Has David Brooks had a stroke? Or is Joe Nocera or Gail Collins in fact the author of this piece?
Mitt grew up in a modest family. His father had an auto body shop called the American Motors Corporation, and his mother owned a small piece of land, Brazil. He had several boyhood friends, many of whom owned Nascar franchises, and excelled at school, where his fourth-grade project, “Inspiring Actuaries I Have Known,” was widely admired.
. . . . . . . .
The teenage years were more turbulent. He was sent to a private school, where he was saddened to find there are people in America who summer where they winter. He developed a lifelong concern for the second homeless, and organized bake sales with proceeds going to the moderately rich.
(I actually thought it was a funny article!) What do you make of it?
Historiann 
I like the phrase, “The Second Homeless”!
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I am among the second homeless, and I both winter and summer in the same one home. Obvs., a desperate case!
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I fall and spring in the same place, which on the one hand I guess speaks to job security, although it also makes me sound as though I feel like a caged lion. Not sayin’ that I do or I don’t.
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First and foremost, the article is funny. Since I don’t read papers, I am removing myself from judgement on Brooks. As Romney, I have experience having several houses, although none of them in La Jolla. (I rented there.) Romney undoubtedly will make a great manager, a decent husband and a great statue at Madame Tussauds.
Simply put, he is one of us! Fire Truck!
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Definitely a stroke. Someone write David Brooks and ask him if he smelt burnt toast before writing this.
Its pretty damn funny. Thanks for sharing. I studiously avoid Brooks and would have never found it.
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I summer in the basement, often. Does that count?
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Okay, I have to say, I laughed at the line about some of his cars having to take the stairs. 🙂
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The NYT has closed comments at #666. Is this a clue?
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If Brooks really thought this about Romney, he’d be supporting Obama. I thought it was potentially a parody of what anti-Romney people think/might write.
I think it is peculiar—amusing, but not as it seems on the surface. I guess we will know if next week we get a “gotcha!” column explaining why “dangerous liberals” would buy this sort of column as real.
Call me cynical, but something is just *off* about it given Brooks history.
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I am quite familiar with David Brooks. There is no way he wrote that. He’s not that funny.
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Brooks was an Obama fan back in 2007-08, but of course he’s been terribly, terribly disappointed. Nevertheless, I don’t think he’s a big Romney fan either. It seems a little premature, but maybe he’s preemptively distancing himself from the possible Romney loss.
But, who cares? I don’t particularly care about internecene Republican/conservative warfare. I just think it’s funny.
As I have repeatedly pointed out on this blog: everybody kind of hates Romney. It’s fascinating that the Republicans nominated someone that exactly *none* of them like or trust. And if that’s how Republicans feel about him, then how do they think independents or Dems will feel about him?
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I don’t know, there’s a reference to riding on the roof of the car. Must be Gail Collins. 🙂
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http://www.businessinsider.com/david-brooks-on-the-real-mitt-romney-2012-8?fb_action_ids=783541085743&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map=%7B%22783541085743%22%3A10151205698740259%7D&action_type_map=%7B%22783541085743%22%3A%22og.likes%22%7D&action_ref_map=%5B%5D
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You can’t not chuckle at the supposed Secret Service nickname for the guy: “mannequin.” Is that a Civil Service job in Treasury–coming up with witty nicknames for the legion of the protected? If so, at what grade, and can I have it?
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Heh.
The dog on the car gag IS really tiresome.
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It seems a little premature, but maybe he’s preemptively distancing himself from the possible Romney loss.
DING! DING! DING! We have a winner!
Those who have made a mini-career out of deconstructing Brooks–such as Driftglass–have revealed very clearly through their exegesis that (1) there is no Republican asse too fucken scummy and despicable for him to kiss and carry water for and (2) every time some Republican asse that he kissed fuckes uppe everything he touches, Brooks reverts to the “mistakes were made” passive voice and refuses to take any responsibility for his role in carrying water for and enabling the Republican fuckeuppes to fucke everything uppe.
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I read it, and I guess my reaction is this: the target is Romney, but the shtick is still “wry takedown of the liberal/Massachusetts elitist,” which is Brooks’ stock-in-trade. It’s not a political piece. If there’s any conservative message in it, it’s a signal to Romney’s handlers to work harder to appeal to Brooks’ beloved Red State exurb-dwelling god-fearers, because as of press time Brooks can pretty handily whack him with his liberal-whacking stick. But I honestly don’t know if anyone in the GOP gives a damn about David Brooks. Is he more than a mildly useful idiot to them?
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