Quick post on the false equivalency that the ignorant or the agenda-driven blithely draw between what they see as a rise of populism in Europe and Trump's populist rhetoric and victory here in the US. A few caveats to consider before concluding they're the same thing: 1. Trump is not a conservative, but tapped into the vast electoral power of a few key conservative ideas--not because he understands them properly, or argues them effectively, but because the electorate trusted that he could deliver on the results they want. Conservatism is above all an ideology which values results and evidence over utopian ideals and "war on poverty"-esque promises that deliver no measurable improvements despite decades of money thrown at problems. American Conservative intellectuals almost all had one of two reactions to the Trump nomination: a. he's not a Conservative but could deliver on our vision for the country than the other nominee, therefore we'll hold our nose
Candid evaluation of assumptions as well as musings on consequences of political, religious, moral, scientific, linguistic and literary truths and pretensions thereto. Dissecting representations, critiquing arguments, discussing liberty, equality, justice, faith, values, facts, and the principles and institutions that make them all possible.