tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post2006857446302741804..comments2024-03-25T19:48:24.624+11:00Comments on Oz Conservative: Somewheres vs AnywheresUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-56491228593751263202017-03-30T07:06:57.519+11:002017-03-30T07:06:57.519+11:00Goodhart is typical of his kind in that he holds t...Goodhart is typical of his kind in that he holds the mistaken premise that more education implies a superior world-view. In fact, more education does not equal better education and a bad education is worse than none at all. Since education is essentially the propagation of ideas, liberalist education has succeeded in spreading multiple wrong-headed ideas to its recipients who now have a far more distorted vision of the world and how it works than those fortunate enough to have avoided this propaganda.Michael Leahyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15044897013849386271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-28268249612463331762017-03-29T15:05:40.384+11:002017-03-29T15:05:40.384+11:00Somehow the results of liberalism have finally add...<em>Somehow the results of liberalism have finally added up. And so they move into a new arena of thought - doubt! They _doubt_ if liberalism, or feminism, or internationalism, are really so good after all.</em><br /><br />They think that all we need to do is to tinker with liberalism a bit. It's like a car with an annoying rattling noise - all we need to do is find the source of the rattle and it will be as good as new. But this particular car needs to be towed to the wrecker's yard.dfordoomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02306293859869179118noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-2863826934762916662017-03-29T11:29:04.233+11:002017-03-29T11:29:04.233+11:00There is no liberal/conservative, left/right binar...<em>There is no liberal/conservative, left/right binary in the U.S. I wish that there was.</em><br /><br />That's true. Political binary oppositions are mostly illusions. In Australia we have two major parties, Labor and the Liberals. They are for all practical purposes interchangeable. Both support crony capitalism. Both believe passionately in immigration. Both believe in joining in every single American war. Both believe in the global warming scam. Both support homosexual marriage and every other socially radical position.<br /><br />But what matters is that the voters think there's a choice. They think the two parties represent a significant binary opposition. They think that their vote will make a difference. As long as the voters remain convinced that they can change things by voting either Labor or Liberal they won't go looking for real alternatives.<br /><br />It's the fact that these binary oppositions are in reality false oppositions that makes them so deadly.dfordoomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02306293859869179118noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-73103802294307105372017-03-29T10:42:12.342+11:002017-03-29T10:42:12.342+11:00Goodhart makes some interesting points. His concep...Goodhart makes some interesting points. His concept of anywheres vs somewheres is very useful.<br /><br />But for the rest of it, he hasn't left liberalism. He has simply come to regard its results as intolerable. He does not disagree with liberalism itself - hence his desire to 'moderate' it - but he has come to regard its byproducts as beyond the pale.<br /><br />The problem is the results of liberalism are essential to its nature. They aren't some sort of mischance - some kind of intellectual weeds that grow by themselves - they are the direct product of liberalism itself. By emphasizing the individual against all else, nationalism, family, even our sex, are thrown out. This is likely what the Trump and Brexit revolt is about. The average, plain people have had enough of having their nations ripped apart in pursuit of a mad religion.<br /><br />Goodhart is a very tiresome sort. They exist all over, especially among older liberals. Somehow the results of liberalism have finally added up. And so they move into a new arena of thought - doubt! They _doubt_ if liberalism, or feminism, or internationalism, are really so good after all. The problem with such people is they will _never_ be any use in the fight against liberalism. They'll move themselves far enough away from liberalism to feel they aren't responsible for its results. But they'll never leave it. They've made too much of a habit of being liberals to think any other way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-16123851931419762332017-03-29T02:54:45.702+11:002017-03-29T02:54:45.702+11:00An interesting insight by David Goodhart, as you d...An interesting insight by David Goodhart, as you describe it. It makes sense.<br />I envisioned another group; the stuckheres. They are the least happy, because they're so confused and conflicted. They're educated, dedicated and hyper liberalized in their angst. They're stuck in a place that they hate, because they don't have the money to be mobile. They mask their resentment and regret, but It shows through as blame. They'd be gone in a flash if they had the cash.<br />--------------------------<br />With respect to the idea that the binary view has to be thrown out:<br />We have two major political parties, both which struggle with their own wide spectrum of left and right. Together they're made up of the so-called "far right" and the loony left. There is no liberal/conservative, left/right binary in the U.S. I wish that there was. The muddle of befuddle is in the moderate middle. <br />A friend, who sounds politically savvy (he's an attorney in private practice, who lovingly talks about his early years working in the Clinton White House. He is a savvy establishment apparatchik) threw out an idea to me the other day. Buck, I'm trying to figure out a way to gather the moderate voters into a third party. He believes that most of the voting population is "moderate" and that his moderate party would be much larger than either the Dems or Repubs. <br />I couldn't help but laugh. He sounded serious. Which made him sound suddenly naive. I think that he realized that as soon as he said it. <br />Like the mythical "moderate" Muslim or those of any faith, the political moderate is by definition incapable of heavy lifting. They blow around with the wind.<br />Just for grins, I searched for "political moderate". The results were unsurprising. <br />Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06006904111281689355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-48205639416840180812017-03-28T23:28:51.908+11:002017-03-28T23:28:51.908+11:00I don't think the writer of the article is int...I don't think the writer of the article is interested in dissolving liberalism. He writes from the perspective of an Old Etonian elite who have suddenly and abruptly lost control of the system they had dominated for centuries. <br /><br />This class was attracted by liberalism in the Victorian age as an ideology which allowed them to throw off Christian restraint and indulge their lust and greed in a highly individualistic manner. This worked well for them as they controlled the country (UK) and its Empire which covered most of the world's population. They could indulge themselves in all manner of excess all over the world. This,however, changed after the 1960s and the Old Etonian elite have lost their power. Initially this was gradual but over the last 20 years has been rapid. Old Etonians are discriminated against in the areas they used to dominate - the Foreign Office, Politics and Finance. Eton itself is a bastion of social engineering with places given to black and other ethnic minority boys on various affirmative action plans with the fees paid in full. The Old Etonians who took it for granted that they virtually owned the school and would automatically send their sons there, find their sons are discriminated against in the application process which favours ethnic minorities. Moreover, many cannot afford the fees.<br /><br />Liberalism initially seduced the elites with its individualism and indulgence but it also allowed others to take control of what they thought was always theirs by right. The Old Etonian elite now find themselves insignificant in modern Britain. Now they realise what they have lost, they regret. They want to retake what they have lost by moderating liberalism but not to abolish it. They have become too individualistic to give it up. However it is not possible to moderate liberalism.<br /><br />Whom the Gods wish to destroy, they first make mad.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-33681252076030589042017-03-28T07:04:18.785+11:002017-03-28T07:04:18.785+11:00Thanks, but still seems to hit the paywall.Thanks, but still seems to hit the paywall.Mark Richardsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15961688379656119701noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-69135868617836193192017-03-28T04:43:36.362+11:002017-03-28T04:43:36.362+11:00Yes, when I explained to a freind I was against th...Yes, when I explained to a freind I was against the Iraq and Afghanistan wars as well as same-sex marriage they couldn't understand. It's a shame public discussion and thinking on what is truly worthy and meaningful is so shallow and bifurcated.Flavianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-25392608926378451972017-03-28T01:29:10.325+11:002017-03-28T01:29:10.325+11:00Your link leads to a paywall. Here's the non-...Your link leads to a paywall. Here's the non-paywall link:<br /><br />https://www.ft.com/content/39a0867a-0974-11e7-ac5a-903b21361b43RobertBrandywinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11661602554300651862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-63086728501746777512017-03-27T22:44:41.667+11:002017-03-27T22:44:41.667+11:00I'm afraid he's going to find out that lib...<i>I'm afraid he's going to find out that liberalism can't be reformed. It's a faulty concept from the ground up.</i><br /><br />Yes, I agree. Mark Richardsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15961688379656119701noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6832901.post-26391989854417119462017-03-27T21:38:45.713+11:002017-03-27T21:38:45.713+11:00The concept of "Anywheres" and "Som...The concept of "Anywheres" and "Somewheres" is quite useful.<br /><br />I'm afraid he's going to find out that liberalism can't be reformed. It's a faulty concept from the ground up. It is heartening that there are a handful of liberals who are starting to see that liberalism isn't working. It's a pity that most of them find that abandoning liberalism is just too scary a step.<br /><br />Part of the problem is that most people insist on seeing politics in binary terms. You're either a liberal or a conservative, either left or right. That binary view has to be thrown out.dfordoomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02306293859869179118noreply@blogger.com