> Someone wrote me offlist with the very interesting and pertinent
> question: why are laboristas so bitchy? Why the constant assertions
> of authenticity, and the constant dis'ing of (essentially
> sympathetic) intellectuals? And why the intense sensitivity to
> criticism? One thought my correspondent had was that when you're
> losing so big in the real world, then you lash out at easy targets -
> because your real enemies are too busy ignoring you. I dunno. But
> it's an interesting question, and an interesting hypothesis for an
> answer. But I'd love to hear more.
I think your findings might be skewed by a small sample size. I find "laboristas" no more (or no less!) bitchy than the left, broadly defined, in general.