There's a big range. I had two Straussian teachers in Michigan polisci. One was a liberal feminist, utterly commited to democracy. She didn't blink when I wrote a paper defending what I took to be Lenin's ideal of direct democracy in S&R. The other Straussian teacher of mine was very conservative, but absolutely fair and honest, a level-headed, extremely sharp, and scholarly guy. I was the class commie -- in those days I was _very_ Red and out -- and all he insisted was that I argue for my views. (He didn't get tenure.) Gavve me the misimpression that Straussians were just people who read classic texts very carefully. Well, some of them are.
Later, I had an experience with the while range of Straussians, speaking at a conference on Marxism at Kenyon College in Ohio. I was on a panel with one fella, in history, I think, who was just like my old teacher, very conservative but smart, decent, and fair. Then there were some clowns from polisci who were touting the sort of scary pop-Nietzschean elitism that is at issue here. I argued that the living essence of Marxism was the extension of democracy to the economy. The historian argued that there was a difference between political and economic democracy, the first being a good and the latter a bad idea -- good in theory, bad in practice. The polisci types said, What's so great about democracy? Excellence requires elite rule. I said that I thought the differences between us were to great to be fruitfully discussed. jks
Peter Dorman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Peter Dorman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
The issue is not what Strauss himself did or did not say. There is a
definite culture among contemporary Straussians (divided as they are)
that promotes deceit and an ubermensch self-conception among the adepts.
It disdains democracy due to the inability of the vast majority to
attain, or even comprehend, "virtue". It is definitely not a dominant
ideology on the right, but it contributes to and justifies the cynicism
of rightists in power toward everyday morality. Anyone who has ever had
to deal with these people first hand comes away feeling soiled.
Peter
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