Making our history one step at a time
"There is nothing so absurd, that it can't be said by a philosopher." Wiker's thesis is that ideas have power, and a lot of them can be dangerous. OF the 14 books be reviews, some would be universally condemned such as Hitler's Mein Kampf-- but others were written by eminent scientists such as Darwin's "Descent of Man."
Wiker's book claims a lot of ground for the conservative tradition-- he calls on both Chesterton and Lewis, and both Federalist and Anti-Federalist arguments, and even Lord of the Rings. But Wiker's vision of conservatism seems very different from the current embodiment of the Republican party. His discussions surrounding self-government, a distributed economy, and cultivation of virtue seem like a call to return to our roots. It is a refreshing reminder that politics shouldn't be entirely defined by what we're against.
I was feeling fiscally conservative this past month, so I picked this book up. I'm not very loyal when it comes to politics-- I'm not good at being a team player, I hate mud-slinging down purely partisan lines, and I like to try to find the good in everyone. But I do like a good... Continue Reading →
I re-checked out Jerry Z. Muller's comprehensive little library of conservative theory "Conservatism: An Anthology of Social and Political Thought from David Hume to the Present" this past week, because I kept wanting to quote it, but I hadn't written down any quotes when I first read it! Checking it out from the UW library,... Continue Reading →
History Engineers 