Be it dead or alive

Lately I've been trying to figure out the significance of the sudden bowing out of TMFTML, whose snide critiques of pop culture and journalism originally had an influence on this site. (It had been one of the frequently updated blogs that I used to check out from work, back when I had a job). The general reaction in the blogosphere seems to be one of guarded mourning, and I share some of the ambivalence. Does its retirement mean that we have finally turned the corner in the fight against rampant irony? Has snarkiness jumped the shark? Will sincerity and optimism mount a comeback? Has the number of über-sardonic pop culture blogs reached the point of saturation? Aren't such commentaries an easy way to avoid discussing genuine sentiment?

And yet, what would we do without these sources of mockery? Take ourselves too seriously?

And how much of a nerd have I become that I'm introducing dialectics to the realm of the blogosphere? Aren't you sick of reading this many questions in a row? Don't you miss the simpler days when I made passing references to Tony Danza?


I want answers, dammit.