GUEST SHOT

In the two-plus years I have been filling the ether with my patented brand of bullshit, I have had a few opportunities to hijack guest-blog on other sites.

I’m not sure whether giving me the keys to one’s blog is a mark of insanity, ignorance, or idiocy - probably a combination of all three - but I always take it as a compliment of the highest order.

I’ve written guest-posts at a wide variety of places, ranging from pesky’apostrophe (always better than an unexpected period) to The Dax Files. The legendary and exalted Velociman even loaned me the keys to his site a few months ago, a decision I’m sure still causes him to question his mental stability.

But a few days ago, I got an invitation to write a few guest posts from someone whom I’ve always regarded with a certain amount of awe: David Bogner of Treppenwitz.



Treppenwitz is an award-winning Israeli blog with an intelligent and diverse readership. Despite the (occasionally) politically contentious topics David writes about, his commenters are, almost without exception, well-behaved - even when disagreeing passionately with his opinions or those of other commenters. For David does not brook trolls or people who do not obey his rules for a civilized discourse.

The topics on Treppenwitz range from Israeli politics, observations on day-to-day life in Israel, family, food - the whole gamut. And David can tell a story that will tear your heart out by the roots. He’s a rational voice in a region that too often seems irrational to people who are unfamiliar with its history and culture.

About the only issue I ever have with David is his unfortunate tendency to write “it’s” when “its” is called for. A small price to pay, I suppose.

David is not overly prolific, but he is consistent. He typically writes one post a day (except for Shabbat), and responds to his many commenters, usually in the form of a large comment with a section addressed to each commenter.

So when he e-mailed me last week to request that I help fill in, along with a handful of other writers, while he and his family went off to take a well-deserved vacation, I was practically bowled over. His request was made almost apologetically...but I was flattered. Honored, even.

Treppenwitz is beginning to pick up some readership among the Georgia crew, thanks (so far) mainly to Erica. If you haven’t yet visited, by all means do so...and not just to read my crap. Check out the archives; there’s all kinds of good stuff in there.