, and thought your comparison was apt. When I related the story to a friend, just last night, I said something like, "McCain really is, or was, a decent guy... Joe Klein just wrote about the very moving way that McCain forgave and befriended a guy who was, just like Ayers, an anti-Vietnam radical. I mean this other guy apologized, but McCain's behavior then and now is quite a contrast."

I mean, I'm not an idiot, or a genius, or a Moaz (Maoz?), so I didn't read anything into your column like a one-for-one equivalency between Ayers and Ifshin. I thought you were making the point that a man (McCain) who once showed the character and grace and kindness to forgive and embrace a man for his acts during the war -- even though those acts were a direct attack on McCain -- and now is trying to demogogue and condemn a similar figure, for political reasons... just as others once treated Ifshin.

But, uh, yeah. I think you were making an implied comparison between them. Perhaps not what you meant, or felt, but please believe that this charitable reader of your work saw it too.