More Topix Action

There has been a lot of action over at the famous Topix post hilariously titled "Rod Dreher is on the cover of the latest Greater B. R. Business Report" on page 6 and page 7. The most recent accusation toward Billfr and me is that we are the same person. Here's part of my response, which you can read in its entirety on page 7.

His over-sharing of these kinds of things is nauseating to normal people, yet he is praised by many for being a courageous and creative journalist by many. And yes, I admit that he had many fans, and many people who believe him to be a wonderful and insightful writer. So the least that people like Countrylad can do is admit that there are *MANY* people – more than two — who find him disagreeable and obnoxious when he bashes the Catholic church, for example, or when he goes ballistic over Mark Levin's slip-up, or when he over-capitalizes on a family tragedy, or when he goes on about the "platonic ideal of chickenness" (feel free to Google that phrase). A lot of these people have found a home at my blog to vent about the content and style of his writing and there is nothing "circular" about their reasoning and there is nothing ad hominem about their criticism.

Now I know that a lot of people here believe that Countrylad is Rod Dreher. I'm going on the record now suggesting that it is not. I know he sounds like Dreher often, but I think he is just another local log-rolling partner of Dreher's. The more I read his weak stick apologetics for Dreher by attacking the opposition the more I feel like I'm doing the right thing by continuing the steady drumbeat of criticism.

And while we're on the topic, check out this recent one-star review of The Little Way of Ruthie Leming:

Embarrassing, condescending, passive aggressive backbiting
August 23, 2013 by hallowmetrop

I bought this book because of my interests in localism, the alternatives presented by small communities in contrast to metropolitan areas, family, the South, and religion. But it was an unpleasant read, because Rod Dreher is just not a pleasant traveling companion.

Little Way is weighed down with the author's bitter grievance toward his late sister, whose great and unforgivable crime, it seems, was to roll her eyes at the fact that her brother (the author) is a pompous and prissy character enraptured by his own voice. Again and again, the book goes out of its way to paint the late sister as cruel or rude or simple or thoughtless or otherwise unappreciative of Dreher's very special talents. Dreher seldom misses a chance to condescend to his late sibling. All in all, the book comes across as driven by a deep-seated selfishness - the late sister's life is reduced to a vehicle for the author's own personal growth story: "How All the Bad Things My Sister Did to Me Made Me a Humbler Man."

On finishing this book, the predominant feeling I had was one of embarrassment at Dreher's oversharing, and sorrow for the poor sister and her kids, whose family life has been so thoughtlessly hijacked and publicized by Dreher.

The author's conversation with his niece at the end of the book captures this all too well. In talking to this teenage girl, who has just lost her mother, the author cannot refrain from losing his temper because the little girl won't side with him, Rod Dreher, in his resentment-fest against her own late mother! It's hard to believe any grown man could be so mean to a teenage girl who has just lost a parent. Any reasonably decent adult would subordinate their own ego to the wellbeing of the kid at such a moment. But for Dreher, of course, the real wronged party isn't the deceased or her daughter, but always and eternally him. This book struck me as having a deeply bitter core, and shot through with passive aggression. I went in expecting to like it, but found it unsettling and unpleasant, and I would not recommend it to anyone.

I suppose that Countrylad thinks that this was written by Billfr, Pauli, Kathleen, Keith, Pikkumatti and Diane since we're all the same person.