{"id":184,"date":"2008-01-04T19:31:12","date_gmt":"2008-01-05T00:31:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/2parse.com\/?p=184"},"modified":"2008-01-04T19:31:12","modified_gmt":"2008-01-05T00:31:12","slug":"the-petty-paul-krugman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2parse.com\/?p=184","title":{"rendered":"The Petty Paul (Krugman)"},"content":{"rendered":"

I used to look forward to a Paul Krugman column.\u00a0 Yes, he was a polemicist, but he was always angry with good reason<\/a>.\u00a0 Now, I read each column waiting for the gratuitous Obama smear.\u00a0 Of course, often enough in these past few weeks, the entire column has been attacks on Obama. Today, perhaps in deference to Obama’s overwhelming victory over Krugman’s two preferred partisans, Krugman only has a throwaway line attacking the Senator<\/a>:<\/p>\n

The Democrats in general make far more sense. But among at least some of Barack Obama\u2019s supporters there seems to be<\/strong> a belief that if their candidate is elected, the world\u2019s problems will melt away in the face of his multicultural charisma.<\/p>\n

Memo: It won\u2019t work on the Chinese. [my emphasis]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Notice both the vagueness of the claim, and it’s mean-spiritedness. I doubt Krugman could name a single supporter who believes this.\u00a0 And I cannot think of any other reason for including this gratuitous insult.<\/p>\n

I fear Paul Krugman is becoming the left-wing’s William Kristol in his single-minded partisan fervor, indifferent to political realities on the ground but true to the vision that shaped him years ago.\u00a0 He remains interesting – much as Kristol has – but he seems to be somewhat disconnected from reality.\u00a0 William Kristol’s dogged defense of the Iraq war demonstrated how disconnected he was; Krugman opposes Obama because of his lack of partisan fervor<\/a> – because he believes partisanship is necessary to win and to accomplish any significant changes.\u00a0 But when his theory is challenged by the reality of an electoral victory (a small one to be sure), he does not brook any doubt.\u00a0 He is surly<\/a>.\u00a0 Krugman is not in William Kristol territory yet; but if Obama manages to become the Democratic nominee, I’d be certain that Krugman’s doubts will remain strong.\u00a0 And if Obama wins the presidency, I’m sure they’ll remain.\u00a0 And if Obama accomplishes more than expected as president – I doubt, even then, Krugman will come around.<\/p>\n

Still, if Obama is the nominee, expect Krugman to find something else to talk about for the next few months until November rolls around.\u00a0 Expect a lot of talk about the Democratic position versus the Republican candidate.\u00a0 That’s the problem when you’re a partisan.\u00a0 Your intellectual honesty becomes a hostage to your party or your cause.\u00a0 Just ask William Kristol.
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