It's always mystified me why England seems to adopt the worst of American politics, even if it makes zero sense. I blame the academy and its pollution of everything outside its walls.
The clay feet of the heroes of the Western narrative should be considered academically and given all the pedicures you can think of in that context, but even the well-read need some sort of reason for playing the national, or even the civilization game. What are the alternatives besides an undefined marxist "utopia" or a hollowed-out shell of a nation or a civilization? You want a Cambodian "Year Zero" beginning with all the purges and piles of bodies that go along with it?
These stories are important because they provide a common source of heroism, or at least the appearance of heroism, on the side of liberty. We need this for social cohesion and to reinforce the possibly naieve belief that we in the Western democratic republics can advance the cause of greater liberty for everyone that wants it. I'm afraid all this mean-spirited "debunking" along with the assault on (as opposed to the reform of) all of our institutions has done permanent damage to this cohesion.
The left wants to reveal all the evil of our venerated figures because it wants to destroy our common mythology. Do they ever propose replacing what they tear down?
It's always mystified me why England seems to adopt the worst of American politics, even if it makes zero sense. I blame the academy and its pollution of everything outside its walls.
The clay feet of the heroes of the Western narrative should be considered academically and given all the pedicures you can think of in that context, but even the well-read need some sort of reason for playing the national, or even the civilization game. What are the alternatives besides an undefined marxist "utopia" or a hollowed-out shell of a nation or a civilization? You want a Cambodian "Year Zero" beginning with all the purges and piles of bodies that go along with it?
These stories are important because they provide a common source of heroism, or at least the appearance of heroism, on the side of liberty. We need this for social cohesion and to reinforce the possibly naieve belief that we in the Western democratic republics can advance the cause of greater liberty for everyone that wants it. I'm afraid all this mean-spirited "debunking" along with the assault on (as opposed to the reform of) all of our institutions has done permanent damage to this cohesion.
The left wants to reveal all the evil of our venerated figures because it wants to destroy our common mythology. Do they ever propose replacing what they tear down?