bears some examination.
She insists (on the basis of no evidence) that Deval Patrick must somehow bend Speaker DiMasi to his will with respect to the issue of casino gambling or else risk defeat, ruin and political emasculation.
Now, lets get our facts straight here. Speaker DiMasi is agin' casino gambling (as is the Chimes at Midnight), Governor Patrick has said that he is interested if the right deal comes along.
So where does Joanie get this "do or die" show down scenario between DiMasi and Patrick?
Well, for one thing, she seems a lot more interested in writing an early political obituary for Governor Patrick than she in fostering a reasonable intelligent debate over casino gambling.
This was her same exact take on gay marriage back in the spring "Deval MUST prevail on SSM or face defeat, doom and impotence...blah blah blaaaah!!"
Okay...I get it.
Joanie hates Deval.
He didn't lose last year like a good wimpy liberal and that somehow offends Joanie's delicate political sensibilities. So now instead of trying to prove that Patrick is unelectable, she obsesses on demonstrating that he can't govern and must soon go off a cliff never to return.
One of the funnier offshoots of this obsession is Joanie's strange belief that Sal DiMasi is the political equivalent of Lex Luthor, powerful and too clever for anyone who doesn't sport a red cape to beat.
A lot of columnists have this problem, it is an ad hominem view of history.
Since policies and politicians have become disposable products, the columnistas tend to view defeat as final and irrevocable, especially if it befalls someone they disdain.
Steve Stark had the same problem with President Bill Clinton back in the early 1990's. Every week it seemed, Steve would devote precious column space in the Boston Globe to proving that Clinton was about to politically self destruct and be chased from office by a torch wielding mob.
Lost within Joanie's own farcical bid to play Cassandra is any objective discussion of the issue...and we desperately need one.
I think that Joan Vennochi is against casino gambling in the Commonwealth...but is she against it because it is a bad thing by her lights or is she against it because she assumes Governor Patrick is pro-gambling?
This cuts to the core as to what is wrong with Joan Vennochi as a columnist, we know WHO she dislikes, (John Kerry, Deval Patrick, Liberal Bloggers) but we don't know what she is for.
So much of her writing is about people, especially people she disdains...but as for what Joanie believes in who knows?
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