First it was blog spin-offs like Whiskey Bar from DailyKOS. Now the trend in big-league blogging seems to have shifted to mergers and acquisitions. First the people behind Tapped hire Matthew Yglesias. Then Ezra Klein, Joe Rospars and Matt Singer declare themselves Not Geniuses.

And now there’s Crooked Timber, an effort by Chris Bertram, Henry Farrell, Maria Farrell, Kieran Healy and Brian Weatherson. With a lineup like that, it promises to be an excellent read.