You (Won't) Be Shocked How Much Clickbait Annoys Me/How a Seemingly Simplistic Practice Leads to Conspiracy-Level Problems--Plus, a Review of the Stellar Book, "Uncover Up," Too!

I've been at this blogging thing for over 15 years now. I've written opinions I later changed my mind about and ones I still stand by. I've admitted when I was wrong and been eager to point out when I was right. One thing I've tried to never do, however, is make annoying clickbait headlines. I started thinking about this when I saw an article today that announced, "‘American Pickers’ fans praying for Mike Wolfe after tragic news: ‘Heart is shattered’." That sounds horrific, doesn't it? Well, his dog died. That is sad, and I'm sure some dog-lovers out there are praying for Mike, but such a headline is just utterly crass considering Wolfe did lose a former co-host and friend (Frank Fritz) in 2024. I didn't link to the article because I refuse ot give them more clicks, but that's a tacky way to essentially trick someone into visiting your site and getting you ad revenue or such.To give some other examples I refuse to be too specific about or link to, as I don't want to give the sites any…