Friday, December 14, 2018

The Weekly Standard, a conservative magazine critical of Trump, to shutter after 23 years

That's the title of a post at CNN.

There's a video over there that shows 4 people my instinct suggests not to watch. While the article is seems plainly straightforward.
The closing of the magazine represents a broader shift in conservative media. Outlets on the right that are critical of Trump have lost influence or changed their tone, while media organizations on the right supportive of the President have flourished.
I can add only this: if you haven't read the Wikipedia page describing the Whigs, I suggest you might find it interesting. The original page was adjusted down to leave out the more honest description of Democrats. I haven't read anything so good as that page.

Twenty years ago college level American history at CU was in two separate classes divided by the Civil War. That dividing point is where the Whigs end. They weren't around very long, yet they had a good solid record. Until they became useless for being too much of part of the problem they needed to check. Too many Whigs owned slaves themselves for the party to be any use for ending slavery so the Whig party fell apart. It could not deal with Democrats. While that urgency sizzling in vacuum created the Republican party.

That was not made clear in the college textbook I read straight through to prepare for American history CLEP exams, two tests actually, for two college credits. Big fat college credits, not the usual thin ones. Those two exams went a long way in eliminating a full college year by testing out of them. I loved that book. Read the whole thing in two nights. It was like reading the Bible straight through and all the stories that had drilled into my head fell into their chronological spots. With American history, all the events fall under their presidential administration of their time. Everything lined up and it made American History actually interesting. I was all, "Wow, this is good." It was a useful book apart from the CLEP exams. But it didn't cover the Whigs so well as Wikipedia does. The CLEP exams covered the Whigs only superficially.

Now that same thing is happening again.

This is what it feels like to live in an historic era. This is important because it is significant American history. What we're seeing right now are the pages to be written in future college textbooks. These future pages might not mention Weekly Standard, but it's clear this signifies part of the historic trend. What CNN wrote is genuine history. It's what future historians will seek when researching this era.

And it's fun as h-e-double battle drumsticks being in it.

2 comments:

ampersand said...

Oh no it's Kristolnacht at the weekly Standard.The writers and Kristol can either get jobs at Soldier of Fortune, or pursue the want ads for mercenary positions overseas.

edutcher said...

If you saw it, Kristol was awfully cavalier about the livelihood of his employees. That smartass smirk of his apparently not only applied to (real) Conservatives and Republicans, but also the ink-stained wretches who worked for him.

The closing of the magazine represents a broader shift in conservative media. Outlets on the right that are critical of Trump have lost influence or changed their tone

Same with the Whigs who distanced themselves from The Donald in the midterms.