The Culture of Nations - New York Times:
Moynihan's thought is a foundational insight that ought to be examined and contemplated by everyone interested in politics and culture and the 'wars' now being fought by liberals and conservatives in the U.S.
Can we in the short term ( a few decades) expect to change the culture that breeds RATs? I think not, so I agree with Brooks:
"...it is no wonder that young Muslim men in Britain might decide to renounce freedom and prosperity for midair martyrdom. They are driven by a deep cultural need for meaning. But it is also foolish to think we can address the root causes of their toxic desires. We’ll just have to fight the symptoms of a disease we can neither cure nor understand."
"...one of Daniel Patrick Moynihan's greatest observations: "The central conservative truth is that it is culture, not politics, that determines the success of a society. The central liberal truth is that politics can change a culture and save it from itself."
No comments:
Post a Comment