Holy crap. I currently have 51 blogs on my Lefty blogroll. Here are the first 18. I’ll get through them, I’ll get through them…though not all tonight.
(Alas, A Blog through Kieran Healy)
The Left, part 1
Alas, a Blog: You know, I haven’t the slightest clue as to whether Ampersand is a man or a woman, nor do I care—this is good writing, covering a wide range of issues from a lefty perspective. Often has links to posts of note in other blogs, which I appreciate.
Altercation: Eric Alterman’s MSNBC blog. Eric is the author of What Liberal Media? He’s a journalist who gets paid to do this sort of stuff. That makes him worth watching.
ArchPundit: Midwest-centered blog, often has links about Chicago, which is of interest to me (since that’s where Darin is from).
Atrios: If it’s not an ungainly design, it’s not Atrios—or, as those in the know call him, “Sid B.” Atrios seems to be the hub of the lefty universe. He relies a little too much on just having a link to something readers ought to see without enough explanation of what it is we’re going to see, but there’s always something of interest on his page.
bc: The actual name of this blog is “Thoughts on the Eve of the Apocalypse,” which gets a special mention. Concentrates on war/Iraq links.
Beyond the Wasteland: Kevin is an ex-pat blogging out of Belgium. He has links to topical articles in newspapers and magazines and usually provides thoughtful commentary on the generous quotes he puts in his blogs.
Blog Left: This blog also concentrates on links to articles about Iraq and the war party, along with links about how Bush & Co. are screwing us into the ground. Okay, the horrible picture of a smirking Dubya is a bit of a put-off, as is the moving graphic in the header.
Brad DeLong: DeLong is an economist who actually gets paid to perform as an economist, which is a neat trick. This is a fancy way of saying, “Half the time I haven’t a clue as to what he’s talking about.” He’s very good at pointing out the economic nonsense streaming out at us 24/7 from Washington DC. Also, he parts his name on the left (J. Bradford DeLong), which means he’d better know what he’s talking about or the other kids are going to beat him up for his lunch money.
CalPundit: Kevin Drum writes an extremely thoughtful and balanced blog that covers a wide range of issues, from Iraq to the economy to California-centered topics (hence the title) to chess.
Daily Howler: A blog that analyzes one issue in a long and often sardonic manner. Definitely worth checking out frequently.
Daily Kos: Kos has good, clear writing on a number of topics and a very vocal reader base. He covers a lot of territory with his posts, plus he has “open mike” every night. This is a daily read for me.
Demosthenes: Opinionated, with links to both other bloggers and various articles. Two snaps up for the reference to Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game.
Digby: Digby was evidently a frequent poster on other people’s blogs, but then he/she/it finally got his/her/its own and boy, am I ever happy h/it did. Thoughtful, well-written essays on various topics, going beyond mere linkage to original ideas. A keeper.
Hesiod: Very opinionated blurber—a link, a paragraph or two, and then it’s on to the next entry.
History News Network: Tom is a very opinionated long-form blogger, with links to other bloggers and articles but with long, thoughtful posts of his own that pull no punches. Also: insanely great blog title.
Interesting Times: Chris posts a lot on a variety of topics, with lots of good quotations so you have half a clue as to what the story is about. Also includes lots of opinion so you know exactly where he/she stands on the issues.
Jeanne D’Arc: Sometimes Jeanne posts links to other blogs or interesting articles, and sometimes she writes long, thoughtful entries on various topics.
Kieran Healy: Kieran Healy is an Irishman who’s an Associate Professor in Sociology an American University, which means he’s better traveled, better educated, and better at writing than you are. Possibly also a snappier dresser. He includes many links in the course of writing an entry, which strikes me as the right way to do it. He writes about an assortment of topics, some political, some just whatever’s on his mind.