21 Comments
Apr 27, 2021Liked by Greg Olear

I get so upset reading about her. As a Catholic I find her thinking very antithetical to the tenets of Christianity. No scruples either. But thankfully the column is very funny too.

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She's a Catholic in the way the Evangelicals are Christian. Doesn't represent the rank and file at all.

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Exactly. Most Catholics aren’t extreme.

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Not all Catholics are like Amy Coney Barrett-like every other religion there are folks who interpret the teachings in their own way, often antithetical to the basic tenets of that religion or belief system.

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The huge advances received by those we have all heard of “Names in the News” is as much of the hype preceding a published book as anything that that person might have said it done to get a “best selling” moniker. In the case of Sanders or (Trump jr) for instance, the only way they would have made any kind of sales in an industry filled with talented journalists, writers, is their celebrity. Those few politicians and celebrities writing their own story, will sell books to those fans, and to those readers who are looking for the dirt on the author, or more likely the hype that there is dirt in that story.

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That's a good point: the big bonus DID call attention to the book, so it's almost an advertising expense. I don't begrudge anyone trying to make a living, but the ACB deal feels different.

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Most of us know by now that these “money miracles” are usually made to those who have a reputation for shit disturbing, like Sanders and Trump jr; often it’s not just the publisher but the corporate donors who give the mega advances. Many of their supporters and purchasers are those who agree with their general position on American politics, conspiracy theories, lies and just plain confusion. After reading their books one comes away understanding less about our politics, and/or confirms their belief in political conspiracies.

The subject of “political tell all” books published in the last 6 years have made tons of money for publishers and the corporations that own them. Not many of those books have become best sellers for any of those authors but most every news journalist who wrote a book or became author for the first time was able to cash in (by advance or by sales) during the Trump era, even with the extremely distasteful subject matter.

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We are not communists, sure. But, our society is and has been establishing a clear and widening delineation between the 'get rich' schemers and everyone else. From the Supreme Court, to Congress, to dot.coms, to politicians, to cryptocurrency, to prosperity Christians, the train left the station a long time ago. Is ACB naive or premeditated? "Greed is good" is the symbol for the 21st century.

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Did you click the link? ; )

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Yes...do you mean the article? 666? I'm just so worried I can't even find humor in the slow roll towards demolition of our country.

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Apr 27, 2021Liked by Greg Olear

Very funny. Also true. How often do we get a Beatles and a Godfather (II) reference in the same post. Love it

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I'm nothing if not eclectic. Thanks!

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It's why I read and follow you Bubba. True taste delicious these days

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Greg! Hahaahaaaaha! Sometimes you outdo yourself! ❤️

"Which means she would have to sell a diabolical number of copies—666,666"

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Thank You. This answers my immediate question when I read her book announcement: How does a new Supreme Court Justice and mother of SEVEN children have time and energy to write a book? Is the SCOTUS job that easy? Part-time (or, in Kavanaugh's case, a slam dunk)? Your answer is much more believable.

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Sigh

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This may sound harsh and over-the-top, but I think that people in elected, non-elected, appointed, and/or ANY public service job should be prohibited from making extra money on little side projects, much the same way convicted felons are precluded from profiting from their crimes. The government, it turns out, pays well -- at least to people in positions of actual power -- and there's no need for all of this "bad optics," or whatever the current term may be for "more grifting."

Coney-Barrett gets $250K a year. People like Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Kellyanne Conway, Stephen F Miller (the "F" is for what you think it's for) and Jen Psaki, for that matter, were/are paid almost $200K a year. WAIT until you're no longer serving the people before you try to go on to make whatever you're going to make from your time in government service. It's ALL bad optics to do it any other way. Lifetime appointment? Oh well. Resign and write you book.

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Somehow, I think your "hypothetical" is not very far from reality. I, for one, will not be buying her book. I do wonder though, if she's also going to make the talk show rounds to tout her ghost-written "creation." If she's not above breaking the norms for a SC personage in one way, might we expect her to cash in in other dastardly ways? I love your diabolical number of copies...apropos, in my opinion, given the person behind the pen.

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Fabulous! Every word elegantly understated. As a 12-time author published by commercial publishers (Prentice-Hall in the late 80s and Sterling-now-Barnes- and- Noble in the 90s-teens) I have always maintained that authors who write in order to say something do it in spite of the money.

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She’s going to need every penny, to pay the Pope for all those Indulgences for Hell bail.

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