Arrogance: Invented in the 80's or 90's

Uh, [sic].

The funny thing is, for all their kvetching, people like Mr. Nelson continue to read The Stranger, so you-all must be doing something right.

I believe the old adage is, "If it ain't broke, why fix it?"

Arrogance, it's so last century.

I believe Hans feels the Stranger is too subtle in its "fuck you attitude" and he is modeling a more overt approach for you in his letter.

p.s. Hans, it's mostly it's not its you ditz.

awww fuck, maybe I'm the ditz, was his "its" right and my "it's" wrong?

Sigh, even though I'm stone cold sober I'm going to blame my dumb post on being drunk. I'm drunk I tell ya, drunk. Sooo drunk.

Definitely the 90's. Thanks for nothing, Gen X.

Dude has a point. just because he still reads it doesnt mean that the stranger is any good, heck, I only read it cuz its free and my busride is an hour long. In all honesty, I read one article and throw it away, I'd recycle it if I weren't afraid of it being re-used as a purposful product

Dude has a point. just because he still reads it doesnt mean that the stranger is any good, heck, I only read it cuz its free and my busride is an hour long. In all honesty, I read one article and throw it away, I'd recycle it if I weren't afraid of it being re-used as a purposful product

Dude has a point. just because he still reads it doesnt mean that the stranger is any good, heck, I only read it cuz its free and my busride is an hour long. In all honesty, I read one article and throw it away, I'd recycle it if I weren't afraid of it being re-used as a purposful product

The attitude that the yawner references is why I love The Stranger.

Yay! Christopher knows a Dutch word! Gosh you're just so cool.

Wat meer wil je weten, je arrogante klotzak?

@11:
spellcheck, spellcheck: it's "klootzak", not "klotzak".

Funny that. I read the Stranger BECAUSE of its fuck you attitude and arrogance (the intelligent, well-informed kind...not the frat boy/George W. kind). But really, if someone actually takes the time to write how much he hates something, WTF is he reading it for in the first place? Unless he's secretly in love with it and can't quit it...

The "fuck you" attitude is fine until it intersects with something you actually believe in. THEN it's childish & arrogant. That's actually one of the joys of Slog; watching people lose their minds when some Stranger writer decides to roast their religion/mode of transport/dog breed.

@11 Bedankt, hoor! I can't believe how rusty my Nederlands has become. I remember the first time I flew into ZRH and realized that the town name was Kloten. Those poor people, if only they knew.

Oh, and if you don't know what we're talking about, well then Fuck You. This is Slog.

I read the stranger just to be "ironic"

I'll tell you what so 80s...an enormous penls!!!

I read the stranger, well really now just slog, because it's a good gathering place of many things of interest to me. It's better than the Weekly. I'd ditch it in a second if I could find the same stuff without the "let me explain why you are soo wrong" tone. Also, there are some writers, like Annie Wagner, that frequently leave me with insights I didn't have before I started reading, even if I don't always agree. Others, like ECB, who's preachy or snarky tone turn me off before I can even listen to decide if I can agree or disagree. Dan Savage can go either way.

My favorite blog, Towleroad, on the other handd, always leaves me wishing I could read more.

Confession: Lately, I've been switching my free-newspaper reading time to the Seattle Weekly. I find it in more of my lunch haunts, and, yeah, I find I prefer their lighter flavor of hipper-than-thou in their pieces. Of course, The Stranger is so much better in bed, but, hey, sex isn't everything.

I know, I know - I'm getting so very old, right? Damn

Well, whatever attitude the square side of Seattle has isn't too effective either, since shit ain't gettin done but gentrification and gridlock.

Reading The Stranger has been fundamental in my assimilation as a Seattleite. When I arrived from the East Coast, I read the Weekly as well, but that got stale real quick. I listened to KUOW round-the-clock, until recently I got stagnanced-out.

Why does dude think a metro of over 3 million peeps has no column-space for the Independent Hipster Voice? Maybe it's cuz The Stranger is the best print media in the area, Hans feels disturbed that the more fair-and-balanced rags are either slashing staff or selling out to conglomerates. Maybe he realizes he's a clone and is lashing out in the type of frustration only Pinnochios and CP3Os feel. Hans, I recommend you stick to reading the church bulletin. Peace. I pray that one day you'll wake up as a real boy.

I pick up the Stranger once in a while. I feel like a person who walked into a high school party -- a group of people who seem really enthralled with themselves. C'mon guys, the story is not Josh or ECB --they're tiresome hipster wannabes. The story is the city. Go cover it!

Hans is right: you are a bunch of friendless assholes who don't stand a chance of ever breaking out of the $28K-a-year confines of the Stranger. Thanks to Google, your words follow you around like stink-lines in a cartoon. Tim and Dan have done a bang-up job of getting you amateurs to drink the Kool-Aid.

@22 -- I don't think Eli, Jen or a couple others have anything to worry about with regard to defending their writing.

Adrian and that Wm. dude, however, are toast.

The sender sounds like the kind of guy who, given enough time, will start e-stalking Stranger staffers and spamming Slog with grudge comments about editorials said staffers wrote many years ago.

I love the Stranger, but Mr. Nelsen ain't wrong about the snotty attitude that sometimes gets in the way of some mighty fine writing.

The weird Dalai Lama column was a case in point. There is no doubt that the recent visit by the DL deserved some honest observation and criticism. It was like a saint came to town, the way the local media fell on top of themselves to kiss his ass and sing his praises. In the outpouring of media, there were ZERO critical looks at the event. Where were the stories about the financial and environmental cost of his entourage? The hard look at the odd spectacle of a leader associated with compassion becoming the head of an all-male personality cult? The skewering of the widely and lazily held belief that "Oriental" religion is less dogmatic, more contemplative, more transcendental that other faiths? Or some crack at the over-romanticized portrait of Tibet?

The Stranger was the only media outlet with the cojones to ask some of these questions, and you opted for the silliest possible approach - sarcasm and body humor right out of some high school humor rag. You call that contributing to the conversation? Thanks but no thanks.

When the Stranger started printing, it really was the snotty new kid on the block, and the attitude it took was completely appropriate. But now? It's earned a place at the table as a well established paper of record with a readership that extends to middle aged working people like Hans, city leaders, and national news outlets. It really is time for some self examination and an updating of some time worn habits that make for lousy journalism and lousier reading.

Hmmmmmmmm, every time, and no matter how I parse it, I try to post a couple excerpts from Dan Savage's pro-war piece from October 2002 the spam filter blocks it. How amusing that Dan Savage is afraid to have his own words posted to Slog. Words that are probably the most influential that he ever wrote. Words that supported a Bush policy of war crimes and imperialism.

Here's a tinyurl to Dan's story.

http://tinyurl.com/63rfxd

This letter is nonsense. The stranger tackles tons of totally un-sexy local, state, and national issues. This letter is more or less an ad homonym attack on its writers and really doesn't constructively criticise anything.

Not a single suggestion for what they would like to see but aren't seeing. Just insults.

Wow! I say let Hans write Last Days! He clearly has the right attitude - not snotty or sneering at all. Not to mention talent.

(Please excuse my sarcasm.)

DON'T CLICK ON THAT "TINY URL"!!! It's a man's anus!!!!

You're gross, obsessive anti-war Dan Savage stalker person. Fucking gross.

Hmmmmmmmm, every time, and no matter how I parse it, I try to post a couple excerpts from Dan Savage's pro-war piece from October 2002, or link to it, the spam filter blocks it. The Slog spam filter seems to be rejecting the title and quotes from the article and link as spam. How amusing that Dan Savage is afraid to have his own words posted to Slog. Words that are probably the most important that he ever wrote. Or at least words that he used flippantly to address the most important issue he ever wrote about. Words that supported a Bush policy of war crimes and imperialism. Here's a tiny url to Dan's article:

http://tinyurl.com/63rfxd

Hans Nelsen is an illiterate fool. Aside from the convoluted garbage of his prose (seriously, try to parse that first sentence all the way), he apparently CANNOT READ.

This week's "Last Days" column didn't even mention the Dali [sic] Lama, let alone slam him.

The column that did is called "New Column", and has nothing to do with "Last Days", and it has ALWAYS been puerile and derogatory. That's what makes it so funny.

The fact that it accurately represents what SHOULD be the reaction of His Holiness to Seattleites in a perfect world is what makes it the funniest "New Column" in years.

Suck on it, Hans. You are dumb.

Give it a fucking break Fnarf. I'm so sick of your shit. You pose as some kind of fucking exert on The Stranger and you don't know shit.

get a LIFE, dan the brave. or go prevent prostate cancer. no one gives a shit about you.

Give it a fucking break Fnarf. I'm so sick of your shit. You pose as some kind of fucking exert on The Stranger and you don't know shit.

The man brings up good points.
I think the mature way to handle this would have been to have not posted it on Slog (thus waving it around for the groupies to attack), and taken the honest criticism for what it was. Maybe stepping outside of yourself for a moment and trying to see how his opinions applied would be beneficial.

You must acknowledge that what he is saying is true, as far as the 'underlining fuck-you attitude' and 'holier-than-thou- righteousness' that is fueling many articles and Slog posts from The Stranger; The issue is that you're still so into the idea of being the journalistic bad-ass and are enjoying the Alpha cred this is stirring up. In a way, and as we can see, this letter must have only encouraged and verified what a rightful bad-ass you truly must be.

Just remember that some of your readers are members of the dying breed of intellectual, and still prefer a well thought-out, unbiased, and critical article to one full of ego-driven masturbation of the written word.

I also have to say- that article that 'Dan the brave' posted is amazing, and is useful perspective.

Kudos.

@32

and fnarf is a stranger intern that wants so badly to be respected for his grammar and literacy that he farts angry on all that dare speak without an english degree.

let it go man. common grammar errors do not make someone an illiterate fool, nor does it mean he doesn't have a point.

I smell sock puppetry.

Fnarf @ 32:

Hans Nelsen lives down the street from me, which is easily verified with a little Googling. He is anything but an illiterate fool. He is a very smart, very hip guy. So in this instance, I think you're blowing smoke out your ass.

Here's some exceptional artwork created by Seattle native and scholar Hans Nelsen. www.travergallery.com/gallery_artist_details/Hans-Nelsen

And here's an article explaining Hans' friendship with Morris Graves, and detailing his lengthy and important involvement in Northwest regional art. www.kingfisherpress.com/FishtownEdition.htm

Whatever you think of Hans' comment, dismissing him (or any commentator who you happen to disagree with) as "illiterate" or "dumb" is exceptionally small minded and ignorant.

Only here do you find sneering hipsters one moment making off the mark ironic fun of abused babies and the next sobbing big shrieking bitch tears because somebody littered some lame little park with feathers from a pillow fight.

Some of you were raised in some fucked up daycares.

Nobody takes you seriously. It's just a gas watching the daily trainwrecks. Hans nailed it.

I called Mr. Nelsen illiterate because his little screed is packed with grammatical errors, and because it is factually inaccurate. If he is in fact able to read and write, he did not display either trait in his letter.

Criticizing the "New Column" for having an "underlying fuck you attitude" is like criticizing South Park for its bad animation. It's a fundamentally stupid criticism. That's not my fault.

And my God, couldn't we/oui do/due more/Mohr about ad homonym attacks/a tax?

Can't we all agree on one thing though? The snorg tees ladies are hotter than fuck.

You mean the ones who appear to be just barely out of their teens??????????

fnarf - are you homophobic? I like looking at little assholes, a lot, no so much vags

I think a lot of your arrogance is old dog shit macho pig stuff - poorly presented

those poor fags at the Stranger/Slog don't even know it when you just kicked them in the balls - ho, ho ho - course, you're so smart and stuff

KeeKee-

Should I not find 20 year old women sexually attractive? And isn't that the point of the ads? I'm not into the American Apparel waifs, but the snogg tee models- sorry, they just go straight to the reptile part of my brain.

"no so much vags"? Is this some kind of code?

@15:
Zware dag op het kantoor? Of gewoon sjaggerijnig?