I think that what Thomas Frank is talking about in the book, and what Chris
Hedges talks about all of the time, is that the people educated by the ivy
league schools who move into political and financial leadership, have not
used their education to its fullest, haven't benefited from its humanizing
effects, but have used their education to become technically proficient and
to better themselves at the expense of the rest of us. We, on the other
hand, have given them our trust, assuming that they will use their knowledge
and power on our behalf.
Miriam
________________________________
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Alice Dampman
Humel
Sent: Monday, May 30, 2016 8:56 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Hillary Clinton's New Anti-Trump Ad Misses
the Mark
While I don't think the well-educated, Ivy League types who graduate at or
near the top of their classes should be "worshipped," to use Bob's word, I
don't think they should be vilified, hated, or disrespected, either. This,
IMO, is exactly what Trump and his ilk and followers are doing. Remember
Trump's insulting, demeaning comment about the uneducated and how much he
loves them, a remark most of them are too stupid to have understood? It's
one more example of pitting "us" against "them."
Intellectual should not be a dirty word just as "laborer" should not be a
dirty word, either.
And, for that matter, who do we think most of the authors of the articles
appearing on this very list are? Maybe not Ivy Leaguers in the traditional
negative sense, but they're not uneducated ignoramuses, either. They're
well-read, well-informed, historically and culturally informed and aware
thinkers. Some more than others, of course, but still...
On May 29, 2016, at 9:47 AM, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Isn't Listen Liberal a fantastic book? I've been having an email
dialog
with a member of the DB Review list who has been kind enough to
forward all
the list messages to me during this period when many of us have been
prevented from receiving them by some sort of technical gliche. She
considers herself to be a liberal and to be well informed. She has
her
favorite podcasts from NPR and one or two other sources, watches TV,
and
enjoys old time radio. She was shocked at my distrust of NPR and
most of the
information from the mass media on which she depends. I forwarded
her an
article that I'd just read, and a "Between the Lines" email which
contains
an audio newsletter as I tried to explain that when one reads
alternative
sources of news, one discovers that much of what the mass media
tells us is
incorrect. But I suspect that she continues to think that I'm
paranoid and
weird. As for Tiaiby's comment about Hillary's ad, it reminds me of
what, I
think, Noam Chomsky said about Sanders' assertion that Israel's
response to
the Hamas rockets from Gaza in 2014 was disproportionate. Most of us
were
relieved that he had said that since, at the time, he was being
supportive
of the Israeli attack. But Chomsky pointed out that the real point
was that
Israel should not be maintaining its seige on Gaza to begin with and
that
the rockets were homemade weapons that were barely effective. I
think all of
us become captured by false rhetoric sometimes.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Bob
Hachey
Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2016 7:23 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Hillary Clinton's New Anti-Trump Ad
Misses
the Mark
Hi all,
I just finished reading Listen Liberal, by Thomas Frank. It's on
Bookshare
and it spells out the gory detail of how Clinton, Obama, and a good
bit of
the rest of the Democratic leadership have sold most of us down the
river.
It speaks often of worship of the so-called "well educated" Ivy
league types
who finish at or near the top of their class. Please do read it if
you're a
bookshare member.
I'm not sure that most Americans will agree with Taibbi here though
I do
believe he makes a good point. Unfortunately, this arrogant liberal
believes
that many will just listen to the trump quote in the Clinton ad and
not
realize how hypocritical the add really is. Frankly, I thought it
was a
reasonably good negative add against Trump until I read this
article.
Bob Hachey
