In which a group of graying eternal amateurs discuss their passions, interests and obsessions, among them: movies, art, politics, evolutionary biology, taxes, writing, computers, these kids these days, and lousy educations.

E-Mail Donald
Demographer, recovering sociologist, and arts buff

E-Mail Fenster
College administrator and arts buff

E-Mail Francis
Architectural historian and arts buff

E-Mail Friedrich
Entrepreneur and arts buff
E-Mail Michael
Media flunky and arts buff


We assume it's OK to quote emailers by name.







Try Advanced Search


  1. Seattle Squeeze: New Urban Living
  2. Checking In
  3. Ben Aronson's Representational Abstractions
  4. Rock is ... Forever?
  5. We Need the Arts: A Sob Story
  6. Form Following (Commercial) Function
  7. Two Humorous Items from the Financial Crisis
  8. Ken Auster of the Kute Kaptions
  9. What Might Representational Painters Paint?
  10. In The Times ...


CultureBlogs
• Sasha Castel
• AC Douglas
• Out of Lascaux
• The Ambler
• PhilosoBlog
• Modern Art Notes
• Cranky Professor
• Mike Snider on Poetry
• Silliman on Poetry
• Felix Salmon
• Gregdotorg
• BookSlut
• Polly Frost
• Polly and Ray's Forum
• Cronaca
• Plep
• Stumbling Tongue
• Brian's Culture Blog
• Banana Oil
• Scourge of Modernism
• Visible Darkness
• Seablogger
• Thomas Hobbs
• Blog Lodge
• Leibman Theory
• Goliard Dream
• Third Level Digression
• Here Inside
• My Stupid Dog
• W.J. Duquette

Politics, Education, and Economics Blogs
• Andrew Sullivan
• The Corner at National Review
• Steve Sailer
• Samizdata
• Junius
• Joanne Jacobs
• CalPundit
• Natalie Solent
• A Libertarian Parent in the Countryside
• Rational Parenting
• Public Interest.co.uk
• Colby Cosh
• View from the Right
• Pejman Pundit
• Spleenville
• God of the Machine
• One Good Turn
• CinderellaBloggerfella
• Liberty Log
• Daily Pundit
• InstaPundit
• MindFloss
• Catallaxy Files
• Greatest Jeneration
• Glenn Frazier
• Jane Galt
• Jim Miller
• Limbic Nutrition
• Innocents Abroad
• Chicago Boyz
• James Lileks
• Cybrarian at Large
• Hello Bloggy!
• Setting the World to Rights
• Travelling Shoes

Miscellaneous
• Redwood Dragon
• IMAO
• The Invisible Hand
• ScrappleFace
• Daze Reader
• Lynn Sislo
• The Fat Guy
• Jon Walz

Links


Our Last 50 Referrers







« iPods and Viagra | Main | Fatal Football Frenzy »

November 11, 2005

 Razib and Derb

Michael Blowhard writes:

Dear Blowhards --

GNXP's Razib interviews John Derbyshire. An excellent chat: Let's hear it for entrepreneurial blogging. Scatter-brained, impressionistic me especially appreciated Derb's comment that "Having a well-thought-out world-view can make a person narrow and arrogant."

Best,

Michael

posted by Michael at November 11, 2005




Comments

I knew you'd have to link this, Michael. It occurred to me after reading it that you and Derb share some important characteristics: a taste for 'ad-hocism', as expressed in the above Derb quote; a willingness to blurt out emotional truths, and damn the consequences; a deep erudition masked by folksy humility. Needless to say, I think those are good things.

Posted by: Robert on November 11, 2005 3:51 AM

I spend a lot of time over at the comments sections at Sepia Mutiny, where razib leaves a fair number of comments. It is a genuine pleasure to 'argue' things with him. It is also a genuine pleasure to read this interview. I find John Derbyshire maddening, sometimes agree, sometimes don't, but he's damned interesting. And that's no small thing.

Posted by: MD on November 11, 2005 12:09 PM

Robert -- I'm taking that as a compliment whether you mean it as one or not. Are you a Derb fan yourself?

MD -- I should really spend more time at Sepia Mutiny. And "interesting" can be good, no? I also think something that doesn't get said enough about Derbyshire is what a good writer he is. I confess that I'm often not that interested in his subject matter but I read him with pleasure anyway, because I love that lowkey, half-ironic, informal yet superclear voice and style of his. I think Robert got it right when he referred to Derb's "ad hocism." Derb makes ad hocism look really good.

Posted by: Michael Blowhard on November 12, 2005 1:34 AM

Oh yeah, it's a compliment. And I know you're a gnxp habitue, which is probably why I thought of you when I read it. I don't always agree with Derbyshire, but I appreciate his willingness to belch forth opinions that are self-evidently genuine regardless of their potential to offend. The guy does no posturing as far as I can see, and that's refreshing.

Posted by: robert on November 13, 2005 5:00 PM


Post a comment
Name:


Email Address:


URL:


Comments:


Remember your info?