tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post950072994475376479..comments2023-12-28T06:30:48.808-05:00Comments on The Rule of Reason: Our Imploding WorldUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-262629480183282652013-03-24T12:34:08.772-04:002013-03-24T12:34:08.772-04:00Ah nice - I recall that column now, but didn't...Ah nice - I recall that column now, but didn't know the comments had bloomed such.<br /><br />Thanks!<br /><br />Oh and I do agree about Ronin (the only movie in the column I've actually seen)...what an empty bunch of spectacular crap.Tim Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06319251326099194934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-44861811593581301832013-03-23T21:00:23.354-04:002013-03-23T21:00:23.354-04:00Thanks, Grant. You're the second person to rec...Thanks, Grant. You're the second person to recommend that column. Edward Clinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160209827969614964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-54453290626109367462013-03-23T18:41:42.012-04:002013-03-23T18:41:42.012-04:00FYI: This article by Ed - and its comments - inclu...FYI: This article by Ed - and its comments - includes many of his movie recommendations. <br /><br />http://ruleofreason.blogspot.com/2013/01/all-for-nothing-nihilism-in-cinema.html<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-49026995709561123602013-03-23T18:19:31.426-04:002013-03-23T18:19:31.426-04:00MadMax: That's a new take on why Western wome...MadMax: That's a new take on why Western women convert to Islam: "I'm just this person who has these two things on my chest and different plumbing from men's, but that's irrelevant because I'm just another of Allah's creations and so are men, but men seem to be fixated on my extraneous attributes, so I'd better cover up lest I provoke them. I mean, when's the last time you saw a Playboy fold-out of a person in a burqa?" Edward Clinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160209827969614964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-5312859943146590502013-03-23T11:49:37.267-04:002013-03-23T11:49:37.267-04:00Ed - I see where I was "off" - depends o...Ed - I see where I was "off" - depends on context. Thanks BLNelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10937014325336324779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-2498041208471439732013-03-23T10:30:18.938-04:002013-03-23T10:30:18.938-04:00My mind will never surrender to them, and my walle...My mind will never surrender to them, and my wallet is already forced to. Not sure if taking advantage of their stupidity qualifies as surrendering, but that's part of why I have this debate. Because of shitty schools, you opted out of motherhood, but 15 socialist hippies went for it, so the balance is outta whack. If some children in the next generation are not taught the principles of self responsibility, there really is no hope. Succeeding generations will just continue to tear down the Constitution and all it stands for, and keep trying slightly different forms of socialism until mob rule is officially in effect. Of course, me having one kid won't really do much to affect the balance. But how many other people are saying that and by not risking their principles, end up just making the plight worse? <br />I'm stymied and so sad.Victoriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01708892332720921271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-72870358839471701862013-03-23T03:33:27.913-04:002013-03-23T03:33:27.913-04:00Victoria, moral fortitude is what you'll need ...Victoria, moral fortitude is what you'll need to find within yourself to survive and not surrender to the moochers and looters.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-55268472374479642902013-03-23T02:02:15.412-04:002013-03-23T02:02:15.412-04:00Victoria, 10 years ago I wanted to have children, ...Victoria, 10 years ago I wanted to have children, but the thought of having to rely on public schools to educate my children because I would not be able to afford a private school or home schooling, was enough to deter me. I chose to forgo motherhood because I knew I could not afford to raise children myself. The irony is that even though I don’t have children, today about 45% of my income is stolen in taxes to pay for other people’s children.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-16250754978303909002013-03-23T01:24:30.978-04:002013-03-23T01:24:30.978-04:00Ed, if we ever had enough votes to ratify a 28th A...Ed, if we ever had enough votes to ratify a 28th Amendment, how do we prevent all three branches of government which are already running over the Constitution from not doing the same with a 28th Amendment?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-50869710181557995232013-03-23T00:06:41.889-04:002013-03-23T00:06:41.889-04:00This was both ennervating and frustrating to read....This was both ennervating and frustrating to read. I find much these days that delights me, but so much more that makes me despair for the immediate future. <br />I see so many people raising their children to be "sensitive" and "caring" when all they're really doing is making them weak and rudderless. It frustrates me SO much because I'd love to get pregnant and try to encourage a little bit more self-awareness and independence in the next generation, but finances are such that I could only have a kid with government assistance. The idea is abhorrent to me, but then I think, "why not?" According to the voting public and my government, I am "in need". I've been living under the poverty line for years, trying to make it as a small business owner. Just this year my husband and I opted to max out our credit cards and start a new food joint here in TN when we both got laid off. In doing so, we've created four jobs, but at the cost of putting our personal hopes and aspirations on hold. Again. <br />I'm just so damn frustrated with people's blindness that I want to throw in the towel. The funniest part is that I can't get health insurance I can afford, even on the government's (excuse me, the taxpayers' dime) UNLESS I am pregnant. How's that for irony? <br />So what do I do? Keep toiling, helping my local economy at the cost of my personal life? Ugh I hate feeling like there's no good path forward. I see no light at the end of any tunnel, because so many people are determined to believe in the 'greater good.' My phone keyboard doesn't have symbols to translate the sounds of disgust emanating from my mouth right now.Victoriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01708892332720921271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-90044799225661481082013-03-22T23:49:13.700-04:002013-03-22T23:49:13.700-04:00I agree with Tim, that it would be very interestin...I agree with Tim, that it would be very interesting to see a column about Ed's favorite movies. For a list of some his non-favorite movies you can visit his column on Nihilism in Cinema. He names a few there, but if you go to the comments of that column, you'll find a whole list of some of Ed's favorite movies.<br /><br />Go ahead, get him started, but then you can always visit Ed's article on Hollywood's nihilism. If you click in the comments section, you'll get a about 3 months worth of Ed's favorite movies and not so favorite movies.<br /><br />http://ruleofreason.blogspot.com/2013/01/all-for-nothing-nihilism-in-cinema.html<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-23888416647506925742013-03-22T21:49:07.264-04:002013-03-22T21:49:07.264-04:00" But don't get me started on my favorite..." But don't get me started on my favorite films vs. the ones I hate the most."<br /><br />I'd actually be very interested in that as a column. I suspect we would strongly agree but I wonder about differences...for instance A Night At the Opera/Brain Donors which in my view are reasonably "correct" comedy (poking fun at the deserved rather than the good)....Tim Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06319251326099194934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-66512339381018191102013-03-22T19:26:41.395-04:002013-03-22T19:26:41.395-04:00Grant: The demise of adult film is for me one of ...Grant: The demise of adult film is for me one of the most telling signs of degeneration. Adults direct and adults appear in today's films, most of which are not "adult" in the sense that they address rational moral or esthetic issues. They're either stupid or politically correct or politically intended. For example, John Stahl's "Leave Her to Heaven" (1945) is my conception of an "adult" film. (You can watch it for free on YouTube here.) There's been nothing produced recently that comes near to matching its direction, acting, cinematography, and editing.<br /> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aW7R4NHCKEE <br /><br />Another surprisingly adult film is "The 13th Warrior" (1999), a rarity among films made in the last 30-40 years, in which one character's epistemology triumphs over mysticism and superstition in the Dark Ages. The character with the healthier epistemology happens to be an Arab (or Persian, it's not clear which) who accompanies some Vikings to fight some evil force in the north. <br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oztjRgkrRXk&feature=endscreen&NR=1<br /><br />I rarely go to movie theaters anymore, and now do most of my movie-watching on Netflix. But don't get me started on my favorite films vs. the ones I hate the most. <br />Edward Clinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160209827969614964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-17335833026558757572013-03-22T18:06:17.939-04:002013-03-22T18:06:17.939-04:00Hey Ed, yes the damage was uneven. Naturalism quic...Hey Ed, yes the damage was uneven. Naturalism quickly came to dominate literature. However, Romanticism remained strong in the new motion picture industry. The demise of adult film is one of the saddest things about the current moral/cultural degeneration. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-55068636255666004742013-03-22T16:42:36.778-04:002013-03-22T16:42:36.778-04:00BLNelson: In the context of a constitutional repu...BLNelson: In the context of a constitutional republic, that is, one envisioned by the Founders, no, referenda are not a form of democracy or mob rule. They would be ad hoc proposals for changes in procedures, or even in gerrymandering practices to establish districts to be represented in Congress (or even in state legislatures (just as examples of proper referenda, there would be more). No referenda would be legitimate if they proposed to violate individual rights, and especially not if Congress were prohibited by a "28th Amendment" from regulating or interfering with trade among individuals and corporations and so on. So, referenda proposing to prohibit abortions, or imposing restrictions on speech, or permitting the arbitrary power to zone property development, or the display of frowned-upon things in private shops (e.g., Bloomberg's proposal to force merchants to hide cigarettes in New York City) wouldn't be recognized and would ideally be stricken down by the courts. No referenda would be recognized that expanded a government's power beyond its enumerated powers. <br /><br />On the other hand, a referendum that proposed to corral or limit a government's power to declare eminent domain on private property would be an example of a proper referendum, or to more strictly define a government's "right of way" if the right-of-way was connected with one of the proper functions of government: the police or courts or military defense of the country. <br />Edward Clinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160209827969614964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-2952638862688248622013-03-22T14:44:06.419-04:002013-03-22T14:44:06.419-04:00As always a cogent analysis. I look for your post...As always a cogent analysis. I look for your posts (every day I hope to see a new one) to tell the brutal truth that everyone needs to hear, but most unfortunately won't. I have a question though. Many people are in favor of inititives and referendums when legislators will not do what these people want them to do. This referendum/initiative process seems a form of "democracy" - mob rule - to me. Am I thinking correctly about this?BLNelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10937014325336324779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-50467904418053134102013-03-22T08:05:53.461-04:002013-03-22T08:05:53.461-04:00Thank you for this essay, Mr. Cline.
And thank you...Thank you for this essay, Mr. Cline.<br />And thank you even more for Hugh Kenrick and the universe of Sparrowhawk.<br />(I have just begun Book 3)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10272637315471171272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-7501619232333745472013-03-21T23:09:49.255-04:002013-03-21T23:09:49.255-04:00Grant: I agree that WWI was a turning point, but ...Grant: I agree that WWI was a turning point, but for all the waste of that conflict, and the laying of the foundation of statism here, it only stalled the optimism, not suffocated it, which is what we're seeing today. Except in sites like this one. Edward Clinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160209827969614964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-62581857416004424982013-03-21T22:54:19.254-04:002013-03-21T22:54:19.254-04:00Thanks Ed for another excellent essay. I will add ...Thanks Ed for another excellent essay. I will add that World War I was the major turning point in Western history. From then on, the numerous enemies of civilization have been infecting the American people with various forms of unreason. From the comrades of the 1920s to the Islam apologists/enablers of today, their goal is the same. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200276.post-83119676905317034202013-03-21T22:27:27.699-04:002013-03-21T22:27:27.699-04:00Ed, thank you for a meticulous analysis of our mor...Ed, thank you for a meticulous analysis of our morally bankrupt culture and the thieves who've instigated the theft. It's the thinkers of your stature that our country needs if it is to re-emerge from the bog of mental lethargy it has been sinking in.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com