THE LIST OF SUPERB THINGS: THE ECONOMIST
Long have we yearned for the right measure of praise for the Economist, our favorite magazine in the universe. After all, they combine airtight prose with ruthless cold sense and snarkily captured pics: everything we aspire to be and will never, ever be. They also make covers like this, for which we love them and would willingly massage all of their black-socked feet:
Someone has beaten us to it. If that’s the price to pay for being well-informed, then too fucking bad. SIR–this rules. Thank you, Orson Swindle, Atlanta, GA USA.
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1
Zone Left says:
Take a look at CNN.com. On the headlines page, you can actually order shirts with the title of the article on it.
In other words, I can actually own a shirt that says, “60-lb. pit bull found wedged in engine.”
May 7th, 2008 at 11:00 am
2
DevilGrad says:
Sir –
This is likely the only sports blog in the world whose proprietor calls The Economist his favourite magazine. And it shows. One hundred glasses of port for you, sir.
DG
Washington, DC USA
May 7th, 2008 at 11:04 am
3
ryan says:
the economist is my bible.
i knew there was a reason i read this blog
May 7th, 2008 at 11:05 am
4
hunglikehussain says:
Looks like the dark brown camel is getting the “Abu Dhabi Hot Pocket.”
May 7th, 2008 at 11:05 am
5
Matt says:
My favorite economist cover: http://home.lbl.gov:8080/~psb/Economist/GreetingsEarthlings.jpg
May 7th, 2008 at 11:08 am
6
sb says:
DG @ #2…make that a Taylor-Fladgate 1994 vintage port, sir…from my cellar.
Hung @ #4…”Abu Dhabi Hot Pocket”…bravo, but dark brown is the giver, not the getter, no?
May 7th, 2008 at 11:16 am
7
jon says:
Sir–
We are also members of the UHB, and we applaud your taste. My favorite recent Economist remark was about how inflation in Africa has generally been stable, with the exception of Ghana, where it was 150,000%.
All said with appropriate dryness yet a lack of smug.
Now i’m off to a Rioja wine tasting in my Zeppelin!
That’s actually true, except the Zeppelin business. It’s just a hovercraft.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:22 am
8
jon says:
is it just me or is it innately funny that an article applauding the Economist features sidebar advertising for Anne Coulter. Like a Vegan food blog sponsored by a photo of a cow eating bacon
May 7th, 2008 at 11:29 am
9
socalbryan says:
one of the best, if not the best, magazines in the world.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:41 am
10
Kerwin4two says:
Sir, I think you mean Zimbabwe.
Ghana’s inflation, while still in the 10 to 20% range, is relatively stable.
Mugabe’s lunatic totalitarian populism and land grabs have led to the hyperinflation in Zimbabwe
Cheers
May 7th, 2008 at 11:42 am
11
Black Swamp Gator says:
Cheers to Orson Swindle and EDSBS!
For contrasting views, a recent scanning of an OSU fan blog mentioned “Buck-stache Monthly” as their favorite publication. Ha-Ha!!
May 7th, 2008 at 11:44 am
12
marcillac says:
DG at 2, SB at 6
The 1994 Fonseca is quite superb as well. The 1997 of both the Taylor and Fonseca are drinking well but the 1992 Taylor (tricentenuary) is somewhat disappointing in my experience.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:45 am
13
marcillac says:
Speaking of 1992, that’s the year I started reading the Economist. Yikes.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:46 am
14
PeteJayhawk says:
Sir-
It should be noted that The Economist is technically a newspaper. I also will never tire of The Economist’s stated mission: “to take part in a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.”
Respectfully,
PeteJayhawk
Lawrence, Kansas
May 7th, 2008 at 11:50 am
15
Conan D'Amato says:
The staff of the Economist = the Phil Steele of reality.
Of course, a part of me still feels dirty when seeing the colour photographs. Just my 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 Z$ worth.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:50 am
16
Bloke says:
FT!
May 7th, 2008 at 11:57 am
17
Chips O'Toole says:
#14
Well played sir.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:58 am
18
DrPeterV says:
Sir –
You neglect to mention that its articles do not include the name of the journalist who wrote them. While I am an admitted Economist junkie, the lack of authorship makes the publication little more than a monacle wearing blog, or worse, a monacle wearing blog commenter.
Yours Respectfully,
DrPeterV
Atlanta, GA
May 7th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
19
Holly says:
My 90-minute commute would be unbearable without all that tiny print. Salut.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
20
tzubear says:
Yes, its a good rag, but has fallen off a bit in recent years. I have not continued my subscription since 2005.
EDSBS is, however, still in its prime. I egerly renew each year.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
21
haybeav says:
I’ve had a subscription for about 6 months and I must say that I certainly feel smarter about the world after reading each issue. The articles are perfectly written with a great balance of fact and opinion, so much so that you read it almost don’t realize that’s the case.
I only wish I had enough free time each week to read each issue cover to cover.
There should be something said though for how many people who read this blog also read the Economist. In a weird way, we all have the same dry sense of humor.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
22
woooooohooooooooo says:
i knew there was some connection between my concurrent obsessions with economist.com and edsbs.com.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
23
sb says:
marcillac @ #12…the Fonseca, Taylor-Fladgate and Quinto do Noval were all 100 point wines by anyone rating at the time, and the vintage was considered the best of the century. I had a daughter born that year so I dropped a load on 7 cases…the above three, a Dow, a Graham’s, a Warres and a Croft. I’ll be drinking port for the rest of my life…so this is the second time I have encountered too much of a good thing…the first was, well, I don’t know her anymore…
May 7th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
24
hunglikehussain says:
@23
I am not a connoisseur of fine Ports, more like a guy that knows what he likes. Warres Warrior is a favorite, but a friend sent me a case of Madeira from V. Sattui. Reasonably priced, with that same Port-like fruitiness/sweetness.
May 7th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
25
marcillac says:
SB at 23,
I manged to secure a couple of cases of the Taylor and Fonseca and 3 of the Graham. (Wanted the Quinto de Noval badly, of course but just wasn’t feasible). At the time the expense was beyond prohibitive but looking at current prices a much larger buy would have been worth the effort. Sell some at auction and enjoy the rest for free.
I try to stay away from the stuff ’cause its just too tasty but had occasion to broach a bottle just last week to go with some cigars of …er… foreign manufacture. that I had picked up in Barcelona. The one thing missing was a good College Football game.
May 7th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
26
jon says:
What time is the Whit Stillman fanclub meeting tonight?
UHB, indeed
May 7th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
27
MCab says:
Love me some Economist. I also like Wired and Backwoodsman. Covering all my bases on that one.
Glad to know O has great taste in rags. But, if I found out that you loved the New Yorker, then off to espn.com I go.
May 7th, 2008 at 3:03 pm
28
bevo says:
Sir,
I started reading The Economist when my business travel started to pick up in 2003. When Rubert Murdoch bought the Wall Street Journal, I confidently canceled my Journal subscription (since 1994) and began subscribing to The Economist.
I suggest you may want to read Portfolio, which reminds me of the first incarnation of Inside Sport magazine.
As to port, I like all kinds but prefer Taylor. Beggars (and doctoral students) cannot be choosers.
cheers,
May 7th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
29
now_a_hoo says:
I’m w/16: FT.
While I do like The Economist a lot, I think it tends to get overrated by a lot of people I know. Much better than TNR, etc. and a damn sight better than Laffer-deluded rags like the WSJ.
May 7th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
30
Studley says:
sb @ 23 – The 1997 Taylor Fladgate of which you speak, is that the Tawny Porto? I have a bottle of that, and I’ll need to see if there are any more bottles remaining where I bought it.
May 7th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
31
Kecalf Bailey says:
anyone here familiar with Mental_floss?
It doesn’t really cover anything important, but it’s addictive as hell.
May 7th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
32
Chuck says:
Sir:
I am confused as to what “the trouble with” the merger expressed in the picture might be. Is this a dromedary-bactrian mating, which would be sterile? Please explain.
Regards,
Chuck, Charlottesville, VA
May 7th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
33
VandyJ says:
SIR – I wish to complain in the strongest possible terms that you have stolen my life. Your public dalliances with fine college football conferences, erudite international journalism and bucket hats demonstrates beyond a reasonable doubt that you have purloined my aspirational identity. I shall require your 100 COCKTAILS as recompense, preferably as gin rickeys.
Yours etc.,
VandyJ
San Fran., Calif., Bear Flag Republic
May 7th, 2008 at 11:05 pm
34
sb says:
Studley @ #30…I was referring to the vintage ’94’s…I have too many of them to bother with anything else…at my current rate of consumption I’ll be drinking the ’94’s well into my 120’s, so tawneys don’t get alot of traction in the sb household.
May 8th, 2008 at 7:48 am
35
Ufools says:
sb and Studley,
Randomly reading mgoblog at 2am and saw this, the comments to which randomly discuss port, which i randomly enjoy. I bought a case of the 2000 Quinto de Noval for 30/btl, the rags have it as a 95+. i think its still available around 40. not bad for a vintage and will be drinkable in 7 yrs. my alltime recent favorite is a Graham’s 1985 Malvedos, my first vintage ruby and it got me hooked. happy decanting! and Go Blue.
May 10th, 2008 at 4:26 am