On Bruce Springsteen Albums, In Order
You forgot the best Springsteen album of them all: "Live 1975/85".
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On A Supposedly True Thing Jonathan Franzen Said About David Foster Wallace
@lululemming "as anyone who has undertaken a close reading of DFWs work couldn't possibly think that his suicide was a gesture of self-aggrandizement, or worse yet, something that was about *them*."
Are you fucking serious? Are you actually arguing that you, a reader who has never met David Foster Wallace, are in a better situation to understand and respond to his suicide than one of his best friends? That you are actually in a position to criticize how his friends reacted to his death because you read Infinite fucking Jest?
You are out of your goddamn mind.
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On The Ulcer In The Blue Sweatshirt
Fair enough!
My rantiness was probably more a reaction to the entirety of the response to this trade this week than to you in particular. It just seems like everyone really wants to paint either Moss or Belichick as a terrible villain, when really it just seemed like a pretty decent business move for both.
"I do like that you mentioned David Givens, though."
Right? I'll never turn down a chance at a good David Givens reference.
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On The Ulcer In The Blue Sweatshirt
The media uproar over the Moss trade is getting out of hand. It truly baffles me that anybody could seriously put this trade forth as evidence of Belichick's "loathsomeness". If anything, this entire scenario has been uncharacteristically diplomatic.
Moss wanted to get paid a lot of money next year, and it's been clear for a while that he wasn't going to get the from NE (and if you're complaining about that: seriously? with all the bitching about athlete salaries, it's amazing that people backtrack and criticize the Patriots for *not* paying out). So he was gone after this year, anyway. Is it really that loathsome to trade a guy and get a draft pick instead of just letting him go at the end of the year?
Moss hasn't been a clubhouse problem for the Patriots, but his reputation hangs with him. Is it really that loathsome to trade a guy who is not only publicly unsatisfied with his position in the team, but is notorious for becoming a problem?
It's one thing to disagree with the short-term strategy of losing Moss, but it's ridiculous to fold this into some grand theory of Patriots douchiness. Moss isn't even some home-grown local hero that's being sent out to pasture (and the Pats have dumped those in the past, to much less fanfare).
Also, lest we go too far in the "Belichick is torpedoing his team's chances just because", let's remember:
In 2001, the Pats' top receiver was Troy Brown, with 1157 yards. He went on to a career average of 454 yards per year. Nobody on the team caught double-digit touchdowns that year.
In 2003, the Pats' top receiver was Deion Branch, with 803 yards. He went on to a career average of 565 yards per year. Nobody on the team caught double-digit touchdowns that year.
In 2004, the Pats' top receiver was David Givens, with 874 yards. He went on to a career average of 463 yards per year. Nobody on the team caught double-digit touchdowns that year.
The team won the Super Bowl all three years, with a collective 39-9 record.
So let's not get carried away with the "NE can't win without Randy Moss, and Belichick screwed them for his own glory" thing. Brady's done just fine with so-so receivers in the past, and has a habit of giving them career years. Will NE be able to win the same way they could win with Moss? No. But they'll get by.
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On Free Energy and Titus Andronicus, "I'm Going Down" (And Bruce Springsteen Covers Throughout History)
Ha. The Hold Steady version is ok, but it's also pretty straight-forward cover of Springsteen's live version of the song (cf, Live In New York). Only sort of inexplicably more cheerful.
Then again, I've always thought The Hold Steady sounded like a mediocre Springsteen cover band anyway, so I'm probably not the most objective judge of their version.
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On Is Hillary Clinton Going to Take Us to War with China?
Good foreign policy analysis, you guys. Two thumbs up. Very insightful.