Today’s young adults have been raised without boundaries or authority — no wonder they’re lashing out
— Read on unherd.com/2020/07/whats-to-blame-for-such-anguished-activism/
The case for taking more risks – UnHerd
Matthew Crawford’s new book is one of the most original works of practical philosophy to be published in years
— Read on unherd.com/2020/06/the-case-for-taking-more-risks/
La justice n’est pas un réglement de comptes
“François-Xavier Bellamy: «Régler ses comptes avec la France, ce n’est pas vouloir la justice»” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/societe/francois-xavier-bellamy-regler-ses-comptes-avec-la-france-ce-n-est-pas-vouloir-la-justice-20200615
Le racisme déguisé en antiracisme
“Abnousse Shalmani: «Le nouvel antiracisme est un racisme déguisé en humanisme»” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/societe/abnousse-shalmani-le-nouvel-antiracisme-est-un-racisme-deguise-en-humanisme-20200612
Montaigne, la santé est-elle le bien suprême ? – Ép. 1/4 – Les philosophes face à la maladie
Comment Michel de Montaigne aurait-il vécu et pensé la crise du covid ? Lui pour qui la santé est un bien, peut-être suprême, mais non une valeur devant régir nos sociétés, nos décisions politiques. Lui qui ne cessa de répéter que le but de la vie n’est pas de ne pas souffrir, mais[…]
— Read on www.franceculture.fr/emissions/les-chemins-de-la-philosophie/les-philosophes-face-a-la-maladie-14-montaigne-la-sante-est-elle-le-bien-supreme
Which epidemiologist do you believe? – UnHerd
The debate about lockdown is not a contest between good and evil
— Read on unherd.com/2020/04/which-epidemiologist-do-you-believe/
Balanced and interesting, in contradistinction to the vapourings of various nutters out there. . LJ
I don’t miss the nastiness of the Left – UnHerd
The Tories recognise that human beings are inherently broken; the Left is convinced we’re perfectible
— Read on unherd.com/2020/02/i-dont-miss-the-nastiness-of-the-left/
Well said, Giles Fraser. LJ
In defence of Alastair Stewart | Coffee House
In defence of Alastair Stewart on Coffee House | Here is a good test case going on before our eyes. The broadcaster Alastair Stewart has left his job of…
— Read on blogs.spectator.co.uk/2020/01/in-defence-of-alastair-stewart/
(55) Douglas Murray And Roger Scruton On The Future Of Conservatism & Debate | The Spectator – YouTube
An excellent discussion between Douglas Murray, Sir Roger Scruton and an enquiring and courteous audience.
“Our greatest Prime Minister, in my view, Lord Salisbury, was in office for twenty years, and no one can remember him.”
The author of “Woke”, a satire as important in our times as the works of Erasmus and Voltaire were to theirs.
Andrew Doyle in conversation.
Excellent analysis from Jordan Peterson
Amy Chua – Wikipedia
Amy Chua – Wikipedia
— Read on en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Chua
In her discussion with Anne McElvoy on the podcast “The Economist Asks” Amy Chua offers some wise and unusually balanced insights into the problematic schism entailed by identity politics and the damage caused to the “connective tissue” holding heterogeneous societies such as the USA and the UK together.
The Economist asks: Have identity politics gone too far? | The Economist asks on acast
Tribalism has always existed, but is now playing a far more pivotal role in society: from the rise of gender and ethnic affiliation, to nationalist parties in Europe and even the appeal of Donald Trump. Amy Chua, author of “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” and “Political Tribes”, explains why the politics of sharp-edged identities have become so powerful.For information regarding your data privacy, visitacast.com/privacy
— Read on play.acast.com/s/theeconomistasks/eed21a66-66ac-4463-8f46-f107aec42d8a
Well said, Roger Scruton!
This point is very well made. I wish I had said it. Sadly, I didn’t, though it is consonant with what I have thought for years and said, without undue repetition, for years.
“It also, though, goes to the heart of what we think communication is. You know, if you think of communication as an exercise in respect for the other, you don’t repeat yourself. Repeating yourself suggests that you’re either demented or that you just don’t care about the other person’s response; you’re prepared to override it and say the same thing again and again. There’s no way in which a chanted slogan invites an answer. I think there’s a whole politics of that kind which grows out of the mass movements on the left but also invades the language of the left.”
“You don’t raise school standards by skewing them”
Tim Hands, Master of Magdalen College School in Oxford, slams Michael Gove’s plans for education reform.
— Read on www.newstatesman.com/politics/politics/2012/06/you-dont-raise-school-standards-skewing-them
En tant que francophile, j’ai fait une contribution à cette cagnotte, tout en regrettant qu’un tel geste soit nécessaire. Il l’est pourtant. LJ
“«Gilets jaunes» : des cagnottes créées pour soutenir les forces de l’ordre” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/actualite-france/2019/01/08/01016-20190108ARTFIG00280-gilets-jaunes-des-cagnottes-creees-pour-soutenir-les-forces-de-l-ordre.php
Hoe vrachtwagenchauffeur Éric Drouet het vuur van de gele hesjes steeds weer aanwakkert | De Volkskrant
“De vrees der Franse natie…”
Als vrachtwagenchauffeur Éric Drouet van zich laat horen – en dat doet hij soms tientallen keren per dag – luisteren de gele hesjes. Zijn met uitro…
— Read on www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/hoe-vrachtwagenchauffeur-eric-drouet-het-vuur-van-de-gele-hesjes-steeds-weer-aanwakkert~be3120c3/
Enfin
“Soucieux de tordre le cou au sentiment d’impunité qui prévaut parmi les plus radicaux, le chef du gouvernement annonce ainsi sa volonté d’appliquer le principe du « casseur payeur».
Gilets jaunes»: le plan de l’exécutif pour rétablir l’ordre” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/politique/2019/01/07/01002-20190107ARTFIG00332-gilets-jaunes-le-plan-de-l-executif-pour-retablir-l-ordre.php
De bons raisonnements, mais il faut d’abord calmer la foule
“«Gilets jaunes : c’est l’État-providence, non le libéralisme, qui est en cause»” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/societe/2018/12/30/31003-20181230ARTFIG00083-8220gilets-jaunes8221-c-est-l-etat-providence-non-le-liberalisme-qui-est-en-cause.php
The age of envy: how to be happy when everyone else’s life looks perfect | Life and style | The Guardian
The competition is in the mirror. Gratitude for the opportunity of being alive is proper to our condition. Envy is nothing new, indeed it is an error as old as the world, though it is true that people are now seeking the wrong axis through self-scrutiny and in social media, nor is the answer generally to be found in the vapourings of the lifestyle articles of the Guardian. The confessions of the first paragraph are ugly revelations, better dissembled, since they are of limited objective interest. Seek wisdom, not status. Study for the joy of discovery, learn a few languages, take some exercise and don’t look for rewards. Delight in the success of others and help them to achieve it; often, their progress will bring burdens of responsibility you would prefer not to shoulder anyway. That is their affair. The author of this article, who feels she is doing something important, could have learnt the rudimentary grammar of a language in the time it took to write this commentary on our times. Envy has always been the enemy; my father, who possessed little that he hadn’t forged by his own effort, by-passed it altogether by taking pleasure in birdsong, gardening and playing the flute. The implicit message of this article is that the author has been aspiring to be her own axis; this is a cardinal error, known as that of the “moi désaxé”, or the misplaced axis of the self. If there is no longer a being external to us in whom to invest our faith, there is still the business of studying the accumulated knowledge of our forebears in science and in the arts, an endeavour that will free us from solipsism. This is an endless cure for envy. LJ
Social media has created a world in which everyone seems ecstatic – apart from us. Is there any way for people to curb their resentment?
— Read on www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/oct/09/age-envy-be-happy-everyone-else-perfect-social-media
A foreseeable catastrophe. “La parfaite raison fuit toute extrémité.” (Molière)
“Stop au politiquement correct ! Quand les dérives américaines menacent la France” : http://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/monde/2018/10/12/31002-20181012ARTFIG00003-stop-au-politiquement-correct-quand-les-derives-americaines-menacent-la-france.php
L’histoire de ces chercheurs qui sont parvenus à faire publier des études totalement absurdes
Why are British girls so fat? – Telegraph
As young British women are revealed to be the most overweight in Europe, Louisa Peacock explores what factors are at play.
— Read on www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-health/10863001/Why-are-British-girls-so-fat.html
Obesity
This is just one of an increasing number of narrowly circumscribed areas in which impediments to freedom of expression are doing untold practical damage. I could foresee this all as early as 1985, when I had my first whiff of the speech codes associated with political correctness. I don’t wish to judge the intentions of the misguided advocates of this “premature synthesis”, which has evolved into a toxic ideology, but for humanity the cost has been very high indeed. It is no exaggeration to state that lives are at stake as a result of the austere neo-puritanical monitoring of human speech. Children and adults need to be informed if they are gluttonous; the idea that we should refrain from doing so lest we be guilty of “fat shaming” is preposterous, therefore it is refreshing to read an article in which plain truth is acknowledged to be an important part of the way forward. LJ
https://app.ft.com/content/fe494f60-c170-11e8-8d55-54197280d3f7?sectionid=columnists
Lux laundry soap ad 1936 girdle-washing
Most amusing. I wonder what the response would be nowadays! LJ
Posts about Lux laundry soap ad 1936 girdle washing written by witness2fashion
Source: Lux laundry soap ad 1936 girdle washing | witness2fashion
Lo scherzo di Ronaldo: spunta alle spalle del giornalista e gli fa il verso Lo scherzo di Ronaldo: spunta alle spalle del giornalista e gli fa il verso – La Stampa
Ma chi se ne frega? LJ
Enrico Zambruno è “vittima” di Cristiano Ronaldo, che spunta alle sue spalle e gli fa il verso. «Non mi ero accorto di nulla !» ha scritto il giornalista su Instagram, dove ha pubblicato il video dello scherzo dell’attaccante juventino, che nel giro di pochi minuti è diventato virale. (Instagram @enricozambruno )
— Read on www.lastampa.it/2018/09/14/sport/lo-scherzo-di-ronaldo-spunta-alle-spalle-del-giornalista-e-gli-fa-il-verso-oY5nkOudwyipQN6AukVbSK/pagina.html
Paul McCartney zag God toen hij high was | Show | AD.nl
Paul McCartney believes in a higher being. Fine.
Paul McCartney believes he has met this higher being. Not fine.
Paul McCartney, who now claims to have met God whilst under the influence of a narcotic drug, is an ocean-going turnip.
One of my tutors, Christopher Robinson, in his work on French Literature of the 19th Century, refers in his consideration of Flaubert’s Félicité, protagonist of “Un coeur simple”, the first of the “Trois Contes”, to her state of “transcendent self-deception” at the moment of incommunicable “revelation” when the Logos becomes fused and confused, deep within the self, with her recollected image of her beloved parrot. Look no further. Paul McCartney has demonstrated the enduring veracity of the notion. If this isn’t “transcendent self-deception”, then I don’t know what is. To communicate this during a period of our history when narcotics constitute such a grave problem, for more than one generation, is an act of egregious irresponsibility. Perhaps he isn’t feeling the eyes of the world upon him. Perhaps he is looking for love, which is apparently “all you need”. Perhaps it is indeed time, after all, for him to sink into oblivion. LJ
Voormalige Beatle Paul McCartney gelooft in een hoger wezen. Hij heeft naar eigen zeggen God ontmoet na drugsgebruik. Dat zei de 76-jarige componist en zanger tegen de Engelse krant The Times.
Source: Paul McCartney zag God toen hij high was | Show | AD.nl
Children will be banned from buying energy drinks under plans announced by Theresa May to tackle disruptive behaviour in classrooms.
This gesture of commitment to the welfare of young people might look a little more convincing if it were set within the context of a broader coherent policy of protective intervention, extending to such areas as the restriction of sales of smartphones for use by minors. The implementation of a policy excluding them from schools (the smartphones, not the minors, at least not yet…), such as that already courageously set in place in France, might entail tangible benefits. Certain schools (I am sure this is not true for all) also appear to have thrown in the towel with regard to responsible regulation of the sale of junk food and drinks, the battle against the dominion of social media and instruction in what constitutes basic good sense. Young people deserve more confident guidance than this and adults should have the courage to provide it. LJ
The Daily Telegraph: Energy drinks ban for children to tackle disruptive behaviour in class
“Prohibido niños a partir de las 5 de la tarde”. La polémica norma de un restaurante alemán
A fine idea, which might be developed to exclude older teenagers who exhibit signs of irreclaimable addiction to their smartphones. LJ
De un restaurante que se llame ‘La cocina de la abuela’, uno espera cocina tradicional, decoración clásica y, sobre todo, ambiente familiar. Y en O…
— Read on www.20minutos.es/noticia/3425116/0/restaurante-ninos-prohibido/
Studenten bezwijken psychisch onder prestatiedruk
Interesting, but “prestatiedruk”? Mon cul!
“Soms gaat dat gepaard met verslaving aan alcohol, drugs, of internet (excessief gamen of porno).” QED
Surprise, surprise! Stop looking at social media, don’t do drugs, ignore the tattoo parlour, think for yourselves and do some disciplined studying. This will greatly relieve your conscience and enable you to sleep soundly and to greet each morning for the miracle it is, whatever duties it may herald. LJ
Behemoth, bully, thief: how the English language is taking over the planet | News | The Guardian
The international hegemony of English is indeed troubling, as is the tentacular presence of American culture. Vive la différence! That said, mastery of the lingua franca within a nation, English in England, French in France and so on, would seem to me to be a fitting intellectual project, if not a requirement (but let us be compassionate here) for those aspiring to citizenship.
Let us not forget Goethe’s aphoristic injunction:
“Wer fremde Sprachen nicht kennt, weiß nichts von seiner eigenen.”
(He who cannot speak languages other than his own, knows nothing of his own. Goethe: Maxim 91)
Personally, I have no time for the zealous indignation of the lawyer who arrogantly sought to upbraid those speaking Spanish (thug and fool), but perhaps still less for the angry herd that subsequently persecuted him (thugs, fools and creatures of the crowd). America seems unwell.
Some very interesting points are raised in the article below, admittedly not for the first time, but the timing of their exposition nevertheless seems appropriate, in this troubled world, with its conflicting bogus certitudes and their crassly indignant advocates.
LJ
The long read: No language in history has dominated the world quite like English does today. Is there any point in resisting?
— Read on www.theguardian.com/news/2018/jul/27/english-language-global-dominance
“L’homme à la vessie incontrôlable”! INFO TF1/LCI – Quand un voyageur pressé d’aller aux WC déclenche un branle-bas de combat au sommet de l’Etat – LCI
Actualités FAITS DIVERS: FAIT DIVERS – Les médias marocains ont simplement évoqué un simple et banal “incident”. Mais d’après nos informations, un récent vol de la compagnie Royal Air Maroc entre Casablanca et Paris s’est pourtant transformé en affaire d’Etat. La faute à un passager furieux de ne pas pouvoir satisfaire ses besoins naturels. Au point de pousser la France à faire décoller en urgence 2 avions de chasse.
— Read on www.lci.fr/faits-divers/info-tf1-lci-quand-un-voyageur-presse-d-aller-aux-wc-declenche-un-branle-bas-de-combat-au-sommet-de-l-etat-2093071.html-20180713-%5B%5D-52e350e5a127e941451fa8c8b0f82805@1-20180713070932&_ope=eyJndWlkIjoiNTJlMzUwZTVhMTI3ZTk0MTQ1MWZhOGM4YjBmODI4MDUifQ==
Rescued piglets served up as sausages to firefighters – BBC News
Bizarre at first glance, this was in fact a decent gift and a gracious one, likewise graciously received, until the neo-puritans began to take their ritual offence.
Lyndon @ Adonis Blue 