Brad De Long wrote:
>>An interesting excerpt from a column written a couple of years ago
>>by The Nation's own neoconservative leftist, Eric Alterman, part of
>>a classic pomo-bashing screed:
>>
>>"But here's the twist. [Labor historian Nelson] Lichtenstein is
>>part of a perfectly Rortyite reformist Campaign for a Living Wage
>>at the University of Virginia. This campaign is not about ending
>>sexism, racism, or homophobia, but about getting janitorial staff a
>>few extra bucks an hour. Who are its volunteers? Primarily, says
>>Lichtenstein, faculty and graduate students from the pomo
>>literature and theory crowd."
>>
>>Doug
>
>Give Alterman some credit for sophistication. If he were in the
>business of writing a pomo-bashing screed, that paragraph wouldn't
>have appeared in his column...
We went through this before, but I'd say that the paragraph
undermines the entire thesis of his article, but he seemed not to
notice. When Martin Duberman appeared at the Nation's offices last
year to talk about his collection Left Out - which is all about how
sexual politics and other kinds of politics are all mixed up -
Alterman denounced him with a vehemence that embarrassed almost
everyone in the room. That sex stuff just doesn't matter, you see.
Doug
