I don't know Arrington personally, which I count as one of life's small blessings. But judging simply by his writing and his public statements, the man is not stable. This seems more like a personality defect -- a slightly modified version of Tourettes.

TechCrunch started out as a cult of personality, based on Arrington's outsized blogging persona, and it largely remains so. He got popular early by writing with an insider's knowledge about the venture capital industry and being unafraid to foist his opinions unto the world.

But spend enough time shooting from the hip and eventually your gun will get stuck in the holster and you end up blasting off a few toes. At this point, it's a wonder Arrington can even walk. Or maybe he just gets .

I think this incident, along with the last month, marks a turning point in the brief and tumultuous history of blogging. It's time to drop your childish ways and grow up -- even if that means becoming more "lamestream."

I'm taking a poll: How long do you think it will be before AOL and Arrington part ways? E-mail me: .