I have often reflected that the concept of civilisation may itself be problematic; that it may, indeed, be part of the problem. When we talk of civilisation, we inevitably talk of Rome, but was Rome really a good and desirable culture? Sure, it had some very good points related to civic order and technology, but it was also brutal and immoral and randomly cruel. (Just watch I Claudius sometime!) A lot of what we take for granted in our modern Western world is not really a heritage of the classical world but of Christianity. For example, notions of equality before the law, the sanctity of life and national self determination. We only kid ourselves if we say that these are part of our classical, or even Enlightenment, heritage. They are in fact a legacy of the Bible's influence and of Christian cultural input over many difficult centuries. It is our Christian heritage that has made us rich and free, and the sooner we remember that the better for everyone.
I get the sentiment but it's not quite right, the Scottish economist Adam Smith, author of The Wealth of Nations, was a renaissance man through and through, his economics were in actual fact, a rediscovery of Hellenistic or Roman economic principles, that alongside the rediscovery of the philosophy of antiquity such as Stoicism, Epicureanism and the virtue ethics of Aristotle/Plato/Socrates became the essence of the renaissance.
After approximately 1700 years of Christianity, the Renaissance reinvented the economic climate of Rome and all of it's cultural/political problems as a result, it's no accident that Christianity has since waned in importance and influence ever since, whilst pagan cults, nature religions and alternate spirituality are on the rise especially amongst the elites (bohemian grove etc).
Sociology and politics are always downstream of economics. The modern western economy is the Roman economy with iPhones and internet. The modern western world is the Roman world with iPhones and internet. That's why most men think of Rome every single day, as per the popular meme. That's why the capitol building in the USA has a Greco-Roman style to it and even has the same name for its executive chamber, being the Senate. When Rome wanted something like the grain of Egypt they just went and took it, if they were threatened they crushed their enemies, a policy not too dissimilar to what we've done to the middle east.
I am far from denying the influence of Greece and Rome, but I do not at all think the modern economy is the Roman economy but with iphones and internet. The truth is that modern science and modern technology, as well as vital modern institutions like hospitals and schools and universities, very much grew out of Christian civilisation and ideas. There was always an influence of the classical world, of course, but the essential motivations and assumptions were Christian, as laid out so very well in The Book That Made Your World. This applies also to the Renaissance, which scholarship has shown was not actually so profoundly different from the period before. Rather than being a sudden spurt of brilliance founded on an awakening consciousness of the classical world, everything would suggest that there was much more in the way of continuity than otherwise; that it rather built on medieval advances than on any rare new revelations of the ancient world. (Johan Huizinga good on this topic.) As for my countryman Adam Smith, finally, my own apprehension is that he was rather more influenced by WHAT HE SAW of the economy than by any classical notions of how to make money. Sure, the Enlightenment folks liked to REFER to the ancients, but I think myself that they were rather more the products of the Reformation and the printing press than of anything else. They maybe just didn't like to admit it!
Then at best we become a brutal, cruel and immoral civilisation like Rome. More likely, we just get taken over and consigned to history along with freedom and democracy.
That is the risk, I agree, what we have to remember is that the Romans with all of the brutality were the bleeding heart liberals of their day, morality has moved on thanks to the Judeo/Christian influence you mentioned, yet we still are the bleeding heart liberals of our day.
Nevertheless we are surrounded by people who hate our values both within and without our borders and in this age of immorality predicted by Nietzsche that sees people turning away from God, the old religious pagan structures of Rome are re-emerging because they were always there, just under the skin.
Our civilisation is Roman with a thin layer of Christianity on top. The decline and fall of Rome is what happens when people get comfortable, when they think that they've conquered nature and all of mankind. What we need to do in the west is not get comfortable, not take for granted our heritage and how good we have it, and neither should we forget God.
Our civilisation may be Roman with a thin layer of Christianity on top, but that layer is important, it separates us from our ancestors and makes us better people. The colosseum is empty today, nobody is being put to death in cruel and unusual ways and we can thank Christianity for that.
I think we're on the same page but I don't honestly know how the Romans were 'bleeding heart liberals'. That concept has never crossed my path. I also tend to think that our civilisation is rather Christian with a thin layer of Roman on top (or maybe in the middle, like a cake?) than the opposite. But we're in danger of 'fiddling while Rome burns', excusing the obvious pun. For the fact remains that our civilisation, whatever it is, is on the verge of complete and utter disaster. And not merely from moral decline. If we don't sort ourselves out, and soon, the Islamists will completely take over. That, after all, is their objective, and they are closer now than ever to achieving it.
You have to compare them to their neighbours at the time, in that Roman law was complex and allowed citizens property rights, freedom of religion (as long as they acknowledged the imperial cult of the emperor) and better treatment of slaves (although not their freedom) over time and so on.
They also had a dole queue that gave citizen free bread, probably to prevent riots, but none of their neighbours did this or anything similar.
Women had significant rights when compared to states beyond the empire although were not fully equal to men and so on. Compared to today of course, they were phenomenally brutal people, but compared to their neighbours somewhat 'progressive.'
I agree we need to look at everything in context. There are reasons we can be grateful for the success of Rome, not least that it (unwittingly) enabled the rapid spread of Christianity.
"It is the West that now celebrates ugliness in art, architecture, fashion, and the human form."
It's interesting how the West celebrates everything contrary to the Bible, which says "...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8 KJV
Thanks Amy. Not sure where this long piece was going. We know things have been going downhill for some decades, but why? It seems we are good at defining what we are against (Hitler) but not good at working out what we are for. Pace Freud, we managed repressions quite well when we built cathedrals and battleships. We must do as we please, each to their own, so we blunder about all over the place. We don’t know what is beautiful, or true, so we no longer make great art, or music or architecture. We can’t even value what we have. I look forward to the next chapter …
Thanks Amy, I find the whole discussion of civilisation fascinating. As a classical musician who teaches music there has never been more interest in learning to play an instrument and an appreciation of the value and complexity involved. More and more people of all ages are rediscovering the joy of engaging with an art form that challenges them on every level. What I find sad though is this liberal culture which produces shallow conformity and even a disdain for real art, whether that be Mozart or Rembrandt. Often this is expressed by middle class folks who feel this culture is not 'cool' and should not be encouraged. Weird !
Western civilisation will die (and I don't think this will happen but if it does) at the hands of those ignorant folks who think playing the piano is a waste of time and energy. They right it off. Having no experience and no knowledge of music. I think this is down to one simple factor, FEAR. they are afraid of failure so don't try and intensely dislike those who do.
A weird sort of moral decay. In some ways it begins very early in young children, who have no exposure to beauty, art or music. No wonder they become depressed !
I can not imagine what it would be like to go through life without appreciating our natural and cultural heritage. A very empty existence!
If adults don't see the value the children have no chance. That's where we are. The education system is to blame of course, inspirational teachers are forced out through professional jealousy and staff room politics.
After all is said and done I actually pity people captured by this leftist defeatist ideology. They often waste their lives in navel gazing and scapegoating others instead of doing the hard graft necessary for self improvement.
Great article. Touches on a lot of different aspects of civilization and ideas that can be destroying it.
It reinforces my belief that the Judeo-Christian worldview is a necessary foundation for a *good* civilization. Not that everyone must believe it, but that it needs to be the cultural norm everyone at least feels the need to conform to. It's not perfect but nothing is. By Judeo-Christian I'm referring to the Old Testament of the Bible, which includes all varieties of Christianity and Judaism. From there you get order, hope for the future, endurance and resilience of hardship, an understanding of human nature that includes the potential for good and evil (unlike the atheist view that has no concept of evil being part of human nature), and the *command* by *God* to be good to each other (with eternal punishment for those who aren't).
Re: pornography, that's predominantly the male substitute for a relationship with a female. To the best of my knowledge women aren't looking at naked men on their computers to any significant degree. This is a male-female difference and it needs to be confronted. There is an element of "objectifying" that is natural for males, much more so than in females, and the "visual" has a very powerful effect in males, in ways females can't hardly imagine. That's why pornography is overwhelmingly directed at males, including male homosexuals. So, what's the female counterpart to that? What substitutes are women using for high quality relationships with men? As best I can figure it's a lot more complex, but I suspect a manifestation of it is the crazy bad behavior seen by many women. Everything from social-political activism (notice how women overwhelmingly are on the front lines of pushing "trans" including for their own children) to lesbianism (it's easier to have a relationship with someone who's more similar to you than different, but those differences are complementary and help us grow) to promiscuity (the Sex in the City fantasy of being liberated) none of which is successful.
👏👏👏 I think this is an essential article, Amy that should be required reading for every westerner! I think western society has lost its way and is in need of a massive reformation and a second Renaissance. Western society hates itself and has this guilt about the past I will never understand. I’m not saying the historic wrongs done to POC, women, Jews, the Irish, LGBT people, disabled people, etc. should be forgotten or ignored. But we need to find constructive and healthy ways to help minority groups and build bridges between cultures with a…shall we say complicated history like the English and the Irish or the Germans and the Jews without resorting to identity politics, political correctness, cancel culture, or weaponizing historical grievances against one another. Instead we need to abide by the principles advocated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. of colorblindness and universalism and Nelson Mandela’s principles of unconditional love, truth and reconciliation and moving past the dark past.
Also, we need to teach our children and young people a balanced history of the United States and the West, warts and all. The West needs to be judged like the rest of the world containing the good and the bad. The United States did slavery, Jim Crow, denied women the vote, did the Japanese Internment Camps, and kept Jewish refugees out during the Holocaust. But the United States also is the one who abolished slavery, gave women the vote, enshrined freedom of speech in the first amendment of the Constitution, did the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, defeated the Nazis in WWII, did the Berlin Airlift and the Marshall Plan, legalized same-sex marriage, and gave us the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Great Britain is the country that enslaved millions of Africans, conquered Ireland and committed atrocities against the Irish, oppressed the Scottish and Welsh, perpetrated abuses against colonial peoples, discriminated against black and Asian Brits, and despised Catholics and Jews for a long time. But Great Britain is also the country that wiped out the slave trade in much of the world, bravely stood alone against Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Imperial Japan, and the Soviet Union on the eve of WWII, gave the world the Magna Carta, William Shakespeare, The Beatles, John Locke, Winston Churchill, Thomas the Tank Engine, Winnie the Pooh, and Alfred the Great, rescued thousands from the occupied countries during the Second World War, invented the rule of law, treated black soldiers much better than their American counterparts did, saved the children of Kindertransport, elected a female PM before most western countries did, and gave all their citizens free healthcare, old age pensions and unemployment insurance in the Postwar era.
Germany is the nation that did the Holocaust, committed atrocities in Namibia and has a history of militarism and aggression against other nations. But it’s also the land of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Goethe, and Kepler, gave Gingerbread houses, Christmas Trees, Easter Bunnies, Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, and Pretzels to the world and the natural beauty of it castles, forests and mountains. There was also an anti-Nazi resistance during WWII and there were a number of Germans who hid Jews in their homes. Germany allowed gay soldiers to start serving openly in the 1960s. Germany elected Angela Merkel one of the most powerful female politicians there have ever been.
France is responsible for the Dreyfus Affair, atrocities in Algeria and Morocco and slavery in Haiti. But France also gave the world the Louvre Museum, Eclairs, the Eiffel Tower, so much great art, poetry and literature, and the Arc de Triomphe. How about the French Resistance bravely standing against the Nazis and the their Vichy allies during WWII? How about how the French came and helped America win its independence during the Revolution? France also produced the likes of Marie Curie, Louis Pasteur, Charles de Gaulle, Victor Hugo, Jacques Cousteau, Emile Zola, Charlemagne, Joan of Arc, Voltaire, Alfred Dreyfus, Rene Descartes, and many others.
May I venture this hypothesis....I believe there is a link between suppression of free speech and totalitarian governance which we have missed. If you like there is a common 'goal' which once realised sheds light on our current situation.
Take as an example of what we would regard as the free market in action....say, chicken farming. The left would have you look at barns filled to the rafters with chickens and say "there you are look what the free market creates", cruelty, repression and greed.
These sorts of arguments have become the go to stick with which to bash any entrepreneurial enterprise...eventually it will fall foul (excuse the pun) of the left (wokerati) and their rules and societal ideologies.
But hold on. You have just been tricked. You have just had the wool pulled over your eyes. Or at least a bunch of feathers thrown in your face.
Go back to our chickens and think again 'how DOES the free market work?'
If we have a free open discourse then these cruel farmers are found out, their businesses are boycotted. Public opinion forces them to stop their barbaric practices.
THAT is how the free market works. And THAT is why the danger is always to have big business hand in glove with big government suppressing free speech.
IT MAKES THEM MONEY!
Without free flow of information we do not find out about the poor old chickens. We eat them all and are happy to pay the cruel farmer a lot of money to do so!
FREE SPEECH is literally the bedrock of the FREE MARKET. You can not separate the two.
Our civilisation such as it is, was 'built' by free market free thinkers who sort better ways to do things, and in the process made a better society which wanted to live in better cities, full of beautiful things.
I have often reflected that the concept of civilisation may itself be problematic; that it may, indeed, be part of the problem. When we talk of civilisation, we inevitably talk of Rome, but was Rome really a good and desirable culture? Sure, it had some very good points related to civic order and technology, but it was also brutal and immoral and randomly cruel. (Just watch I Claudius sometime!) A lot of what we take for granted in our modern Western world is not really a heritage of the classical world but of Christianity. For example, notions of equality before the law, the sanctity of life and national self determination. We only kid ourselves if we say that these are part of our classical, or even Enlightenment, heritage. They are in fact a legacy of the Bible's influence and of Christian cultural input over many difficult centuries. It is our Christian heritage that has made us rich and free, and the sooner we remember that the better for everyone.
I get the sentiment but it's not quite right, the Scottish economist Adam Smith, author of The Wealth of Nations, was a renaissance man through and through, his economics were in actual fact, a rediscovery of Hellenistic or Roman economic principles, that alongside the rediscovery of the philosophy of antiquity such as Stoicism, Epicureanism and the virtue ethics of Aristotle/Plato/Socrates became the essence of the renaissance.
After approximately 1700 years of Christianity, the Renaissance reinvented the economic climate of Rome and all of it's cultural/political problems as a result, it's no accident that Christianity has since waned in importance and influence ever since, whilst pagan cults, nature religions and alternate spirituality are on the rise especially amongst the elites (bohemian grove etc).
Sociology and politics are always downstream of economics. The modern western economy is the Roman economy with iPhones and internet. The modern western world is the Roman world with iPhones and internet. That's why most men think of Rome every single day, as per the popular meme. That's why the capitol building in the USA has a Greco-Roman style to it and even has the same name for its executive chamber, being the Senate. When Rome wanted something like the grain of Egypt they just went and took it, if they were threatened they crushed their enemies, a policy not too dissimilar to what we've done to the middle east.
I am far from denying the influence of Greece and Rome, but I do not at all think the modern economy is the Roman economy but with iphones and internet. The truth is that modern science and modern technology, as well as vital modern institutions like hospitals and schools and universities, very much grew out of Christian civilisation and ideas. There was always an influence of the classical world, of course, but the essential motivations and assumptions were Christian, as laid out so very well in The Book That Made Your World. This applies also to the Renaissance, which scholarship has shown was not actually so profoundly different from the period before. Rather than being a sudden spurt of brilliance founded on an awakening consciousness of the classical world, everything would suggest that there was much more in the way of continuity than otherwise; that it rather built on medieval advances than on any rare new revelations of the ancient world. (Johan Huizinga good on this topic.) As for my countryman Adam Smith, finally, my own apprehension is that he was rather more influenced by WHAT HE SAW of the economy than by any classical notions of how to make money. Sure, the Enlightenment folks liked to REFER to the ancients, but I think myself that they were rather more the products of the Reformation and the printing press than of anything else. They maybe just didn't like to admit it!
I will add 'The Book that Made your World,' to my reading list, it sounds interesting. Thanks for pointing it out to me.
Great! It really is wonderful. I'm planning to read it again myself!
And if we don’t remember?
Then at best we become a brutal, cruel and immoral civilisation like Rome. More likely, we just get taken over and consigned to history along with freedom and democracy.
That is the risk, I agree, what we have to remember is that the Romans with all of the brutality were the bleeding heart liberals of their day, morality has moved on thanks to the Judeo/Christian influence you mentioned, yet we still are the bleeding heart liberals of our day.
Nevertheless we are surrounded by people who hate our values both within and without our borders and in this age of immorality predicted by Nietzsche that sees people turning away from God, the old religious pagan structures of Rome are re-emerging because they were always there, just under the skin.
Our civilisation is Roman with a thin layer of Christianity on top. The decline and fall of Rome is what happens when people get comfortable, when they think that they've conquered nature and all of mankind. What we need to do in the west is not get comfortable, not take for granted our heritage and how good we have it, and neither should we forget God.
Our civilisation may be Roman with a thin layer of Christianity on top, but that layer is important, it separates us from our ancestors and makes us better people. The colosseum is empty today, nobody is being put to death in cruel and unusual ways and we can thank Christianity for that.
I think we're on the same page but I don't honestly know how the Romans were 'bleeding heart liberals'. That concept has never crossed my path. I also tend to think that our civilisation is rather Christian with a thin layer of Roman on top (or maybe in the middle, like a cake?) than the opposite. But we're in danger of 'fiddling while Rome burns', excusing the obvious pun. For the fact remains that our civilisation, whatever it is, is on the verge of complete and utter disaster. And not merely from moral decline. If we don't sort ourselves out, and soon, the Islamists will completely take over. That, after all, is their objective, and they are closer now than ever to achieving it.
You have to compare them to their neighbours at the time, in that Roman law was complex and allowed citizens property rights, freedom of religion (as long as they acknowledged the imperial cult of the emperor) and better treatment of slaves (although not their freedom) over time and so on.
They also had a dole queue that gave citizen free bread, probably to prevent riots, but none of their neighbours did this or anything similar.
Women had significant rights when compared to states beyond the empire although were not fully equal to men and so on. Compared to today of course, they were phenomenally brutal people, but compared to their neighbours somewhat 'progressive.'
I agree we need to look at everything in context. There are reasons we can be grateful for the success of Rome, not least that it (unwittingly) enabled the rapid spread of Christianity.
"It is the West that now celebrates ugliness in art, architecture, fashion, and the human form."
It's interesting how the West celebrates everything contrary to the Bible, which says "...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8 KJV
Thanks Amy. Not sure where this long piece was going. We know things have been going downhill for some decades, but why? It seems we are good at defining what we are against (Hitler) but not good at working out what we are for. Pace Freud, we managed repressions quite well when we built cathedrals and battleships. We must do as we please, each to their own, so we blunder about all over the place. We don’t know what is beautiful, or true, so we no longer make great art, or music or architecture. We can’t even value what we have. I look forward to the next chapter …
Thanks Amy, I find the whole discussion of civilisation fascinating. As a classical musician who teaches music there has never been more interest in learning to play an instrument and an appreciation of the value and complexity involved. More and more people of all ages are rediscovering the joy of engaging with an art form that challenges them on every level. What I find sad though is this liberal culture which produces shallow conformity and even a disdain for real art, whether that be Mozart or Rembrandt. Often this is expressed by middle class folks who feel this culture is not 'cool' and should not be encouraged. Weird !
Western civilisation will die (and I don't think this will happen but if it does) at the hands of those ignorant folks who think playing the piano is a waste of time and energy. They right it off. Having no experience and no knowledge of music. I think this is down to one simple factor, FEAR. they are afraid of failure so don't try and intensely dislike those who do.
A weird sort of moral decay. In some ways it begins very early in young children, who have no exposure to beauty, art or music. No wonder they become depressed !
I can not imagine what it would be like to go through life without appreciating our natural and cultural heritage. A very empty existence!
If adults don't see the value the children have no chance. That's where we are. The education system is to blame of course, inspirational teachers are forced out through professional jealousy and staff room politics.
After all is said and done I actually pity people captured by this leftist defeatist ideology. They often waste their lives in navel gazing and scapegoating others instead of doing the hard graft necessary for self improvement.
Great article. Touches on a lot of different aspects of civilization and ideas that can be destroying it.
It reinforces my belief that the Judeo-Christian worldview is a necessary foundation for a *good* civilization. Not that everyone must believe it, but that it needs to be the cultural norm everyone at least feels the need to conform to. It's not perfect but nothing is. By Judeo-Christian I'm referring to the Old Testament of the Bible, which includes all varieties of Christianity and Judaism. From there you get order, hope for the future, endurance and resilience of hardship, an understanding of human nature that includes the potential for good and evil (unlike the atheist view that has no concept of evil being part of human nature), and the *command* by *God* to be good to each other (with eternal punishment for those who aren't).
Re: pornography, that's predominantly the male substitute for a relationship with a female. To the best of my knowledge women aren't looking at naked men on their computers to any significant degree. This is a male-female difference and it needs to be confronted. There is an element of "objectifying" that is natural for males, much more so than in females, and the "visual" has a very powerful effect in males, in ways females can't hardly imagine. That's why pornography is overwhelmingly directed at males, including male homosexuals. So, what's the female counterpart to that? What substitutes are women using for high quality relationships with men? As best I can figure it's a lot more complex, but I suspect a manifestation of it is the crazy bad behavior seen by many women. Everything from social-political activism (notice how women overwhelmingly are on the front lines of pushing "trans" including for their own children) to lesbianism (it's easier to have a relationship with someone who's more similar to you than different, but those differences are complementary and help us grow) to promiscuity (the Sex in the City fantasy of being liberated) none of which is successful.
Wow, absolutely amazing Amy!
Cheers!
You're welcome.
Just saw this Amy. Very, very good.
👏👏👏 I think this is an essential article, Amy that should be required reading for every westerner! I think western society has lost its way and is in need of a massive reformation and a second Renaissance. Western society hates itself and has this guilt about the past I will never understand. I’m not saying the historic wrongs done to POC, women, Jews, the Irish, LGBT people, disabled people, etc. should be forgotten or ignored. But we need to find constructive and healthy ways to help minority groups and build bridges between cultures with a…shall we say complicated history like the English and the Irish or the Germans and the Jews without resorting to identity politics, political correctness, cancel culture, or weaponizing historical grievances against one another. Instead we need to abide by the principles advocated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. of colorblindness and universalism and Nelson Mandela’s principles of unconditional love, truth and reconciliation and moving past the dark past.
Also, we need to teach our children and young people a balanced history of the United States and the West, warts and all. The West needs to be judged like the rest of the world containing the good and the bad. The United States did slavery, Jim Crow, denied women the vote, did the Japanese Internment Camps, and kept Jewish refugees out during the Holocaust. But the United States also is the one who abolished slavery, gave women the vote, enshrined freedom of speech in the first amendment of the Constitution, did the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, defeated the Nazis in WWII, did the Berlin Airlift and the Marshall Plan, legalized same-sex marriage, and gave us the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Great Britain is the country that enslaved millions of Africans, conquered Ireland and committed atrocities against the Irish, oppressed the Scottish and Welsh, perpetrated abuses against colonial peoples, discriminated against black and Asian Brits, and despised Catholics and Jews for a long time. But Great Britain is also the country that wiped out the slave trade in much of the world, bravely stood alone against Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Imperial Japan, and the Soviet Union on the eve of WWII, gave the world the Magna Carta, William Shakespeare, The Beatles, John Locke, Winston Churchill, Thomas the Tank Engine, Winnie the Pooh, and Alfred the Great, rescued thousands from the occupied countries during the Second World War, invented the rule of law, treated black soldiers much better than their American counterparts did, saved the children of Kindertransport, elected a female PM before most western countries did, and gave all their citizens free healthcare, old age pensions and unemployment insurance in the Postwar era.
Germany is the nation that did the Holocaust, committed atrocities in Namibia and has a history of militarism and aggression against other nations. But it’s also the land of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Goethe, and Kepler, gave Gingerbread houses, Christmas Trees, Easter Bunnies, Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, and Pretzels to the world and the natural beauty of it castles, forests and mountains. There was also an anti-Nazi resistance during WWII and there were a number of Germans who hid Jews in their homes. Germany allowed gay soldiers to start serving openly in the 1960s. Germany elected Angela Merkel one of the most powerful female politicians there have ever been.
France is responsible for the Dreyfus Affair, atrocities in Algeria and Morocco and slavery in Haiti. But France also gave the world the Louvre Museum, Eclairs, the Eiffel Tower, so much great art, poetry and literature, and the Arc de Triomphe. How about the French Resistance bravely standing against the Nazis and the their Vichy allies during WWII? How about how the French came and helped America win its independence during the Revolution? France also produced the likes of Marie Curie, Louis Pasteur, Charles de Gaulle, Victor Hugo, Jacques Cousteau, Emile Zola, Charlemagne, Joan of Arc, Voltaire, Alfred Dreyfus, Rene Descartes, and many others.
Awesome article, Amy 👍🏾
Well said indeed 👍
This.
This.
The sleep of reason breeds monsters.
Another very well written article thank you Amy.
May I venture this hypothesis....I believe there is a link between suppression of free speech and totalitarian governance which we have missed. If you like there is a common 'goal' which once realised sheds light on our current situation.
Take as an example of what we would regard as the free market in action....say, chicken farming. The left would have you look at barns filled to the rafters with chickens and say "there you are look what the free market creates", cruelty, repression and greed.
These sorts of arguments have become the go to stick with which to bash any entrepreneurial enterprise...eventually it will fall foul (excuse the pun) of the left (wokerati) and their rules and societal ideologies.
But hold on. You have just been tricked. You have just had the wool pulled over your eyes. Or at least a bunch of feathers thrown in your face.
Go back to our chickens and think again 'how DOES the free market work?'
If we have a free open discourse then these cruel farmers are found out, their businesses are boycotted. Public opinion forces them to stop their barbaric practices.
THAT is how the free market works. And THAT is why the danger is always to have big business hand in glove with big government suppressing free speech.
IT MAKES THEM MONEY!
Without free flow of information we do not find out about the poor old chickens. We eat them all and are happy to pay the cruel farmer a lot of money to do so!
FREE SPEECH is literally the bedrock of the FREE MARKET. You can not separate the two.
Our civilisation such as it is, was 'built' by free market free thinkers who sort better ways to do things, and in the process made a better society which wanted to live in better cities, full of beautiful things.
IT IS REALLY THAT SIMPLE!