Guilty Pleasures

So, I've been trying (and often failing) to not write too many rants on this blog. Of course, I give free reign to my co-blogger if he wants to do so. Anyhow, just because I try not to write too many of them doesn't mean that I avoid reading them. They are therapeutic to write, but also therapeutic to read (so long as I agree with them, of course).

Call it a guilty pleasure of mine. It's like putting a boot up somebody's butt vicariously: and there are quite a few people out there who seem to need that swift kick in the pants.

Nevertheless, I kind of go back and forth a bit as to whether I should avoid writing them altogether (difficult, especially at times) or not, and I certainly do my best to avoid writing rants elsewhere (I get the impression that they aren't helpful for catechizing or evangelizing anybody who doesn't already agree with me, usually).

On the other hand, there are some people who are so entrenched in an obvious set of lies that honest dialogue tends to break down no matter how tactful. Thus, a rant is as effective (perhaps more so) as any other attempt as debate, discussion, or dialogue. Indeed, they might even perceive a kind and tactful post as being every bit as abrasive as a rant (perhaps more so, if they are assuming that I am not writing and acting in good faith). In those case, I wonder, why bother with tact? Perhaps for the sake of third party readers?

In any case, the Ace of Spades blog has long been a guilty pleasure of mine (and I notice my co-blogger likes to link to them, too) because of this. At times, P.J. O'Rourke had a few fun rants, and John C Wright as well. Oh, and here's one I've discovered more recently: Matt Walsh, whose blog I don't frequent, but I have seen a few posts linked by my greater circle of internet friends. Here he is tearing into an abortion advocate who opined that Planned Parenthood "is not an 'abortion business."

It speaks to the level of self-delusion in our culture that some people actually believe this. Then again, so does the fact that some people support abortion at all--let alone for the various frivolous reasons they do--and that they oppose any restrictions whatsoever. I mean, I know that there are whole departments (or even colleges) which seek to replace education with propaganda and thinking (independent, critical, or otherwise) with outright brainwashing, but really?

So yeah, it's a bit of a guilty pleasure to read these kind of rants from other people.