politics

The Case That Wasn’t There

April 28, 2004

This week in the Village Voice, the ever-irascible James Ridgeway declares that “John Kerry Must Go.”

We were interested to see how Ridgeway would try to convince readers that Kerry should be replaced on the Democratic ticket, despite the implausibility of such a move at this late point in the game. So we plowed through his piece, on the lookout for a compelling argument.

We couldn’t find one.

Ridgeway lays out his rationale for dumping Kerry in one long sentence, which crescendos with a disdainful dismissal of Kerry’s “wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton’s triangulation gimmickry (the protractor factor).” Perhaps we here at Campaign Desk are just a bit slow on the uptake, but if ever a clause cried out for a little explication, this is it. Or, as Jon Stewart might say, “What the [BLEEP]!?”

Provocative stands such as Ridgeway’s demand compelling arguments. Perhaps, given the space, he could have made a strong case for dumping Kerry from the ticket. As it stands, however, his piece is so condensed that it might be more at home on a greeting card than in the pages of a major alt-weekly.

Rants like this one are plentiful in the blogosphere, or around late-night beers in journalistic watering holes. But the standards are higher for print journalism, and that means publishing pieces that seem grounded not in spite or anger but in closely-reasoned argument.

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As it is, Ridgeway’s unconvincing call to arms is shorter (233 words) than this fruitless attempt (253 words) to decipher it.

–Brian Montopoli

Brian Montopoli is a writer at CJR Daily.