From the outset, one of the underlying themes of The Texas Pilgrim has been the notion that “ideas have consequences”, and one of the thinkers who inspired that notion in me is Richard M. Weaver, whose 1948 book of that name has been an invaluable source of the wisdom of that aphorism. Periodically I like […]
“The Autocracy of Feelings”
In revisiting Richard Weaver it occurred to me that a significant by-product of the relativism sparked by the evolution of the philosophy of nominalism that he explains is a pervasive subjectivism that colors every issue in the public realm. As a society it seems we have dumped objectivism and adopted an attitude totally driven by […]
The “Humanities Wars” Continue
Some years ago I led an essay with this opening: “We continue to be besieged by commentary in the battle over the humanities in higher education–do we need more emphasis?, do we need less?, is it all about jobs?, is it all about competency in a skill set?, what about critical thinking?, what about making […]
Finally, Brexit Means Brexit
It was a long, bitter, and high risk fight, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson deserves a lot of credit for his dice roll in the UK in an election that will have implications far and wide. This is a big deal in many more ways than Brexit. Anyone who looks at these results in Britain […]
A Major Setback for “Settled Science”
In a decision that could have much more impact than has been reported, a state court has thrown out New York’s case against ExxonMobil for securities fraud allegedly perpetrated in the company’s misrepresentation of the threat of climate change, a charge the investigation of which the judge in the case described as “politically motivated”. No […]
A Parting Year End Comment and Some Personal Items
December is usually an open month for the Pilgrim, but I can’t resist some year end comments on the impeachment show trials along with a couple of personal items. First, the impeachment “inquiry”. The so-called Pelosi “moderate” Democrats couldn’t hold off their party’s hard left wing nuts, aided and abetted by a compliant media, and […]
More Trump Doctrine Volatility in the Middle East
I was wrong last month when I wrote that, when finally making a strategic policy choice on troop withdrawals, President Trump would not prefer a legacy in the Middle East as the President who vacated leadership in that region to Russia, Iran, and ISIS. Only days after I wrote he made what I consider to […]
The Nation’s Report Card—Not Good News
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) for 2019 has just been released and the results are not good. Basically, in measuring the progress of students in fourth and eighth grade, it shows that American school children have made no progress in math or reading for at least ten years. Since the last time the […]
George Will’s Conservatism
I have been a follower of George Will’s work for about 40 years, although I haven’t read one of his books since Statecraft as Soulcraft, his first full length book, over 35 years ago. I am pleased that I chose to read his latest, The Conservative Sensibility, a major addition to conservative thought that one reviewer, […]
Random Thoughts on the Passing Parade
In the 20 years since I have been writing this monthly letter, I have never found it so difficult to cut through the maze of current events to find threads that enforce my theme that “ideas have consequences”. I have refused to become beholden to the zeitgeist, the overnight news cycle, and the “who’s up, […]
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