When a Christian picks up Leo Strauss' work, two things strike the educated reader: 1) That this man knows his subject matter, and 2) He does not want to be read. Thus the experience of continuing to read Strauss, rather than tossing the book away with irritation and disgust, will not happen if the reader … Continue reading On the Reading of Leo Strauss
The Modern World
MacIntyre’s Concept of Inter-Tradition Conflict
During my recent reading of the prologue to the third edition of Alasdair MacIntyre's After Virtue, I realized that I had never, either for others' education or my own, written down my own understanding of MacIntyre's process of arbitration between rival traditions of rational inquiry. Since that process is central to MacIntyre's project and I … Continue reading MacIntyre’s Concept of Inter-Tradition Conflict
Deep Unraveling: Waiting for a Crisis
I suppose this train of thought begins with "Heroes of the Fourth Turning," which is a play I've actually never seen (but want to, obviously). It was the name of that play that made me eagerly pick up a book I saw on a student's bookshelf: The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy by William Strauss … Continue reading Deep Unraveling: Waiting for a Crisis
A Man For Our Season
In the preface to his play, A Man for All Seasons, Robert Bolt explains his motivation for choosing Thomas More as his hero. He describes an inability in the people of his time to answer the question of what and who they are. The individual is dissatisfied with defining himself as a Man because he … Continue reading A Man For Our Season
Nature Is Incomplete.
I recently found myself standing in the midst of a forest full of redwoods and feeling oddly uncomfortable. Surrounded by rare giants, some of whom had fallen and some whom were still proudly displaying their two-thousand-year-old glory, I didn't feel quite as I ought to have. At another time of life not so long ago, … Continue reading Nature Is Incomplete.
Against the Hourly Wage
This past summer, I worked a job of a type that I had not tried before: I worked on a ranch for long weeks of 50-60 hours for a salary of $900 twice a month, my lunches provided on the job, plus a place to stay for no charge and a supply of beef for … Continue reading Against the Hourly Wage
Current Perspective
"Snake" Plissken from the 1996 film, Escape From L.A. I have gained some perspective in recent times, specifically in my new job and its last location. Lately, I have revisited and started a new job with the family company as an Assistant Project Manager in which I build freezer warehouses. I have been working with … Continue reading Current Perspective
Evil and the Intellectual
Evil has always accompanied the intellectual. To be the latter is to philosophize, to pry beneath the shell or rind of visible, tangible reality to seek the strata or heart or seed hiding beneath. It is an unfortunate side effect that such dissection can often kill the appreciation of the Intellectual for the object of … Continue reading Evil and the Intellectual
Ruminations on the Cult of Professional Professionalism
There is a new cult of which I have been recently made aware. It is dangerous because it is subtle. It has the appearance of the best intentions; it has the appearance of contributing to the common good, but it does not. The cult that I am talking about is what I have deemed “The … Continue reading Ruminations on the Cult of Professional Professionalism
Lander's Forge 