Dear Reader (except those of you scrawling all over Antiquity),

“Why Hasn’t Anyone Punched Jonah Goldberg in the Face?” 

This was a widely asked question in the fall of 2010—and a headline at The Atlantic. The question was also asked by John Cook at Gawker, which did surprise me because we had once been friendly. And I can’t begin to tell you how many asked similar questions—and not always just questions—in my email inbox back then.

Why the sudden outbreak of Backpfeifengesicht aimed in my direction?