Sadly, Kevin Drum, one of the leading lights of the liberal blogosphere, passed away a few days ago.
Kevin had been battling cancer for quite some time now, and had regularly given his readers updates on the ups and downs of his condition. So while this wasn't wholly unexpected, it still hits hard -- we had seen many, many times before where he had bounced back, and I had hoped against hope that this time would be more of the same. Alas.
When Kevin left his last perch at Mother Jones to hang his own shingle, I wrote a little tribute to him which still captures my feelings now:
Drum was one of the first bloggers I read -- I don't think I caught him during his Calpundit days, but I sure read him at the Washington Monthly -- and was a tremendous influence on my own development as a blogger. I'm certainly not alone in that: Drum was a towering figure during the Golden Age of blogging, whose influence on the mainstream liberal side of the commentariat could not be overstated. And while blogging is fading as an artform, Drum remained decidedly old school and has accordingly stayed as one of my favorites. His work on the lead/crime hypothesis was absolutely fascinating and dare-I-say important, and in general I've always respected him for being thoughtful, considerate, and fair-minded without being mushy or wooly. Those are virtues that are perhaps in rare supply these days, and so I'm especially grateful to Drum for modeling them for so many years.
He will be very sorely missed. RIP, Kevin, and my condolences to his loved ones.
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