I had a completely random 10-minute segment on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show last night. I’ve been known to occasionally (ahem) lack brilliance on air, but last night was a winner. I admitted having not read the Newsweek Christmas cover story (and took pride in my avoidance of it) and then proceeded to talk about it anyway (first rule of punditry: you are an expert on everything anyone expects you to be an expert in, for goodness sake. never admit anything else.).

Then Hugh started giving NR friendly grief for being run by a bunch of blue staters—even worse, New Yorkers (I could do without the native New Yorker-bashing in my inbox, by the way–you know who you are, Shannen Coffin). I eventually rattle off a list of non-NYers: Rich Lowry is from Virginia (though the Yankee thing never helps him in this regard, I suppose), Ramesh Ponnuru is from Kansas [which Hugh was cnnvinced I was making up], John Miller is from Michigan…and then my most brilliant defense, “Byron York is from somewhere cool…somewhere in normal America.” (That’s probably exactly what I said.) The list, of course, goes on.

I double-checked with Byron and he is, indeed, from real America–Alabama. He even went to the University of Alabama.

And I’ve been suspected president of the Bill Pryor fan club. Doesn’t that all count for anything?