jefferson

Recent discussions

• Como a maior hora da Itália pode ter sido uma catástrofe política?

  Carregamos a suposição não examinada de que a cultura segue o poder, de que a grande era de uma arte é a grande era do seu exército. A Itália renascentista refuta isso de forma limpa. Entre mais ou menos o século XIV e o XVI, a península produziu a perspectiva linear, o humanismo, os antigos recuperados, o olhar secular e uma ideia reconhecivelmente moderna da pessoa individual. Ela também fracassou, completa e humilhantemente, na única tarefa que costumamos chamar de prova de uma civilização. N

• Masih adakah ideologi konservatif yang bisa dikenali di Partai Republik?

  Dulu saya pikir saya paham apa yang sedang saya ikuti. Bukan secara buta dan penuh pemujaan, tapi dalam arti ada konsistensi yang kasar di dalamnya. Pasar bebas, perdagangan bebas, pemerintahan yang kecil. Penghormatan pada institusi, tanggung jawab pribadi, kecurigaan terhadap kekuasaan yang terpusat, apalagi kalau munculnya di Washington. Masih ingat itu? Kamu tidak harus setuju dengan setiap posisi, tapi setidaknya kamu bisa mengenali bentuk ideologinya.

• Ang Estados Unidos nga ba ang bihirang bansang nakatayo sa isang argumento?

  Karamihan ng mga bansa ay mga katotohanan bago sila maging mga ideya. Pranses ang Pransya, kasama ang wika nito at lupa nito at mga patay nito, matagal na bago isulat ninuman kung para saan ang Pransya. Iba ang takbo ng American Founding. Noong 1776 ay walang bayang Amerikano sa lumang diwa, walang ibinahaging lahi, walang pambansang simbahan, walang sanlibong-taong alaala, mga kolonya lamang na nakikipagtalo sa London at, palala nang palala, sa isa't isa. Ang nag-isa sa kanila ay isang nakasula

• As pessoas eram mesmo mais burras no passado?

  Existe um hábito no pensamento moderno que trata o passado como uma espécie de estado de semiconsciência, como se a Era do Iluminismo tivesse nos acordado. As pessoas imaginam as sociedades antigas como abarrotadas de superstição, como se a própria crença fosse menos disciplinada antes de a ciência moderna chegar para resgatá-la. É uma história reconfortante porque faz o presente parecer um pico intelectual, e não apenas mais um arranjo de limites e suposições.

• Les États-Unis sont-ils ce rare pays bâti sur un argument ?

  La plupart des nations sont des faits avant d'être des idées. La France était française, avec sa langue, son sol et ses morts, bien avant que quiconque ait écrit à quoi servait la France. La fondation américaine, elle, a suivi le chemin inverse. En 1776, il n'existait pas de peuple américain au sens ancien, pas d'ancêtres communs, pas d'Église nationale, pas de mémoire millénaire, seulement un ensemble de colonies en querelle avec Londres et, de plus en plus, entre elles…

• क्या कनाडा वह देश नहीं जिसने अपनी क्रांति छोड़ दी, और इससे बेहतर ही रहा?

  ज़्यादातर देशों को एक ऐसी सुबह याद रहती है जिसकी रक्षा के लिए वे जान दे दें: कोई बास्तील, कोई बोस्टन, कोई गोली जिसने सब कुछ शुरू कर दिया। कनाडा के पास ऐसी कोई सुबह नहीं है, और इसी बात को इसके बारे में सबसे आसानी से चूका जाता है। 1 जुलाई 1867 को British North America Act लागू हुआ और Dominion of Canada अस्तित्व में आ गया। किसी भीड़ के सामने कोई घोषणापत्र नहीं पढ़ा गया, किसी सेना को हराना नहीं पड़ा, किसी राजा को नहीं गिराया गया। कुछ औपनिवेशिक नेताओं ने, जिनमें John A. Macdonald भी थे, कई सम्मेलनों

• Di era AI, bukankah Humaniora justru lebih dibutuhkan daripada sebelumnya?

  Tidak ada orang tua yang mendorong anaknya kuliah Humaniora. Secara default, pilihan yang dianjurkan adalah jurusan STEM. Teknik (Ilmu Komputer), Keuangan, Kedokteran...Argumen yang menentang humaniora di era AI membuat keputusan menghabiskan 4 tahun untuk gelar Humaniora makin tidak meyakinkan. Model bahasa bisa menulis dengan lumayan, merangkum dengan cepat, dan memproduksi teks yang berbentuk riset sesuai permintaan. Jadi keterampilan humaniora yang lama dianggap makin tidak penting. Belajar

• क्या ग्रामीण नाराज़गी ख़ुद चुनी हुई और ख़ुद की ही लगाई हुई है?

  ग्रामीण अमेरिका का बड़ा हिस्सा संघीय ख़र्च पर बहुत निर्भर है, और फिर भी ऐसे नेताओं को वोट देता है जो सरकार-विरोधी पहचान की राजनीति का नाटक करते हैं। Farm programs, highway funding, ग्रामीण विद्युतीकरण, broadband सहायता, Medicare, Social Security, और दूसरी संघीय व्यवस्थाएँ ग्रामीण जीवन के लिए हाशिये की नहीं, बल्कि बेहद अहम हैं।

• Ang oras ba ng Britanya ang bumasag sa hangganang nagtakda sa bawat buhay bago niyon?

  Sa halos buong kasaysayan ng tao, hindi gumalaw ang pamantayan ng pamumuhay. Ang isang magsasaka sa Roman Gaul, isang magsasaka sa medyebal na Inglatera, at isang magsasaka sa ilalim ng mga unang Stuart ay nabuhay sa halos parehong antas ng materyal, dahil anumang sobra na nililikha ng isang lipunan ay nalalamon ng mga bibig na pinapakain nito. Ang masaganang ani ay bumibili ng mas maraming sanggol, hindi ng mas mabuting buhay, at umaakyat muli ang populasyon sa gilid ng gutom. Tinatawag ito ng

• May natitira pa bang konserbatibong ideolohiya sa Republican party?

  Dati, akala ko naiintindihan ko kung ano ang bahagi ako. Hindi sa bulag o debotong paraan, kundi sa diwa na may magaspang na pagkakapare-pareho ito. Free markets, free trade, small government. Respeto sa mga institusyon, personal na responsibilidad, pag-iingat sa nakakonsentrang kapangyarihan, lalo na kapag lumitaw ito sa Washington. Naaalala mo pa ba? Hindi mo kailangang sumang-ayon sa bawat posisyon, pero kaya mo namang kilalanin man lang ang hugis ng ideolohiya.

• Le ressentiment rural est-il volontaire et auto-infligé ?

  De larges pans de l'Amérique rurale dépendent fortement des dépenses fédérales, par les programmes agricoles, les autoroutes, Medicare, la Sécurité sociale et le soutien aux infrastructures, tout en votant pour des responsables politiques qui mettent en scène une politique identitaire anti-État. Ce n'est pas une simple hypocrisie. C'est la contradiction sur laquelle le produit politique est bâti. La mythologie est anti-État. L'économie est financée par l'État fédéral.

• Is Ayn Rand's philosophy far more destructive to America than we admit?

  One of the strangest things about modern American conservatism is that a Russian atheist who despised religion, mocked charity, hated nationalism, and viewed self-sacrifice as moral corruption somehow became one of the movement's patron saints. Not fully, obviously. Plenty of conservatives still reject her. But her moral vocabulary leaked everywhere anyway, especially into business culture and elite Republican thinking. You can hear it whenever someone talks as if the highest form of human…

• Were people really any dumber in the past?

  There is a habit in modern thinking that treats the past as a kind of half-awake state, as if the Age of Enlightenment woke us up. People imagine ancient societies as crowded with superstition, as if belief itself was less disciplined before modern science arrived to rescue it. It is a comforting story because it makes the present feel like an intellectual peak rather than just another arrangement of limits and assumptions.

• A sua vez também vai chegar?

  Na década de 1850, o movimento nativista dominante nos Estados Unidos se organizava em torno da hostilidade anticatólica e anti-irlandesa. Os Know-Nothings argumentavam que os imigrantes católicos eram culturalmente inaptos para o autogoverno republicano, leais a uma potência estrangeira (o Papa) e incapazes de uma cidadania americana genuína. Na década de 1880, a mesma suspeita já havia se deslocado pesadamente para os imigrantes chineses. Na década de 1920, deslocou-se de novo para os europeus

• Is there any conservative ideology left to recognize in the Republican party?

  I used to think I understood what I was part of. Not in a blind, devotional way, but in the sense that there was a rough consistency to it. Free markets, free trade, small government. Respect for institutions, personal responsibility, suspicion of concentrated power, especially when it showed up in Washington. Remember that? You didn’t have to agree with every position, but you could at least recognize the shape of the ideology.

• Were the Romans far more progressive than we give them credit for?

  There is a common trend of young men being interested in the Roman empire out of movies and populat history, and imagining it as a militaristic, right wing hyper-masculine empire that was great for men. Spartacus, Rome, Gladiator... to different degree all give a perception of Rome being a sort of warrior-culture, sometimes bogged down by decadence. Gladiator II takes this to a ridiculous extreme. For that particular movie, I recommend reading Brett's, from acoup.blog , critique:

• Are the humanities more needed than ever in the AI age?

  No parents encourage their kids to study Humanities. By default, recommended options are STEM related. Engineering (Computer Science), Finance, Medicine...The argument against the humanities in the AI age makes it even less compelling to dedicate 4 years to study a Humanities degree. Language models can write passably, summarize quickly, and produce research-shaped text on demand. So the old humanities skills are supposed to matter less. Learn to code, learn to prompt, and stop pretending close.

• History targeted Catholics and the Irish first, so will your turn come too?

  In the 1850s, the dominant nativist movement in the United States was organized around anti-Catholic and anti-Irish hostility. The Know-Nothings argued that Catholic immigrants were culturally unfit for republican self-government , loyal to a foreign power (the Pope), and incapable of genuine American citizenship. By the 1880s, the same suspicion had moved heavily onto Chinese immigrants. By the 1920s, it had moved again toward southern and eastern Europeans, especially Jews and...

• Is rural resentment self-inflicted?

  Large parts of rural America depend heavily on federal spending through farm programs, highways, Medicare, Social Security, and infrastructure support while voting for politicians who perform anti-government identity politics. That is not simple hypocrisy. It is the contradiction the political product is built on. The mythology is anti-government. The economy is federally underwritten.

• Does being entertained all the time make ordinary life feel dead?

  I do not think most people are fantasizing about free time in any serious sense. They are fantasizing about free time available for consumption. That is a different thing. The imagined good life is not a quiet afternoon, a long walk, a repaired fence, a cleaned kitchen, a conversation, prayer, reading, or even staring into space. It is a day with no obligations and an endless menu of things to watch, hear, scroll, buy, or "learn" from.