I don't know how many times I have to say it -- Rick Freaking Reilly

Because he has impact on the sports journalism scene, fair or not.

 

fair enough

 

New friend Mr. Shanley appears to be a close associate of Manky Jim. Wonder if we might get a little Saraceno-Reilly catfight going around here ... good clean fun for all.

 

What a candyass.

 

I don't like it when people make the above argument -- "well, if you hate him, why do you read him?" Well-read and well-informed people read a lot, despite whether they like the writer or not. Besides, how else are you supposed to distinguish good writers from bad ones?

I find Simmons funny. And I guess I'm a little jealous, because I'd love to get paid to sit around with my laptop and type whatever was going on with my day. Seems a little mindless to me. Then again, that's the way our society has become. I don't understand it. Reality TV shows. Simmons. Why do the media giants think we're so interested in other people's equally-boring lives?

 

I know that everyone here is far more intelligent than the everyday paeans, but you think the media giants think we're interested in other people's lives because, well, umm, you know, MILLIONS of people tune into every stupid reality show? That would seem to suggest to those giants that maybe people do care about other people's boring lives.

 

I agree. There's something reassuring in reading a columnist (or watching a reality show) that thinks the same things you do at the same moments. That's one reason Simmons does so many 'running diaries,' IMO.

With our over-scheduled, overwrought modern lives, it's nice to know it's not just you thinking that a certain sportscaster sucks, or that someone's facial hair looks ridiculous, etc.

 

Aren't we about due for another George Plimpton participatory-journalism piece from Reilly? Like the time he flew with the Blue Angels, or was ballboy in tennis, or whatever? These kinds of pieces have a certain charm and interest when it's a no-name journalist doing this, but here's Reilly, now a high-profile sports columnist, also doing TV commercials and commentary, pulling in on the order of seven figures a year and we're supposed to buy into this "Everyman" persona when he does stuff like this. Truth is, Reilly as a tennis ballboy makes him more recognizable than 90% of the pro tennis players out there.

 

Let me make one thing clear---all things considered, Reilly is a gifted writer and a joy to read 95% of the time. He often says things we wish we had thought of, and he writes them 10 times better than we would have had we thought of it.

 

what he said

 

He did one within the last month or so where he was a rodeo clown.