tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post8229278769498092154..comments2023-12-28T18:17:11.191-05:00Comments on Gruntled Center: The Republican Brain DrainGruntledhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-37809431139139014752010-11-14T14:31:40.903-05:002010-11-14T14:31:40.903-05:00Now that is really scary.Now that is really scary.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-90641833671720945372010-11-14T10:39:38.150-05:002010-11-14T10:39:38.150-05:00i reckin you oughter hall off an reed sum ov that ...i reckin you oughter hall off an reed sum ov that there gaetano mosca an that there pareto feller<br /><br />thet will larn yew a thang or tooAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-36221081319159012882010-11-14T10:34:44.775-05:002010-11-14T10:34:44.775-05:00yall r all rite an grunteld is rong
them peepul ...yall r all rite an grunteld is rong <br /><br />them peepul with fancy edjookaishuns aint smarter then enny wun els<br /><br />aint nuthin rong with eeleets in jinerul <br /><br />sosiettee is run by eeleets an there r good eeleets an bad eeleets<br /><br />rite now wee got bad eeleets in the kurrint adminnystrashun<br /><br />nuff saidAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-65603892056751828182010-11-12T19:32:51.455-05:002010-11-12T19:32:51.455-05:00That Bircher, pastor, sounds like Mr. Obama, brill...That Bircher, pastor, sounds like Mr. Obama, brilliant but not wise. We would be better off if neither were president of our country.taajnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-80030241229310165772010-11-12T12:25:03.671-05:002010-11-12T12:25:03.671-05:00I know a John Bircher, who loves the Tea Party, an...I know a John Bircher, who loves the Tea Party, and who believes that William Buckley was the enemy and that Eisenhower was a communist. This John Bircher is a brilliant guy, but believes many things that seem entirely unwarranted.dennistheeremitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10801567321734091885noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-86035223173064220072010-11-12T04:18:26.445-05:002010-11-12T04:18:26.445-05:00Mr. Obama is an intellectual but he is not a wise ...Mr. Obama is an intellectual but he is not a wise man, this is a dangerous combination in a leader. Especially in the supposed leader of the free world.taajnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-6934739916644289762010-11-11T22:06:40.749-05:002010-11-11T22:06:40.749-05:00He would be president of my Tea Party. You sir, ar...He would be president of my Tea Party. You sir, are dreaming.Jill T.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-73309286681895651852010-11-11T20:57:27.410-05:002010-11-11T20:57:27.410-05:00The issue that Andresen was pointing to was not th...The issue that Andresen was pointing to was not that the best educated are moving away from conservatism, but that they are moving away from the Republican Party. His inference is that it is the recent theme of attacking "elites" and elevating leaders who are palpably ill-informed within the Republican Party that is causing educated young people to leave the GOP. Some of them may be conservative, but feel unwelcome. It is hard to imagine a young Bill Buckley, for example, being welcome on a Tea Party stage.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-13081557768625071002010-11-11T20:41:14.361-05:002010-11-11T20:41:14.361-05:00I grimace at two more years, and then he can be sh...I grimace at two more years, and then he can be shown the door.<br /><br />Many people who are Dems in college become conservative later. My favorite example is my friend's husband. He was a flag-burning, war protesting, long-haired hippie liberal in the 60s. Now he's a business owner and more conservative than I am, which is saying something. We all say that he just grew up. He says that he worked hard for his business and it's not the prerogative of the government to redistribute his hard-earned wealth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-16890630753510945532010-11-11T19:19:00.152-05:002010-11-11T19:19:00.152-05:00At 49, I wasn't thinking of Obama as a young g...At 49, I wasn't thinking of Obama as a young gun. He is, though, a brilliant political leader, who has achieved about all that one could, given the disaster he inherited. I look forward to six more increasingly productive years.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-65018455754798588342010-11-11T19:12:47.263-05:002010-11-11T19:12:47.263-05:00I meant like a Democrat Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio or ...I meant like a Democrat Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio or John Thune. The brain drain may be on your side. Obama must be a disappointment to your side.Siralnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-45980202477184857352010-11-11T17:57:09.621-05:002010-11-11T17:57:09.621-05:00Siral, Andresen was writing about current college ...Siral, Andresen was writing about current college students and recent graduates, so some of the young guns are just starting to make their way. I have high hopes for my own daughter, now in her first year of law school.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-66606940095938741952010-11-11T17:50:21.892-05:002010-11-11T17:50:21.892-05:00Gruntled, who are the Democrat young guns? Your pa...Gruntled, who are the Democrat young guns? Your party's future leaders.Siralnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-22007601261022649122010-11-11T14:26:20.014-05:002010-11-11T14:26:20.014-05:00You might find this amusing. It's a short poe...You might find this amusing. It's a short poem by Auden.<br /><br />To the man in the street who, I'm sorry to say,<br /> Is a keen observer of life,<br />The word 'intellectual' suggests right away<br /> A man who's untrue to his wife.halifaxnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-46686899684565621902010-11-11T14:19:21.383-05:002010-11-11T14:19:21.383-05:00The 55 mph speed limit may be a perfect example of...The 55 mph speed limit may be a perfect example of what I am talking about. The experts might be able to tell us what the trade-offs are between speed and accidents, although it is intuitively known that there is such a trade-off. But the experts cannot decide for society what the optimal trade-off is (a few more accidents at 70, but much shorter travel times). That is, and was, something decided on by society itself when drivers (i) ignored the limit and (ii) demanded repeal. The fact that the experts might disagree with the trade-off preferred by larger society does not make it wrong.Whitnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-10979226656654942112010-11-11T14:10:33.248-05:002010-11-11T14:10:33.248-05:00Maybe I don't know the definition of authorita...Maybe I don't know the definition of authoritarianism, but it seems to me that, at this time, the authoritarians are on the Left, while the people who prefer more individual rights and economic freedom, and less governmental authority over their lives, are on the right.Whitnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-17307199900054802152010-11-11T13:23:48.291-05:002010-11-11T13:23:48.291-05:00As to "running society" we may not be di...As to "running society" we may not be disagreeing much. <br /><br />I think managing the complex system of decisions about which roads to build and maintain, how they connect with one another, what kind of traffic regulations by rules and by devices they require, and how to pay for it all, constitutes a piece of "running society." <br /><br />All of which enables me to make a free decision about which road to take to the city.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-182247425337758512010-11-11T13:20:13.876-05:002010-11-11T13:20:13.876-05:00Both parties have their skeptics about established...Both parties have their skeptics about established knowledge. The two cases are not quite parallel, though. Senior Republican officials encouraged birther speculation, and half the GOP presidential candidates last time said they did not believe in evolution. <br /><br />In research on authoritarianism and polarization that I blogged on earlier, Hetherington and Weiler noted that <br />1) Authoritarians have much less accurate political knowledge than non-authoritarians; and <br />2) Over the past forty years authoritarians made a big shift from an even division between both parties to a heavy concentration in the Republican party. <br /><br />This is the same period that Andresen shows a strong shift of the most educated people in the opposite direction.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-38591544055044767502010-11-11T13:12:06.480-05:002010-11-11T13:12:06.480-05:00I vote left of center and spend most of my time re...I vote left of center and spend most of my time resisting folly on my side of the aisle, so I completely agree that witless politics are a drain on both parties. <br /><br />Increasingly, I think the key decision for each of us is whether our political participation is going to be mainly about criticizing others or mainly about building up sensible shared institutions. <br /><br />Every commenter here actually has examples of good sense roles for government and ideas for implementing those roles more effectively. It will be good for our communities and our children if we can give those constructive opportunities our best energy.<br /><br />Snark is fun in small doses, but it's no way to build up our world. It's not stewardship of our talents, and doing it all day falls short of the work we're called to do.SPWestonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08602329486466534720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-32777572620447530612010-11-11T12:59:50.555-05:002010-11-11T12:59:50.555-05:00The two deleted comments were duplicates, not cens...The two deleted comments were duplicates, not censorship.Gruntledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14377809238377382438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-57214316809498922862010-11-11T12:54:38.063-05:002010-11-11T12:54:38.063-05:00I'm not worried because my theory is most Repu...I'm not worried because my theory is most Republicans become Republicans after college anyway. Maybe that's bad but I doubt it.Cameron Motthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10902626079252606370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-48748327798844421512010-11-11T12:54:08.813-05:002010-11-11T12:54:08.813-05:00I have one other observation regarding Andresen. ...I have one other observation regarding Andresen. I have to admit that the conservative side has the young earth creationists and the "birthers" (though the point of the birthers escapes me since there is no question about the President's mother's citizenship and thus his right to his office). <br /><br />On the other hand, the other side has the "truthers" and a series of environmental doom-sayers beginning at least as early as Rachel Carson whose warnings and predictions have proven to be less than reliable. Polls have also shown that Evangelicals are actually less likely than secular-leftists to believe in the paranormal such as ghosts, flying saucers, etc.<br /><br />Everybody would be better off if we did not try to tar conservatives generally with birthers and the like, or tar progressives with the truthers.<br /><br />Further, while I don't know any birthers, I do know some young earth creationists who are perfectly reasonable on most every other issue you talk to them about. We have to be careful to distinguish between false positions and the people who hold them.Whitnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-10852866757544638752010-11-11T12:07:49.353-05:002010-11-11T12:07:49.353-05:00Sorry for the multiple posts. The little machine ...Sorry for the multiple posts. The little machine told me each time that my message had been rejected, but that obviously wasn't the case. I blame Quebec, as I always do. Feel free to delete them if you want.halifaxnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-76378931685333484602010-11-11T12:05:27.928-05:002010-11-11T12:05:27.928-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.halifaxnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16201378.post-24905419129703233402010-11-11T12:05:10.777-05:002010-11-11T12:05:10.777-05:00I actually didn't have the same experience wit...I actually didn't have the same experience with Republicans on campus that you had, Beau. Perhaps, that was because it was a not very well kept secret that I had some sympathy for their position. In fact, the representatives of the college Republicans were quite comfortable with their party and with themselves, and they were usually better students than their counterparts in the college Dems (obviously, this is anecdotal). Of course, I haven't been there during the years of the Obama imperium so it's certainly possible that things have changed.<br /><br />As for the complaints of the locals about the dirigiste tendencies of the Centre faculty, I would suggest that your own experience confirms much of what the locals have to say. You are a moderate Democrat (with the emphasis on 'Democrat'), but you are often treated as some sort of right-wing nut by your fellow faculty members (whose political sophistication is as shallow as a pond in the Mojave). I well remember the daily lunchtime rants of biologists, philosophers, and religion professors about the perfidy of anyone to the right of Chairman Mao (or maybe it was Howard Dean that year).<br /><br />In terms of 'schools, roads, traffic lights, sewers, an electrical grid, clean air, clean water, safe food, safe medicine, mail, currency, limited liability corporations, air traffic control, border security, trade agreements, international alliances, and, on this Veterans Day, a strong military', many of these goods (schools, roads, clean air, clean water, safe food, safe medicine) were readily available long before government got involved, though I wouldn't necessarily dispute the necessity for some minimal level of government involvement now (except in schools, where 'more equals worse'). In terms of several others (common currency, international/trade agreements, border security), there's nothing to distinguish the US (or any other liberal democracy) from other states in terms of providing these (except for the fact that the US is so egregiously poor at border security). Of course, I’m an Old Whig or Tory Anarchist, so I’m not to be trusted in these situations. And, by the way, I believe that Rand Paul did indeed fulfill my prediction and say that ‘we are going to take our government/country back’. It wasn’t a good line when Obamaphiles said it two years ago, and it still isn’t one.<br /><br />That all said, I'm reading a book that would surely interest you about the history of intellectuals in the UK (or, more accurately, England). It's called Absent Minds and it's by the intellectual historian Stefan Collini. You might enjoy it because he deals with many of the 'knowledge class' questions that animate some of your research and some your blog posts (like this one), but does so as an historian not a sociologist. He also has separate chapters on intellectuals in Germany, France, and the US. You might want to check it out just to see how the other half (historians, I mean) lives.halifaxnoreply@blogger.com