It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a True Blog Comics, a gag comic book cover starring real bloggers. In this issue, “The Lair of Simon,” the industrious and trusting Kevin Aylward learns too late that Laurence Simon has an ulterior motive.

(This is Simon’s second appearance in True Blog Comics. He was the hero of issue number 2, so it’s his turn to be the villain. Satire doesn’t play favorites.)

Sure, you’ve got two hands, but face it: one of them is really good at doing stuff, and the other one can’t do jack. According to Michael Crowley, the blogosphere is a lot like that. Writing in tomorrow’s Sunday New York Times Magazine, Crowley says politically conservative weblogs are more effective than liberal blogs. The title of his piece: “Conservative Blogs Are More Effective.” You see?

More effective at what? At exerting “political and electoral influence,” he says. Why are conservative blogs more effective? Is it because the principles loosely encapsulated under the “conservative” banner are more true, and more widely held, than the “liberal” principles, such as they are? Or is it some other reason?

Some other reason, says Crowley, who is liberal. You see, the real reason conservative blogs are more effective is Rush Limbaugh. Or Fox News. Or both. These media entities provide an “infrastructure” which picks up “tidbits” from the blogosphere, and broadcasts them.

And the liberals simply don’t have anything comparable. If some kind of liberal media infrastructure could be built — a few TV networks, a couple news wire services, several dozen major daily papers — then liberal blogs would be able to compete on a level playing field. I say it’s worth looking into, if for no other reason than to test Crowley’s thesis.