06.21.2011 06:49 AM

Steyn not-online

BCL noticed that Mark Steyn hasn’t been around for quite some time, and started asking around.

As I recall, there had been some indication, some months ago, that the U.S.-based writer was facing some health challenges in his family. I fired off a note to him at the time, offering best wishes, etc.  I didn’t get a reply, but I hope that whatever challenges he was facing at a personal level have been resolved.

Oh, and just to be clear, I still disagree with just about everything he says, particularly the Islamaphobia.

 

20 Comments

  1. smelter rat says:

    More evidence that Tulk is insane.

  2. bigcitylib says:

    I think his health issues were resolved last year.

  3. Jerome Bastien says:

    Once he came back from his “health issues”, his output was dramatically reduced. Canadians of all political stripes are poorer for it. As Gord said, this is probably the finest columnist to come out of Canada. The left can only dream of having someone of his caliber, who can combine perspective, wit, and writing prowess as he does.

    I was re-reading his epic take-down of BCL following an ill-advised (and ideologically-inspired) accusation of making up the ayatolla’s little blue book’s prescription on goat fornication. It’s hard to imagine something more fun to read. Check it out http://www.steynonline.com/content/view/1516/26

  4. JStanton says:

    … ah, conservative reactionaries love to fawn on their elites. As soon one of them can put together a coherent, albeit nonsensical, paragraph, the others gat all starry-eyed. It’s because conservatives, like dogs, need to have a dominant figure to follow.

    Yes, Mr. Steyn is a clever chap, and perhaps he isn’t a demagogue, just merely a navel gazer. But to even suggest that he is “the best blah blah blah…” is absurd, and serves simply to illustrate the core deficit of conservatives – they are simply incapable of widening their horizons and exposing themselves to anything else that might undermine their simplistic and infantile world view.

    Silly rabbits.

    .

    • Pedro says:

      Wow, you write smark reel good!

    • Jon Powers says:

      The world would be a better place if all writers agreed with everything JStanton believes in, correct? Variety is scary! Liberals hate stereotypes – accept when it comes to people they don’t like or agree with.

      Silly morons.

    • JStanton says:

      … nice try Gord. But we are following your lead and focusing on “the bestest writer ever, OMG!!!”, who still loves Reaganomics – despite the destruction wrought on the US and its partners, and No-care, despite it’s dehumanising effect on Americans, and the enormous cost to the economy.

      What’s insane, is not Mr. Obama’s attempts at repairing the damage done by conservatives, it’s their continuing slavish support of long discredited views and policies. Yup, conservatives just don’t like to learn new stuff.

      .

  5. The Other Jim says:

    His Facebook feed is updated almost daily.

  6. allegra fortissima says:

    I don’t always agree with la Signora Fallaci but she was incredibly sharp and brave, indeed. And yes, I think that powder compact in my handbag is bigger than Qaddafi’s little Green Book, too.

  7. Philip says:

    Mr. Stanton apparently forgot to include “touchy” to his list of Conservative character traits. Not to further offend your tender sensibilities, but I’m not convinced that Steyn is a good writer. Fairly repetitive and on par with an Ops Center era Tom Clancy. I imagine Steyn plays well with the true believer crowd but nothing special to those outside that movement.

    • Pedro says:

      Considering the lengths to which Philip and Stanton go and the number of three syllable words they use, I’d say they were the “touchy” ones.
      Iris summarizes the character of this comment thread.
      Thank Gaia we’re allowed to read them all is what I say.
      Ciao!

  8. John D. Belleville,Ont says:

    The Blogging Tory known as “Neo” from Halls of Macadamia has hid behind a pseudonym for years while spewing his hatred. Unlike his hero Kathy Shaidle, he has never had the guts to reveal his true identity. Neo is actually a library volunteer from Stirling, Ontario called John Docherty. The ex-TTC employee helps out for 2 hours each Wednesday at the Stirling-Rawdon Public Library. He would like to help more but his other hobby besides blogging is sitting by his radio scanner hoping to catch news of other people’s tragedies. Sad.

  9. Bruce M says:

    What was the original topic again? Sorry, I lost the train along the way because it devolved into an anti-Steyn rant with side-bars slamming anything connected with even the slightest of centrist or conservative thought.

    Now chew on this: If the monolothic “rightwing” bogeyman afraid to expose “themselves to anything else that might undermine their simplistic and infantile world view” why is it that it is the Left that hides behind the skirts of Human Rights Commissions and demands the right to patrol people’s words, speech and associations?
    I thought Canada was stronger/smarter than that.

    • allegra fortissima says:

      What part don’t you understand, Bruce M?

      Take award winning journalist Oriana Fallaci as an example. She addressed Ayatollah Khomeini as a “tyrant” in an interview and rid herself of the chador, “this stupid medieval rag”, she was asked to wear. Her personal point of view and acceptable.
      She fearlessly opposed Qaddafi in an interview: “You. Because this doesn’t convince me. And so I oppose it. And since I’m in opposition, what will you do to me? Arrest me? Shoot me?”, and ridiculed his Green Book: “I read it. It doesn’t take very long, you know, 15 minutes at the most. It’s so small. My powder compact is bigger than your little Green Book.” Acceptable. She certainly had a point.
      But then she believed she had the right to say anything, and she did not. Racist, hateful statements like “the sons of Allah breed like rats” and “Europe is no longer Europe, it is ‘Eurabia’, a colony of Islam” lead to charges against her in Switzerland and Italy for violating laws against vilifying religion, and rightly so.

      This is why Human Right Commissions exist and this is why we as a civilized society should be grateful for their vigilance.

      • Bruce M says:

        You have an opinion and a means to express it, Allegra: Good. It demonstrates the point that Canadians can read, analyse and determine the value of information. I reject some of Kinsella’s writings but I value their availability.
        Had you ever heard of the John Demjanjuk prior to his hate speech trial? Only if you frequented Anti-semitic coffee clatches. Sorry, but mocking the racist and promoting an enlightened view (ie give people an alternative) is far more effective than policing speech and turning to courts whenever you are offended.

  10. R says:

    I do not think Mark Steyn is not talk free speecher
    He only likes to get freedom of speech to say anything he likes to say about MUSLIM and/or Islam

    right or wrong with no barrier and excercise his freedom of speech to motivate all public

    1) to hate Islam because jewish and christian like that
    2) hate Muslim second and talk any where ONLY islamphobia and

    3) he got and will get lots of money donated for talk hate about Islam he has no other choice he

    must be creative only in Islam/Muslim subject

    He is not alone

    at least minority about 10 to 20% of Canadian think similar like him

    his voice will corrupte the enviornment and affect children to grow with conflict and hate toward other culture or motive parents to seperated from each other and
    seperate their children from others

    so
    I do not like him and I do not believe he knows what he is talking about

    his final verdict is guilty plea for ALL muslim not few

    he likes to as soon as see Muslim just remember him and talk like him write like him and hate like him

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