Howard Troxler, a rather hard hitting St. Petersburg Times columnist, possesses a most unusual writing tool when it comes to telling wrong doers where to stick it: Sympathy. From the moment Troxler opens his mouth, it is plain to see that the gifts of sarcasm, conversational writing and well argued controversial view points are available at his beck and call. His brilliant columns with comedic yet poignant headlines such as “Stop Thief, or I’ll quote statistics” have the power to simultaneously embarrass officials and law makers while drawing a committed following to Troxler’s zippy and energized bouts on politics.
With Troxler's ability to cleverly mock,berate and motivate, I initially thought that getting the antagonist to feel the shame of a brutal verbal bashing would be the primary goal. But Troxler finds that you don't persuade change by flat out bullying, and they’re times when it’s more appropriate to take a friendlier route.
“Its important not to spew, ‘You morons, you nitwits’” he said as he explained his writing method.
“If it’s a complicated issue that I am trying to explain, I adopt more of a friendly and conversational tone,” he said.
But tricky Troxler doesn’t just go a little less harsh on his target based on a whim of good will, he chooses this route to tap into the target’s vulnerability.
“What I want is for the guy to feel uneasy.”
A columnist would be less likely to bring a feeling of unease if the writer rams the wrong doer’s wrong doings down their throats.
In a column directed towards Ray Sansom, speaker for the Florida House of Representatives, instead of calling Sansom a money sucking, unconscionable drain on tax payer's dollars for taking a cushy six-figure job at a community college , Troxler eases it down with a spoonful of humor and concern.
"Dear Mr. Speaker:
So, how's it going so far? Have you figured out how to fix our state's problems with insurance, taxes and the crummy budget?"
He then shows Ransom that he understands why he took the job, and that he doesn't even doubt he's qualified, but ultimately serves heavy doses of conviction and truth.This is a very effective method, because Troxler sounds more like the honest,in your face family member, someone a man like Sansom would lend his ear to rather than an a flaming self righteous columnist firing out judgments from a soapbox.
