1. Jason Zengerle’s profile of consumer advocate turned Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren focused on Warren’s not entirely smooth political education (“A Saint With Sharp Elbows,” November 21). At Slate, David Weigel highlighted a moment in which Warren stumbled trying to explain the purpose of her campaign. “This is revealing! Had Zengerle put it all on camera, it might have had the same corrosive, viral impact on Warren that Herman Cain’s bumbling … had on him,” he wrote, adding, “there’s something about Warren that encourages a reporter’s ooh-how-to-make-this-look-raw instinct.” But at nymag.com, most commenters seemed to think Candidate Warren was made for the campaign trail. “The biggest difference between Elizabeth Warren and most of the lumpheads in Congress is that I actually believe her, and I feel she truly does care about people—the kind that can bleed the red stuff, not the ones with ‘Inc.’ in their names,” wrote one. “Tremendous individual, tremendous candidate,” wrote another. But some readers felt that her reputation as a liberal hero could hardly survive partisan legislative gridlock. “So what now, she’s going to become a senator? … She can sponsor all this wonderful liberal legislation and watch it die a slow death as it goes nowhere, doesn’t get out of committee, dies in the House, or is vetoed by President Romney.” And a few struck more ideological notes of criticism: “Warren acts like bankers are devils trying to bankrupt everyone, and that non-bankers couldn’t possibly take any responsibility for not racking up huge mortgages and credit-card bills. She demonizes part of America, and patronizes the remainder.”
2. Most readers didn’t buy Chris Smith’s argument that ticket-fixing scandals, skyrocketing stop-and-frisk figures, and battles with Occupy Wall Street may finally be bringing police commissioner Ray Kelly’s long honeymoon period to an end (“The Force Isn’t With Him,” November 21). “The guy is doing a great job. I just don’t see the problem,” wrote one commenter at nymag.com. “All (major) police forces have their highs and lows from time to time. Ray Kelly has been terrific for our city. Period.” Regarding the suggestion that NYPD morale dipped, another wrote: “Isn’t it always at an all-time low, though? When has it ever been at an all-time high? I wonder if all police departments have the same culture of complaining as the NYPD. It seems to predate Kelly by about 100 years.” A few readers were harsher. “Absolute power corrupts absolutely,” wrote one. “This applies to the NYPD commissioner and the NYC mayor.” Added another, more bluntly: “Send him packing.”
3. Steve Fishman’s article on Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords detailed the story, and stagecraft, of her recovery from a January assassination attempt (“What Would Gabby Do?,” November 21). “Must-read from NY Magazine about how Gabby Giffords has become not just a person, but an idea,” tweeted @josh_lederman. At the Tucson Weekly, Dan Gibson flagged the story for locals. “Steve Fishman’s feature … jumps out for me personally, partially because it discusses Giffords’s internal conflict over staying in politics,” he wrote. “What will probably be the most notable portion of the story involves the question no one seems to want to address, Giffords’s political future (and by extension, Mark Kelly’s).” Others also focused on that question. “Looks like the toad husband is going to cash in on this shooting big time,” wrote one reptilian commenter at nymag.com. Another responded: “Since the terms of use on this site won’t let me express myself in the terms you deserve, let me just say that you’re a pitiful excuse for a human being. Must really hurt to know that Mark Kelly is a better man and a better person than you or anyone you’ve ever known.”
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