American Cant
Such is the Wickedness of some men, and the stupid Servility of others, that one would almost be inclined to conclude that Communities cannot be free. —Sam Adams
Much American public discourse—the larger part—is made up of false impressions and invalid assumptions, what sensible people used to call cant, that are designed to disguise and support the wickedness of power seekers. For instance:
Spending more money leads to better education.
More and better buildings and equipment lead to better education.
More well-paid administrators lead to better education.
The purpose of education is to get a good job.
Education guarantees getting a good job. (Ceased to be true some time ago.)
Spectator sports are an essential part of education.
Spending more money leads to a better national defense.
Occupying foreign countries is national defense.
Occupying foreign countries helps them to achieve democracy.
Affirmative action leads to equal opportunity for all.
Abraham Lincoln was a saintly man.
School integration has been a world-class success.
Disarming law-abiding citizens will increase public safety.
Television newspersons are well-informed and fair.
Israel is an indispensable ally.
The Bill of Rights was given us by the Founding Fathers so the government could guarantee us our rights.
The Constitution requires “a wall of separation” between government and religion, especially Christianity.
The Constitution proclaims democracy and that “all men are created equal.”
All Presidents are basically decent and well-meaning (except possibly Nixon).
America's primary task today is to "defeat terrorism."
The Federal Reserve Chairman is a very wise man who knows how to "manage" the economy.
The Constitution establishes the Democratic and Republican parties.
John F. Kennedy, for his charm and intelligence, was a universally admired President.
The best way to stop the incredibly lucrative illegal drug trade is to put drug users in jail.
Americans cruelly stole land from Mexico.
American settlers (from whom a majority of "Americans" are no longer descended) stole land from the Indians.
The United States is a democracy where the people rule. (You have to be really dumb after the last few weeks not to figure out that the United States is a plutocracy.)
Entries(RSS)
#48, God bless Texas!
To the person who hides behind the name Sempronius. When you resort to terms of ridicule and belittlement like "There, there ole boy," I know that you have nothing worthwhile to say. I have noticed that persons who use that sort of personal rhetoric on this website are usually leftists. The resort to personal ridicule rather than argument is also a common tendency of homosexuals. Please do me the favour not to comment on any of my articles again.
@ 52,My name is Robert Randazzo,and I do not hide from anyone.I chose Sempronius as a name in a moment of whimsy.It appeals to me because it is sonorous, and consonant with my Roman heritage.
Ridicule is a legitimate response to what is,in fact,ridiculous.Furthermore,to be forthright and clarion is masculine in nature.Unlike the endless blubbering that accompanies certain themes around these parts.
Your provincial and parochial mind is as incapable of correctly identifying true leftists,as it is of discerning the value and wisdom of older,richer traditions,than those which you adhere to.
I did not know that about homosexuals.You know far more than I do on the subject.I shall sportingly refrain from speculating as to why.
As I said I am a sporting fellow,and my generosity is legendary.And so I shall gladly concede you your request.However,from time to time I may allow myself the indulgence of "popping in to say hello",whenever the fancy strikes me.
I trust that is a fair arrangement.
@48 John Roberts
Well it's entirely possible that the Mexi-cans who make that joke are so ignorant of their own history they must have been educated in American schools of Chicano Studies.
@53
Robert, if you're the probably bald ballcap-wearing fellow on facebook, I can't help but notice that your friends seem to be mostly Mexicans, not a single anglo among them. 'fun culo.
va a fare in culo, I had to check Urban Dictionary
@Gervaise
Not me my friend,not a member of any silly "social networking" site.Dont have a single Mexican amigo.Dont care much about Mexico.
As for Anglos,Dr. Wilson is the best Anglo mate anybody could wish for.Please dont try and ruin a perfectly monstrous friendship,o.k.?
My first and last names are farly common.
Spying are we?
As to your last remark,no grazie.
Cheers mate.
Randazzo at 53 and 56. Thanks for ullistrating my point so beautifully.
There has to be hope for a man who cites Joseph de Maistre for any purpose; I respectfully posit we not flip Semipronius the Italo-American bird so hastily.
Question, though: Did Mexico have a right to secede from Spain? Did Mexicans under Sant'Anna have a right to kill the emperor they had crowned after seceding? Personally, I think that question is much more morally pressing than the question of whether Texas belongs to the rebellious British colonies or the rebellious Spanish territories.
Meaning, I have a lot of sympathy with the people of Latin America. I have no sympathy for their rebellious ruling classes who preached freedom from Spanish tyranny (whatever) and subsequently let their countries turn into bloodbaths. I have met wealthy Latinos whom I liked; I have met many others whom I could not abide any more than a typical American leftist yuppie sociallite.
The point is, this was conquest, it was accepted by both sides and money was paid for it, as was the gentlemanly thing to do. There is no Vaterland grievance to speak of. Why should anyone have any problem with this principle?
In practice, I have to acknowledge that, given the birthplaces of both my parents, I might well never have existed had New Spain remained New Spain. I don't approve of revolution, but things happen, and we move on.
Wilson @57.One last thing.If I may,I'd like to attach a conditionality to our little agreement.I will not sully your articles with my presence so long as I am not personally mentioned or directly attacked/insulted.In the event that I am I reserve the right to respond.Fair enough?
"The Federal Reserve Chairman is a very wise man who knows how to “manage” the economy"...
I am trying to revise the statement to something like this: The Federal Reserve Chairman is a very wise man who knows how to “PRINT” the money and therefore "manage" the economy!!!
Once again, a great provocative thinking by the AUTHOR!
Hell, Clyde, I got a nametag from my own college last night with one "l" in my name. What does that have to say about Western Civilization?
"Abraham Lincoln was a saintly man." Please, give me a name of an American President who was a saintly man. Don't name any confederates, and be willing to defend the name(s) you propose.
.” Please, give me a name of an American President who was a saintly man."
Hell,John,that is too easy. Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, depending upon which side of the angels you want to fight. Or so the ruling duopoly says today. As for me, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson would be the last two American Presidents of any lasting consequence -- and that was only about a hundred years. G. W.Bush's influence will no doubt be of significance to future historians as he drove the final nail into the republican party's coffin saying as he did so, "Mission Accomplished!"
#62. True, there are no saintly politicians. But the point is that Lincoln is the only President worshipped as a saint for well over a century now. Just read the innumerable prayers to him that have come from every part of the spectrum.
Dr. Wilson, Thank you for The Treasury of Counterfeit Virtue in February's Chronicles. The second paragraph alone has provided me the most succinct and illuminating view of the Sumter incident I have ever read: nearly 60 years of exposure to the victor's version and still the answer to the question of which side bore the onus of starting the greatest disaster ever to befall America has seemed to me as hard to find as the front line at the Battles of The Wilderness. With this article, and after following your advice to read The Unvanquished, - how I savored every page!- I feel I am finally beginning to feel the full weight of what happened to us between the years 1861-1865.
I don't know whether he was saintly, but I will give William Henry Harrison credit for doing little wrong as president.