When we first started TLO, I used to send Patrick long, dramatic, overwritten e-mails. They were complaints about things we published that I thought were too mean or too sexist and rants about people in the media I thought were ruining America and ideas of what we should do for the site.
Some of them had decent points, I guess? But most of it was the indignant self-righteousness of a young man who was still figuring out his place in the world, who was confused and growing up, and if I'm honest with myself, pretty filled with self-loathing. Going back and reading them doesn’t make me cringe, but that’s just because I can’t go back and read them. It’s too embarrassing.