exetertailor:  Satirical or analytical pieces about a man who brays ignorance as if it were virtue is not "whining."  To whine is to "complain in a feeble or petulant way." The columnist's piece here is both witty and sober-minded, bespeaking a learned intelligence. You, however, uncritically call someone a whiner and leave it at that. So, um, you brought the whining.