Thanks OB. Nice write up. I know squat about my family history other than that my great grandfather on my mom's side was John Philip Kohler (that 'o' needs an umlaut) who I'm named after. When the Lutheran church split into the Missouri & Wisconsin synod's, he was head of the Wisconsin and a man named Anthony Peeler headed up the Missouri. Great grand parents came to this country in the late 1800's. I'm full blooded German. Don't know much about my dad's side of the family as my parents got divorced when I was around 5 years old. My father & grandfather were both Lutheran pastors. Grandfather in Tucson for over 50 years in that role. I agree with you on socialism and Richard Wolff. Will get his book. You sound like a good friend of mine who's a major history buff. I'll share that quote about history with him. Good idea on writing a 'get to know you' post as your first. I'll do the same. Take care.
The reasonable people Berenson speaks of prove Mark Twain's saying, "It's not the things that you don't know that will kill you; it's the things you do know that just ain't so. '
They still trust the meritocracy, which is so corrupted organizations like the FDA and the CDC no longer put the public's interests first. It's not that the reasonable people are stupid, it is that they just haven't been paying attention, and probably are trusting media organizations like NPR to be telling them the true story.
Fine writing, no less than I'd expect from you. Not that you need my approval, of course.
I truly regret dropping the F-bomb on you earlier today. That was disgusting and wrong, and I screamed at myself promptly. We could discuss possible provocation for it on another occasion, perhaps, but this wouldn't be the time for that. In any case, despite the foregoing, I would like to remain your friend... since we go back almost 40 years.
You may not believe this, but we agree on far more than that with which we disagree.
As i'm sure you know as well as I do, the terms "liberal," "progressive," and even "conservative" are constantly mutable. The term that concerns me most right now, however, is one that's considerably more recent in provenance: "illiberal." As in Hungary, Russia, Turkey, Brazil, Belarus, the Philippines, and ascendant parties in Germany, France, Italy, etc. Many of which regimes are praised on Fox "News." Hel, sounded like Carlson wanted to move to Budapest. WTF???
Though we probably won't personally be around to see it, that illiberal cancer has a real chance to prosper more in the mid-21st... yes, likely encouraged by continuing corruption and outright rot in purportedly liberal governments, in which every failure amounts to an argument for illiberal authoritarianism.
But authoritarianism is just that, and nobody can pretty it up like lipstick on a pig. Say what you will about the naivete of Western liberalism... and I know there's a lot to say about that... but I'll still take it over the rhythmic jackboot marching of the opposite tendency, which against all my hopes is finding fruitful territory in our poor, confused 21st century.
Thanks OB. Nice write up. I know squat about my family history other than that my great grandfather on my mom's side was John Philip Kohler (that 'o' needs an umlaut) who I'm named after. When the Lutheran church split into the Missouri & Wisconsin synod's, he was head of the Wisconsin and a man named Anthony Peeler headed up the Missouri. Great grand parents came to this country in the late 1800's. I'm full blooded German. Don't know much about my dad's side of the family as my parents got divorced when I was around 5 years old. My father & grandfather were both Lutheran pastors. Grandfather in Tucson for over 50 years in that role. I agree with you on socialism and Richard Wolff. Will get his book. You sound like a good friend of mine who's a major history buff. I'll share that quote about history with him. Good idea on writing a 'get to know you' post as your first. I'll do the same. Take care.
Alex makes some really good points here: https://alexberenson.substack.com/p/the-god-that-failed?r=dvex&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&utm_source=copy
The reasonable people Berenson speaks of prove Mark Twain's saying, "It's not the things that you don't know that will kill you; it's the things you do know that just ain't so. '
They still trust the meritocracy, which is so corrupted organizations like the FDA and the CDC no longer put the public's interests first. It's not that the reasonable people are stupid, it is that they just haven't been paying attention, and probably are trusting media organizations like NPR to be telling them the true story.
Fine writing, no less than I'd expect from you. Not that you need my approval, of course.
I truly regret dropping the F-bomb on you earlier today. That was disgusting and wrong, and I screamed at myself promptly. We could discuss possible provocation for it on another occasion, perhaps, but this wouldn't be the time for that. In any case, despite the foregoing, I would like to remain your friend... since we go back almost 40 years.
You may not believe this, but we agree on far more than that with which we disagree.
As i'm sure you know as well as I do, the terms "liberal," "progressive," and even "conservative" are constantly mutable. The term that concerns me most right now, however, is one that's considerably more recent in provenance: "illiberal." As in Hungary, Russia, Turkey, Brazil, Belarus, the Philippines, and ascendant parties in Germany, France, Italy, etc. Many of which regimes are praised on Fox "News." Hel, sounded like Carlson wanted to move to Budapest. WTF???
Though we probably won't personally be around to see it, that illiberal cancer has a real chance to prosper more in the mid-21st... yes, likely encouraged by continuing corruption and outright rot in purportedly liberal governments, in which every failure amounts to an argument for illiberal authoritarianism.
But authoritarianism is just that, and nobody can pretty it up like lipstick on a pig. Say what you will about the naivete of Western liberalism... and I know there's a lot to say about that... but I'll still take it over the rhythmic jackboot marching of the opposite tendency, which against all my hopes is finding fruitful territory in our poor, confused 21st century.