Another year, another batch of loathsomeness
March 30, 2006 3:05 PM   Subscribe

You knew it was coming: This year's 50 Most Loathsome New Yorkers revealed (previously covered: 2005, 2004, 2003 ) [apologies for NYCfilter]
posted by rottytooth (35 comments total)
 
When are they going to add Jim Knipfel to the list?
posted by Captaintripps at 3:15 PM on March 30, 2006


I (embarrassingly enough) did not know it was coming.
posted by billysumday at 3:24 PM on March 30, 2006


Jim Knipfel is the only good thing about NYP.
posted by scratch at 3:36 PM on March 30, 2006


Yeah, its kind of like a bus. The list that is.

Calling for the suicide of people isn't especially funny, see James Frey. Steven McCauley comes across as more angry and less funny to me.
posted by fenriq at 3:39 PM on March 30, 2006


Oops, he compiled the alumni list, here are the writers.

Writers for the 50 Most Loathsome 2006: Josh Bernstein, George Chevalier, John DeSio, Jon Handel, Scott Indrisek, Matt Kalkhoff, Jim Knipfel, Bret Liebendorfer, Tony Phillips, Jerry Portwood, Jose Ralat, C.J. Sullivan, Steve Weinstein
posted by fenriq at 3:41 PM on March 30, 2006


I could see calling for the suicide of James Frey as vaugely funny...
posted by Artw at 3:49 PM on March 30, 2006


Jim Knipfel does not appear to think very clearly before he puts pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). He should be sent over to the Village Voice offices touts suite.
posted by Captaintripps at 3:50 PM on March 30, 2006


oooooo i like reading this it's so hateful!
posted by Jikido at 4:03 PM on March 30, 2006


Right now, I'm raising a glass to a parallel universe where New Yorkers care as little about themselves as the rest of the country does.
posted by camcgee at 4:03 PM on March 30, 2006


I was going to note that Mike Piazza plays for the San Diego Padres and presumably isn't commuting from The Center of the Universe.
posted by fenriq at 4:17 PM on March 30, 2006


Oh wait, I did.
posted by fenriq at 4:17 PM on March 30, 2006


Can't go wrong with hating on real estate developers.
posted by R. Mutt at 4:21 PM on March 30, 2006


The Strokes are far from saviors of the ailing music industry. Instead, they have swayed rock from being dangerous, thrilling—hell, even enjoyable—to stale, monotonous and wearisome. After straddling the indie/mainstream fence with their first release, we should have recognized they are no more “saviors” than the Rolling Stones, for whom they opened on tour. We can only pray for something as miraculous as the Apocalypse if they are able to sustain their careers to the age of those British geezers. There is a place for simple, catchy rock; but for minimalist rock movements to succeed, substance must triumph over style, pretension sacrificed to essence.

This little rant is, of course, true. And if it had been written in, say, 2000 it might have even been insightful and edgy. But 6 years later? It's just kind of a crappy pile-on.
posted by psmealey at 4:21 PM on March 30, 2006


He named a congressman, the mayor, the governor, both senators and a borough president. Filler. This guy needs to be edited.
posted by A dead Quaker at 4:26 PM on March 30, 2006


No kottke?
posted by keswick at 4:30 PM on March 30, 2006


The New York Press is loathsome itself. I can't stand that rag. They are just as sanctimonius and pretentious as they accuse others of being. Acting contrary seems to be thier agenda. If I want to read some right wing editorials I'll pick up a copy of the New York Post.
posted by Liquidwolf at 4:33 PM on March 30, 2006


I remember when you could pick up a NYP and get Cockburn and Caldwell on facing pages, lots of interesting comics, and the repugnant Taki and his wonderful Top Drawer -- all sorts of interesting writing. Now "Most Loathesome" is the best fare, and that's sad.

Ah, nostalgia for the state of the world seven years ago.
posted by milquetoast at 4:34 PM on March 30, 2006


Try this sometime: take both NYP and the Voice, and before reading them page through and tear out every article you might even want to read.

Then fold that stack up and stick it in your watch pocket to read later.
posted by StickyCarpet at 4:39 PM on March 30, 2006


Christ, Strokes-hate in 2006?

Man.

And do they think the Vincent Gallo's actually serious about the Republicanism and anti-Semitism. That's pretty thick.

He's loathsome--that's for sure--but for different reasons entirely.
posted by mr_roboto at 4:43 PM on March 30, 2006


And why put Bloomberg on the list? Just because with all that money and power, hes NOT a jerk? Come on.
posted by R. Mutt at 4:53 PM on March 30, 2006


They were criticizing Bloomberg for losing the Olympics deal? What , did they want the Olympics in NYC? No citizen of New York wanted that hassle.
posted by Liquidwolf at 5:01 PM on March 30, 2006


As for #24, my sister works

Um, she's not your sister, Vanilla Ice.
posted by jonmc at 5:01 PM on March 30, 2006


The Strokes

HAHA!

I worked at a small office a few years back where they played them all day long.

Never understood the attraction of all that goofy squawk-box singing. But then I don't care for over-modulated singing in general (neither by electronics or by mouth).
posted by HTuttle at 5:19 PM on March 30, 2006


The New York Press is loathsome itself.

NYPress seems to have become what the Voice was about 15 years ago. And heading for the same fate I assume. 'Cept it's already free.
posted by HTuttle at 5:25 PM on March 30, 2006


Roger Toussaint was the flat-out victor in the Transit strike, getting practically everything the union wanted

No, he did not- the union rejected the contract, and they *still* don't have a contract. So the strike was for nothing.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 6:16 PM on March 30, 2006 [1 favorite]


Ooo, XQUZYPHYR, I hate to say it.. I'm finding more and more to disagree with you over...

I went to NYU.. and it is a lot of overprivileged cry babies. It's a lot of smart people, too, but....

And as for #24 (Lenora Fulani), I saw a show put on by the All Stars Project two years ago, and it was a talented group of young people putting on quite a show. That said, the show itself was jaw-droppingly anti-Semetic. And it absolutely broke my heart.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 6:22 PM on March 30, 2006 [1 favorite]


I was a loyal reader of the NYP for the last 13 years - I loved what an asshole rag it was. Vicious, smarmy, bitter, angry, not to mention really fucking funny. You can't get more New York than that. I even loved it when it was staffed by a lot of conservatives. Asshole conservatives, with interesting and funny points of view.

But then they went through a series of staff changes (once over a joke article about the pope, then over the Danish cartoons.) So now it has absolutely no relation to the paper it was before. They try, but weakly.

The 50 Most Loathsome was a lazy idea they came up with a few years ago to stir up quick controversy, but now even this seems weak. You think this is hateful? This is laaaame. I'm saddened by their change, and don't even bother to pick it up anymore.
posted by fungible at 8:02 PM on March 30, 2006


Loathsome?? If there's anything NYC loses to DC on, it's loathsome residents. Didn't they nominate David Cross and Choire Sicha a couple years back? They would be regarded as saints compared to the giant list of DC folk from...

GWB, Cheney, Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Trent Lott, Bill Frist, Rick Santorum, Orrin Hatch, Tom Delay, Scott McClellan, Laura Bush, Antonin Scalia, Bob Novak, Zel Miller, Condoleezza Rice, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, Donald Rumsfeld....and it goes on.
posted by destro at 9:00 PM on March 30, 2006


Well, at least Larry Silverstein got his rightful spot in the top three.
posted by Haarball at 11:08 PM on March 30, 2006


God, the NYP is an execrable excuse for a paper these days. I picked one up recently (didn't take much muscle power: damned thing only has about two-and-a-half pages) and could hardly believe how far the quality had plummetted since the days of Koyen, Taibbi, Signorile and co. It's very sad. No wait... I couldn't care less.
posted by Decani at 4:52 AM on March 31, 2006


Front page typo?
posted by eddydamascene at 7:11 AM on March 31, 2006


The Donald? His hair alone puts him on the list!

How about Jay McCarroll, that obnoxious dog tick in the beanie cap and Kareem goggles, that won the first Project Runway and now shows up on every d-lister event roster?
posted by Pollomacho at 7:23 AM on March 31, 2006


Front page typo?

My goodness. Yes. Someone alert this guy.
posted by box elder at 8:50 AM on March 31, 2006


What's the typo?
posted by squarehead at 9:14 AM on April 1, 2006


What's the typo?

villian = villain
posted by rottytooth at 7:34 AM on April 3, 2006


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