Anyone who enjoys a moderate amount of success combined with publicity, accolades or seeming "legions" of followers / blog commenters, inevitably becomes the vi

Anyone who enjoys a moderate amount of success combined with publicity, accolades or seeming "legions" of followers / blog commenters, inevitably becomes the victim of personal attacks. Having an abrasive (see Calacanis), or egotistical, or whatever your bit may be, can be an effective way of gaining more readers and attracting a following. The opposite would be waffling, and we'd all be talking about how Aaron doesn't seem sure of himself and waffles on issues he talks about. So you're screwed either way, really.