The Glade 4.0

In a recent article entitled Movement of the Moment Looks to Long-Ago Texts By KATE ZERNIKE she goes on to trash the reading of older political and philosophical works. She attempts claim that the idea of the Rule of Law was started by Hayek (and since she relates him to Tea Parties that idea itself is to be ignored). Its a piece dripping with condemnation of the intellectual curious and encourages calls of mocking to anyone who clings to ideals older than 1981 (the apparent cutoff for the harshest criticism). Apparently ideas are things more akin to oranges that go bad over time and are not to be judged by their individual merits or logic.

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"...but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom." - De Tocqueville

The thought that first hit my mind was the trashing of Chinese history by the Cultural revolution, and how much destruction and loss it caused.

For the young among you who may not have heard of it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_Revolution

Based on your report Elmo, I find her statements to be both ignorant and frightening. How are you going to formulate a valid opinion if you ignore the foundations of the topics? what, just listen to what she says? Follow me, don't think for yourself?

Give her a pink slip, she can buy her own damn soapbox.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

She says its a "bad thing" that the Tea Party is looking into its philosophical roots and reading texts on things like politics, philosophy, and economics.

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"...but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom." - De Tocqueville

I have the opposing opinion, it is a good thing to arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible. What we have today springs from those texts, but has been altered, sometimes, subtly sometimes not, to meet the 'needs' of the time. Looking back to the roots is a good way to remove the spin and review the logic, rationale, and walk the path they charted.

IMHO that is a good thing. YMMV

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

Hmm, dupe?

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=4311

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