very interesting and thought provoking and not wrong but some comments -
Regarding Eisenhower vs. Stephenson - well victorious generals have won elections in our country since George Washington.
Intellectualism is OK for the ivory towers but the common folk want to feel that their leaders understand them and their needs (think George Bush I and the cost of a quart of milk) - Intelligence shared is maybe better than a separate class seen as intellectuals and even less good if they are seen as or think o themselves as superior. They just have different talents or gifts if one wishes. I can well imagine that Hillary calling Trump supporters "deplorable" effective roadblocked their ability to change their minds and support her.
Regarding education we are, nationally I think, stymied by the tenth amendment which puts that control in local hands mostly
I fear that we will be hard put in this technological environment to curtail the spread of mistruths and half truths and the only positive is that so much of our tribalism is now acquired so quickly it may be less solid than in past.
Thanks, Vinnie, for sharing your insights. Generals have been very popular, and Eisenhower was certainly no exception. He led the defeat against fascism and brought our boys home. I agree that being an intellectual is no asset to achieving political office. But we have fallen to a new low. FDR was not an intellectual, but he spoke with a faux British accent, appeared high-minded, yet was able to appeal to the common man and woman with great effectiveness. JFK, also no intellectual, did not have to present himself as anti-intellectual to be popular. Obama, arguably was an intellectual but was able to garner wide appeal. I agree that we don't need intellectuals in high office. What we do need is intelligence. And you are right, Clinton "deplorable" comment was - deplorable.
Fear, resentment, loss of control, alienation, all work together to overwhelm reason and common sense. The roots of this ominous trend, lie, as implied, in a sociological, as well as economic, analysis of our times.
very interesting and thought provoking and not wrong but some comments -
Regarding Eisenhower vs. Stephenson - well victorious generals have won elections in our country since George Washington.
Intellectualism is OK for the ivory towers but the common folk want to feel that their leaders understand them and their needs (think George Bush I and the cost of a quart of milk) - Intelligence shared is maybe better than a separate class seen as intellectuals and even less good if they are seen as or think o themselves as superior. They just have different talents or gifts if one wishes. I can well imagine that Hillary calling Trump supporters "deplorable" effective roadblocked their ability to change their minds and support her.
Regarding education we are, nationally I think, stymied by the tenth amendment which puts that control in local hands mostly
I fear that we will be hard put in this technological environment to curtail the spread of mistruths and half truths and the only positive is that so much of our tribalism is now acquired so quickly it may be less solid than in past.
Thanks, Vinnie, for sharing your insights. Generals have been very popular, and Eisenhower was certainly no exception. He led the defeat against fascism and brought our boys home. I agree that being an intellectual is no asset to achieving political office. But we have fallen to a new low. FDR was not an intellectual, but he spoke with a faux British accent, appeared high-minded, yet was able to appeal to the common man and woman with great effectiveness. JFK, also no intellectual, did not have to present himself as anti-intellectual to be popular. Obama, arguably was an intellectual but was able to garner wide appeal. I agree that we don't need intellectuals in high office. What we do need is intelligence. And you are right, Clinton "deplorable" comment was - deplorable.
I so like the effort to look behind the anti-intellectual group think phenomenon - fear. I too tried to address this in my own style. https://www.facebook.com/marvin.friedlander.1
Fear, resentment, loss of control, alienation, all work together to overwhelm reason and common sense. The roots of this ominous trend, lie, as implied, in a sociological, as well as economic, analysis of our times.
Thoughtful analysis of our current situation.
Many thanks, Jean. And thanks for your continuing interest.