A lengthy piece on the communitarian aspect of the militia by yours truly over at Takimag. I argue that the right to bear arms is expansive, but that the best antidote to oppressive government is a virtuous and energetic citzenry, a goal that was furthered and could be again by a strong and widespread militia movement tied to local law enforcement.
John Savage at Brave New World Watch notes that “health” and other liberal goals like autonomy are often at odds. I participate in debate and note that psychopathology, a relatively open-ended concept, is the way liberalism saves itself from its own excesses.
A lengthy debate over at Takimag critical of “White Nationalists” led by mild critic Paul Gottfried and severe Catholic critic John Zmirak. I remind John Zmirak that “noble lies” are not necessary, so long as we remember that we are called as Christians to be charitable to our countrymen regardless of our group differences.
4 Jul 2008 at 6:52 pm
We can also be charitable towards blacks because they are our neighbors. There is all the difference in the world between the blacks who live down the road out here in the countryside, who still adhere to traditional rural Southern culture, and the degraded “consumers” of all races in the cities.
Zmirak an urban, Northern, Catholic Irish-Croat monarchist. It is not really surprising that he rejects the traditional values of rural, Southern, Anglo-American Protestant republicans. I always get a good laugh though in how he condemns the identity of others by asserting the universality of his own peculiar identity and sociology.
6 Jul 2008 at 2:34 am
Roach, thanks for the link.
I’ve been thinking over what you said about health as, perhaps, the ultimate “unprincipled exception”, rather than a principle of its own. It’s hard to tell whether it rises to the level of a principle itself. Jim Kalb has spoken of “scientism” or the rule of experts as a central principle of the Left, although it’s maybe a principle that’s not very much in tune with the general thrust of leftist thought, and one that leftists certainly sacrifice when it conflicts with compulsory equality.
7 Jul 2008 at 4:57 pm
I wonder how Chittum would view militias tied to local law-enforcement …
Perhaps there has not yet been sufficient tribal separation within law-enforcement for that to be a problem yet …