I am preparing a series of shorter, more focused posts intended to engage Bill (and others of like mind) in a kind of dialog on the subject of the underlying ideology of his neo-con boogyman. Having been in closer proximity to real live neo-cons than Bill will ever get, I have some insight on the matter of what is good and bad about their thinking that I haven't found much time to articulate quite the way I want to, but over the next few days and weeks I'll give it a go.
The first thing I'll address is at the "root" of his neo-con "critique" (such as it is): namely, his rather bastardized understanding both of the philosophy of Leo Strauss, and its actual influence. The next I'll address is a better articulation of my critique of the economic side of neoconservatism (which I think is more significant and is having a much more unfortunate impact on our long-term prospects as a nation), with particular emphasis on a thinker who is far more pervasive in his influence than Strauss will ever be (on more than just neo-cons, too) and yet a name almost nobody knows. I've alluded to it before; a free beer on me for the person who can conjure the name up from the archives before I send that post. I have heard Bill make his case about the "garbage heap" of Strauss' thinking. I'm willing to bet I know Strauss at least as well as he knows Jung (though I don't consider myself a student), and I have a response to Bill's mistaken views that is not intended to promote Strauss (after all, at bottom I disagree with the man on fundamental issues---Strauss being, like Ed, an atheist after all), but rather to illustrate that there is "more there than meets the eye" and it ain't all black helicopters. I understand the appeal of Strauss to those who espouse his views earnestly, which is why Bill's tirades about "warmongers" and "powermongers" is so obviously off base to me. It's the same pointless demonizing he assails others for engaging in. Anyway, more of this, anon. Stay tuned to an OT near you. Or don't, as you like. - Bob ! -----Original Message----- ! From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ! [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bill Arnold ! Sent: Sunday, July 30, 2006 1:50 PM ! To: 'ProFox Email List' ! Subject: [OT] a plea to reasonable people ! ! ! The neocons knew all along that making that invasion happen was a ! go-for-broke proposition for America. Many people let their heads be ! turned by propaganda, but when all is said and done, that was, and is, ! the deal. ! ! Because the neocons are so planted throughout our power ! structure, most ! significantly in gov't and the "news", and because there is ! no mechanic ! in existence to purge these systems of that influence in any ! reasonable ! time frame, we're reduced to the role of paying spectator. Some of us ! will pay with just money, others with blood and lives. The ME ! is a lost ! cause, but they will never give up. That leaves us in the middle of a ! picture that's getting uglier by the day. I can't predict the next Big ! Event, but if we can't find a way stop them, it will happen ! and it will ! speak for itself. ! ! What that gang has wrought on us will eventually be sorted ! out, because ! truth is like a bubble that can't be denied a path to the surface. ! Whether that will happen before or after our faces are ! blackened is, or ! at least should be, a question of this hour. ! ! For those who feed on the drama and excitement, you'll get ! your money's ! worth alright. For those of us who never wanted any part of that ! conflict, we're screwed - unless we can figure out how to get that ! bubble to the surface real soon. ! ! The only golden key in sight is right in front of us, literally: the ! Internet. But it has yet to evolve into the force it can be, and it's ! under attack "for our own good". The minute we can no longer ! access the ! Internet anonymously, it's power is drained. Does this have to be ! explained? If not, I'll move on to how the powermongers are ! most likely ! to accomplish this feat: child molesters. Who wouldn't give ! up the power ! of the Internet, anonymous access, if there's even one of ! them still out ! there? Can you say "card being played like a fiddle"? ! ! To complete the thought, we can't stop the trend to biometric ! id's, and ! we will need them for voting and transactions anyway. The key ! difference ! is whether we will need these id's to logon or only when we vote or ! engage in transactions, and whether we'll need to carry them at all ! times or only when we want to. These is no small points because they ! will determine the future of the Internet - and so many other things. ! ! The upshot of all this is a plea to reasonable people: PLEASE let's do ! everything we can to get the neocons out of power BEFORE they drag us ! deeper into a war we want no part of, and BEFORE they gain control of ! the Internet. ! ! ! Bill ! ! ! [excessive quoting removed by server] _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: [email protected] Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
