[lit-ideas] If only the Germans and the Italians and the Japanese hadn't we could call ourselves true men of true nations.
- From: Mike Geary <jejunejesuit.geary2@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2010 22:19:08 -0500
LAWRENCE: "He [MOI] does not value patriotism, heroism, Western
Civilization, or Nationhood.
MISS PIGGY: You've got that right. Moi doesn't value them because those
terms don't have any real definition. They're "God" words -- without any
doctrines even -- they're just sounds that people throw around. Now, if you
want to discuss the specific things that Moi values very highly about this
country, then let's do that. Moi doesn't talk "patriotism." If you want to
discuss specific moral decisions and the courage to pursue them, then let's
do that. Moi doesn't doesn't have the first inkling what "heroism" means.
If you want to discuss Western Civilization, you'll need to get a syllabus
together. It's awfully large topic. We can take specific incidents and
beliefs within Western Civilization over the centuries and perhaps come to
some common ground. Nationhood??? Moi doesn't know the hell that means.
The online etymological dictionary traces "nation" to "c.1300, from O.Fr.
nacion, from L. nationem (nom. natio) "nation, stock, race," lit. "that
which has been born," from natus, pp. of nasci "be born" (Old L. gnasci; see
genus <http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=genus>). Political sense has
gradually taken over from racial meaning, -- hood the dictionary traces to
"a large group of people with common ancestry." "state or condition of
being," from O.E. -had "condition, position," cognate with Ger. -heit, Du.
-heid, all from P.Gmc. *khaidus. Originally a free-standing word, cf. O.E.
hed "position, dignity," O.N. heiðr "honor, dignity," Goth. haidus "manner;"
it survives in English only in this suffix." So does Lawrence mean "the
dignity or manner of the race??" A lot of Southerners would feel
comfortable with that meaning. Nationhood?? What's the national difference
between the US and Canada except that Canada has a mostly sane society?
Whereas we are a nation of gunslingers. What's the national difference
between the U. S. and most European countries -- from whom we mostly came?
Nothing except that they care about the health and welfare of all their
citizenry, whereas we only care about the super wealthy. Nationhood. Yeah,
Moi's all for that.
I think JL would be proud of Moi for this post even though he does seem to
take an inordinate amount of pride at being a descendant of Ligurians -- and
they're not even a nation.
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- » [lit-ideas] If only the Germans and the Italians and the Japanese hadn't we could call ourselves true men of true nations. - Mike Geary
