Stephen J. Gould's essays always seemed to follow the same series of steps. He would talk about literary greats and use French or Latin words, and then launch into a series of slurs and sneers before proclaiming ideas he disliked to be wrong, without really confronting them.This sort of tactic is still very common today. Sneering is just part and parcel of modern left-wing commentary, and Gould was ones of its great popularizers. But among those in the know, he was thought of as a popular buffoon who was bad at math.But he was influential and he liked whipping up a mob, so you shouldn't say anything, lest you draw his ire. Read this whole short essay if you want to get a very clear picture of the man Gould was and the style he promoted:

Stephen J. Gould's essays always seemed to follow the same series of steps. He would talk about literary greats and use French or Latin words, and then launch into a series of slurs and sneers before proclaiming ideas he disliked to be wrong, without really confronting them. ... This sort of tactic is still very common today. Sneering is just part and parcel of modern left-wing commentary, and Gould was ones of its great popularizers. But among those in the know, he was thought of as a popular buffoon who was bad at math. ... But he was influential and he liked whipping up a mob, so you shouldn't say anything, lest you draw his ire. Read this whole short essay if you want to get a very clear picture of the man Gould was and the style he promoted: