Liber-randian and the irrelevant blogger

Great moments in journalistic pandering, from the usually interesting Mark Leibovitch.

They did not give out allowances, which they viewed as a parental version of a government handout. They did not believe in strict curfews; Mr. Paul says that unintended consequences — like speeding home to beat the clock — can result from excessive meddling from a central authority.

While Mr. Paul’s laissez-faire views produced a family of likeminded thinkers — “We’re all on board,” says the oldest son, Ronnie Paul — they inspired the middle child, Rand, to follow his father’s career path, first into medicine and now politics. If he prevails in November after winning the Republican nomination for a Senate seat in Kentucky last month, he and his father would form a two-man libertarian dynasty.

Father and son are described as each other’s political sounding boards, confidants and support systems. “Dad and Rand spent hours having great philosophical discussions about issues,” said Joy Paul Leblanc, the youngest sibling.

I'm sure there were fascinating "discussions about issues," but other than a mention of "Austrian economics" and Ayn Rand, not a single "issue" is discussed in this story. Instead we get a lovely illustration of growing up Brady Bunch (but with fewer rules!) a vaguely creepy, self-centered father (the "solitude of the lawn mower?"), and self-absorbed son (he complained about a graded paper he got back, not because of the grade, but because there were "too many red marks" on it).

That was Saturday's pulp edition. So it was great to open up Sunday's and see an even more enlightened and enlightening political sketch.

Here are Mickey Kaus’ issues, in a nutshell: labor unions (which he blames for the destruction of the California educational system, the auto industry and assorted government institutions) and illegal immigration (which he thinks can’t be solved with a general amnesty). He has opinions on everything from health care to marijuana legalization, but these tend to hew closer to the Democratic party platform, while the former issues are where he differs from what he calls the “lock-step Democrats.”

“We need a government that works, an economy that’s hot, and people have to make enough money to live a life of dignity,” he argues. “That’s what the unions and the Latino lobby are getting in the way of.”

Nicholas Lemann, dean of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, whose relationship with Mr. Kaus goes back to their Harvard Crimson days, describes the Kaus philosophy thusly: “Mickey sees himself as a liberal whose mission in life is to correct the flaws of liberalism.”

Unions and the "Latino lobby" are getting in the way of money and dignity? Interesting viewpoint as he would seem to be more interested in making sure the working class is unable to organize and latinos be treated in any way other than with dignity.

"Irrelevant blogger," as Kos calls him in the story is too kind.

And, as with the Pauls' libertarianattude, there is no effort -- none -- to explore what a Senator Kaus -- or even irrelevant blooger Kaus -- would do about unions, Latinos, or the auto industry. But we do know he dated Arianna Huffington!