Re: The Baffler Vol. 2 #1

The Baffler is back with Volume 2 No. 1.  I've been a fan of The Baffler, "the journal that blunts the cutting edge," since I first discovered issue #6.  (I even sent them a hard copy of Neither the Government Nor the Population - 6th Draft as I felt that they did not understand propaganda as well as they might.) It was never published with any regularity, but was printed even more sporadically their Chicago office was destroyed in a fire in 2001.  It was co-founded by Thomas Frank, who now writes for the Wall Street Journal and Harper's.  His writings in The Baffler have always been far more cynical than later efforts aimed at a mass audience, but what the hell.  He needs to make a living, and a PhD in history isn't worth much when you've spent a great deal of effort pissing off the academy.  Although he edits this issue, this may be why there are no essays by Frank.  He wants to keep his paying gigs.  (It makes me glad I'm an Engineer by trade.  I don't have to care about what others think.)

The style of The Baffler is heavily influenced by the early Populists and Mencken.

Anyway, the re-birth of The Baffler was worth the wait, and would be worth the $12 cover price if I wasn't a subscriber (which means it would cost about $5 if you should so choose).  I have only one complaint: P. 149 and P. 150 were switched in a printing SNFU.

Samples from the Issue:

• What Does the Internet Look Like?
• Blood Drive