Am I allowed to say that about a woman these days? Well,Sarah has done a great job fisking some Philosophy Professor over on her site. I’d hate to have her mad at me!
The last chapter of Ralph Peters’ book, Beyond Terror, is titled Dogma and the Dead. He discusses “intellectuals” at length, and this guy seems to fit the bill.
A room filled with university professors makes me nostalgic for the Khmer Rouge. Since I value intellect, I dislike intellectuals?those men and women, freed from the necessity of labor, who prefer theory to reality and who footnote while others fight our nation?s battles. The enormous increase in the number of minds shielded from mundane concerns?thanks to our expanding wealth?is far more dangerous than the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction: Absurd theories killed vastly more human beings in the twentieth century than did the most terrible weapons.
I was thinking about these folks as I played golf today. All the anti-war protests going on led me to that distraction. Spoiled Children. That’s the best way to describe them. They didn’t get what they wanted, so they’re going to throw tantrums.
The entire concept of representative government is majority rule, with respect for those in the minority. These people cannot grasp that because the majority believes going into Iraq was the right thing to do, their opinion no longer matters.
Prior to the war, I believe they had every right to protest the impending conflict. Once it began, however, debate was over. Timothy J. Freeman (notice how this type likes to be known by their full name, like John F. Kerry?) is just another crybaby. They cannot stand to be proven wrong, and will never accept being wrong. They were absolutely right, but it is “nuanced” right. Right?
I’m sure Timothy J. Freeman marched yesterday. It was a “look at me” moment he wouldn’t have missed. The issue no longer is who was right and who was wrong, but that Bush did something these folks didn’t want him to do.
But they were in the minority. Now, as in any democratic republic, they have the chance to elect someone who would be more likely to do what they want. That is the issue. And they are going to continue crying until they get enough people on their side to get Bush out of the White House. And that’s okay. That’s what elections are all about.
But they have no valid stance. All they can do is lie (yes, and that word is very strong to me) and restate bromides which have no basis in truth, or even relevance. This they do to try to convince others to join their personal crusade. They have no value, create nothing, and demean all.
The intellectual may speak loftily of liberty, but he loves the sound of a cell door slamming shut on his enemies, be they real or imagined. The man who thinks too much lives far too little. The intellectual lives in terror of experience. He hates talent and all things instinctive, the capacity for joy and the generous spirit. Far from hungry for understanding, the intellectual gorges on dry texts as a substitute for the far richer diet of knowledge consumed by the man of deeds. Throughout history, the great book-burners and the most determined censors have always been intellectuals.
I agree with Peters, and only wish I could put it on paper as well as he does.
Good writing. Yours and his. How about “mad as a wet poultry product”? No, you’re right. It just doesn’t quite work.
Comment by topdawg — March 21, 2004 @ 3:11 pm