He might have been better off saying nothing at all. Now he has drawn attention to himself, even though the photo might have been perfectly innocent.

I wonder how many people right now are on pins and needles hoping their names don't come up.

in the Caribbean? The kids more likely was his hobby and small income stream from blackmail.

Sadly no one will probably every know about his financial business.

sexual scandals that the financial scandals often are ignored. I am sure there are many.

Apparently he was always a con artist and he was quite good at it. All that power must have gone to his head.

If he had a chance to enjoy the suffering of others, don't think for a moment he would turn it down.

He of the unerring moral compass.

Great catch! Smarmy, moralistic sot.

Always projection

😀

Never, ever, EVER overestimate the journalistic ethics of the NYT.

" 'Conflict of interest'? Never heard of it. What's that?"

cancelled my subscription to the NYT.............

You don’t say 😀

His columns are always holier-than-thou and hard right. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if he was involved with the young women at Epstein’s.

Why is it that the biggest scolds are often the biggest perpetrators?

I’d love to see the NYT get rid of him. If memory serves, he replaced William Safire who, although a Republican, was clear-eyed and principled. In comparison, Brooksks is a hack.

Exactly.

it's called: PROJECTION

or was it Shakespeare who said it so eloquently "I think thou doth protest too much"

I recall an essay a few years back where he twisted his words endlessly to try to appear moderate while declaring that women really are walking incubators who lose all rights the second there’s 4 cells in her uterus.

David Brooks will always be a Moonie.

for their actions. If they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, then fine. But if they participated in the sex trafficking and child rape, then they need to be in prison. Dems, Repubs, so-called 'captains of industry,' billionaire parasites, Wall Street greed-lizards, ALL OF THEM. Even members of the erstwhile fourth estate.

SMDH.

You have to have a touch of evil for evil to reach out for you, IMO. Like draws like.

And here I thought that trump's decline and fall couldn't get any more satisfying. David Brooks, going down in flames. Life is good.

Possible?

With things coming to light, not only are people being exposed, but Trump's blackmail for dollars and power business is kapoot!

i kind of think trump showed him something.

Brooks has always been skeevy

about as whitebread as it gets. Hang him on hypocrisy, if you want, but he's busy being a pious WASP.

I mean, shit happens, and Im not comparing that to pedophilia, but he lectures about religion after having done that

his -- can recall him on PBS News Hour (or whatever it was at that time). Wanted to throw stuff at the TV. But he struck me as plain and simple biscuit mix. Nevertheless do believe he's smart enough to not have dropped his pants for one of Epstein's captive girls.

in dumping his long-time wife and marrying someone over 20 years his junior, must have congratulated himself on finally joining the BAD OLD BOYS network! He MADE it!

WASP stands for white Anglo-Saxon protestant

resounds WASPish values.

His first wife had converted and raised their children in Jewish faith. But Brooks left her for his younger staff assistant who is staunch Christian and he converted to Christianity under her influence.

All the way up to the US Supreme Court.

Would explain a lot.

photos of people with Epstein, I am reminded of the First Amendment's prohibition of guilt by association. These photos are released without dates or context. I mean, in Brooks' case, it probably does indicate guilt, by virtue of his writing the article about how releasing the Epstein files was a mistake and didn't disclose that he himself had known Epstein. But Epstein had a sham philanthropic organization that people could be talking with him about, rr real estate holdings. Or whatever rich people talk to each other about that has nothing to do with sex.

Just sayin'... Trump wants to round us all up in a guilt-by-association-with-antif purge. This makes me wary of when our side lines up to demand the same.

I'm still not sure what releasing these pictures do for anyone. Doesn't tell us anything about who might have been involved with any crimes, sexual or otherwise with Epstein. But clearly that's not stopping people from jumping to conclusions based on a picture that shows nothing criminal.

and does not disclose that he had some contacts with Epstein over the years, it looks more suspicious.

But I also think the collective reaction here is evidence we are obsessed with the "Epstein files" in that collectively look at everyone condemning him while not also saying obviously Jimmy Buffett or Bill Clinton, or Noam Chomsky were pedo creeps because their pictures were there too.

It's people confirming their own bias based on nothing more than conjecture. Pictures of Bill Richardson who was alleged to have victimized Virginia Giuffre and have visited Epstein's Island haven't been shown. Without evidence of wrong doing or at least context, these pictures offer nothing. Shocking a rich guy who presented as being a normal part of society had parties where other rich and powerful people were. I've had my picture taken with a man I later found out is a rapist. Doesn't make me one.

I think if without more evidence, this is not dissimilar to the Qanon pizza place thing. I don't need Brooks or Trump to be a pedophile to dislike them. I don't need them to be the most awful of people to think my morals and values are better than theirs.

Seems like a thing a proper journalist would do.

Epstein tossed around some money at good philanthropy organizations. He liked to rub shoulders with politicians, media stars, academic folks ( I saw a photo of Noem Chomsky) many, but not all, of whom are entirely innocent of pedo crimes.

To me the big question about his innocent encounters are “When did they occur?” Were they before or after his conviction in Florida? Answer that and then we can get judgey.

So, we seem to be in good company.

Unlike Mr. Brooks up there lol.

Speculation could be avoided by MAGAts releasing all the damn files.

And this just shows he’s deeper in their club than he let on.

David Brooks the sanctimonious bullshit artist of PBS News Hour & NY Times is in the Epstein fotos. He was upset with Democrats who previously released materials. Non-repukes considered him as a conservative who was reasonable. He was considered morally upright, and proper. He never was, he only spoke softly as he lied for his team. He was always a hypocritical scold. He heavily pushed "Bush Derangement Syndrome", and now Trump cannot stop using his updated model. — Ω ☨

As werethe people I knew at the Times, who were in fact, real big shots there, were equally slimy. I posted about them a long time ago, how one of them was in my family of acquisition at the time.

I am sure he will find a way of using this personal situation to segue into a conversation he had with a cabdriver in Albuquerque about inflation.

He has been on his high horse ethics bullshit kick for 40 years. Turns out he was a pedo creep. Shocked? Nope.

"That 'plains a lot Lucy."

move along.

lead a "moral life." Called the 2nd Mountain or something. No mountains in Florida David.

If someone is helping with the cover up, there is a likely possibility they were involved in the incidents they are trying to keep hidden.

Lol, yeah, well you're deep in it pal.

But as far as Brooks is concerned, it remains to be seen.

Effin scumbag hypocrite

If there is no need to say something, then don't say something.

A fatuous hypocritical gasbag. Some people I know adore him
I always set them straight

Who dumped his wife for a research assistant half his age.

Whatever, Dave.

the loudest to protest releasing Epstein evidence. Pictures of people tied to Epstein don't prove guilt of anything except poor judgement. But protesting the release of evidence goes a long way towards convincing Americans of your guilt. Just ask the Felon.

His debates with E.J. Dionne on NPR every Friday exposed him as a total lightweight intellectually, and very dubious in a moral sense.

Can't say he didn't know

“The Epstein Story? Count Me Out. Squirrel!”

I have always despised Brooks, now I know why my radar was going off on him.

He is a weasel POS.

I am not saying he did anything with girls, but the fuck he didn't know about Epstein until 2018.

And, his column ... the nerve of this ELITIST, going on about elitists.

Oops.

Did Brooks learn that line from Trump?

A couple of years ago he posted a picture of a burger, fries and alcoholic beverage that he was eating at a Newark airport restaurant while waiting for a flight. He Tweeted that the meal cost $78 and that's why Americans think the economy is terrible.

Internet sleuths analyzed the picture and discovered the likely restaurant in the terminal where the burger and booze came from, and then did some math. The burger was something closer to $18 and he had probably ordered a couple of double scotches (at over $20 each, because - airport pricing) and likely left a 20% tip on top of that. Adding tax brought his total tab to $77 and some change.

https://www.poynter.org/fact-checking/2023/david-brooks-newark-airport-meal-78/

Also, I know most of Brooks' stuff is hard right-wing apologist nonsense, but he has given some thought-provoking speeches at the Aspen Institute. Go to YouTube and search "david brooks aspen institute" and watch his talk on populism and another one on "How America Recovers" from Trump. There's a lot to disagree with in those talks, but it's worth a listen.

Brooks is more of an intellectual than the other right-wing cry-babies, and some of his speeches outside of our left-wing bubble is a good way to keep our fingers on the pulse of the right so we can criticize with some authority.

Because he left his underpants on the whole time.