by Doug Ross @ Journal

I first met Larwyn in September 2006 after posting an illustrated rebuke of the Democrats' anti-First Amendment tendencies ("The Free Speech Crowd"), to which Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds was kind enough to link. Larwyn emailed me a complimentary note, copying a long list of some of the most prominent pundits and bloggers in the country. Plus Ace of Spades. Just kidding.

I soon found myself a member of the mailing list as Larwyn directed our attention to articles from a vast array of publications: snippets from policy journals, mainstream newspaper articles, and blog posts from all over the 'sphere, from the most famous folks imaginable to bloggers who got 200 visitors a day (like me). Larwyn's research was nothing if not prolific, and the compendium of links were invaluable for keeping tabs on events of the day.

In April of 2008, I began posting occasional summaries of Larwyn's collections. It was through these collections that I discovered the consistent genius of Michelle Malkin, Mark Levin, Thomas Lifson's American Thinker, Roger Simon's Pajamas Media, Jim Hoft's Gateway Pundit, Don Surber, Dan Riehl, Protein Wisdom, Jammie Wearing Fool, The Anchoress, Fausta Wertz, The Gates of Vienna, Vanderleun, Lorie Byrd, The People's Cube, and many, many others.

Larwyn has been less active of late, having been waylaid with some health issues that make it difficult to spend significant time at the computer, but the beat goes on through the mailing lists that still energize much of the conservative blogosphere.

And, unlike a few less generous blogs out there that discourage blog-pimping (PoliPundit, I'm looking at you), I welcome notes and links of interest. After all, how can the "Army of Davids" get messages out if not proactively communicating with one another?

How many Davids have benefited from the unceasing generosity of Glenn Reynolds or Michelle Malkin? How many bloggers have been inspired by them? I think it fair to say that they represent the Godparents of the conservative blogosphere. And that is, in part, why Larwyn's Linx exists.