As Allahpundit says, it comes to this … or more accurately, these. The top ten most-read posts of 2014 at Hot Air will no doubt bring back memories, as well as a couple of laughs, and the top post delivers tons of schadenfreude exactly where one would have expected to find it in that moment of time. This year, the top ten posts includes a couple of guest posts too, including …
- #10: What the mainstream media wont tell you about global warming – Jeff Dunetz provided a dozen data points on the anthropogenic global-warming debate that most media outlets ignore, such as the failed predictions on droughts, polar-bear extinctions, Antarctic ice levels, and so on. Jeff’s primer has gotten 108,000 page views, and it’s still climbing … much faster than the global temperatures.
- #9: Marco Rubio just made Hillary’s Benghazi problem worse – Hillary Clinton dismissed a question from Diane Sawyer about security in Benghazi by saying that she wasn’t equipped to deal with those questions. Rubio sunk the easy lay-up with this riposte: “If she thinks it’s something we shouldn’t focus on, then perhaps that gives insight as to why it happened in the first place.” (Noah, 108,941 page views)
- #8: CNN: Michael Brown autopsy “expert” may be a fraud – Give CNN some credit for finally digging into Shawn Parcells’ background, but blogs like RedState had been asking these questions for weeks beforehand. What took the mainstream media so long to report on his track record? (Ed, 114,117)
- #7: Strong Kentucky Woman not particularly gracious in concession – Even the crew at MSNBC were a little stunned by the lack of grace coming from Alison Lundergan Grimes … and that was saying something, considering MSNBC’s reaction to the midterm elections. Chris Matthews noted that Grimes had earlier refused to say which presidential candidate got her vote and quipped, “She was unable to say who won the election, either.” Ouch. (Jazz, 116,189)
- #6: Jesse Ventura: Don’t feel sorry for Chris Kyle’s widow, I’m the victim here – We Minnesotans got used to Jesse’s whining while governor, but the rest of the country got a ringside seat as Ventura sued a widow for $2 million. “I’m already damaged,” Ventura said, in what was perhaps his most honest self-assessment ever. (Noah, 120,655)
- #5: That ISIS guy who promised to raise Islamic State flag over the White House? He’s dead – And we don’t miss him a bit. (Noah, 123,488)
- #4: Obama: Health insurance isn’t expensive – just cancel cable and phones; Update: White House responds – It’s not every post that gets a response from the White House, but this one did — and it didn’t really address the issue anyway. It got plenty of response from Hot Air readers, though! (Ed, 125,346)
- #3: Liberal Austin homeowners surprised to find they have to pay all the taxes they voted for – It seems some people have issues with causality. “I have voted for every park, every library, all the school improvements, for light rail, for anything that will make this city better,” said artist Gretchen Gardner. “But now I can’t afford to live here anymore.” This was from June; I wonder if she’s still scratching her head as to why Austin has become unaffordable. (Mary Katharine, 128,498)
- #2: Before You Pass Judgment On Rick Perry… – Duane “Generalissimo” Patterson, producer extraordinaire of the Hugh Hewitt Show and my regular co-host on TEMS, snags the #2 slot for 2014 with the video of Travis County DA Rosemary Lehmberg’s arrest and detention. A Travis County grand jury indicted Perry for threatening to veto funding for the office if Lehmberg didn’t resign for driving with a 0.23 BAL and threatening to abuse her authority while dealing with the arrest. Which public official here deserves to get booted from office? Go home, Travis County, you’re drunk. (141,241)
And the most-read post at Hot Air in 2014 was….
- #1: Watch the evolution of an MSNBC meltdown – Noah takes the honors this year with a look at how Election Night unfolded at MSNBC. Noah brings the clips and the pain. Interestingly, just as in #7, Chris “Tingles” Matthews comes off as the Voice of Reason during the night and into the next morning, serving as an eminence grise to the youngsters who apparently suffered the first serious political loss of their careers. “Unbelievable,” he muttered. “This is amazing.” And that’s why this one got 169,911 page views.
Happy New Year, everyone. Be safe tonight, and join us for a great 2015.