Quote of the day—Clayton E. Cramer

Trying to argue abstract concepts like right and wrong or constitutionality with most Americans is a waste of time. Few believe in right or wrong, and fewer still have any conception of the Constitution as a contract between the generations.

Clayton E. Cramer
January 18, 2013
Comment to Does ‘Gun Show Loophole’ Actually Result in Gun Crime?–Statistics do not point to criminals using this tactic.
[I can’t say that I disagree. But to agree with him sucks me into depression and despair. If right and wrong are beyond most Americans then are not also facts and fallacies, truth and falsity beyond them as well? Unfortunately I have substantial data to back up that claim.

See also Philosophy: Who Needs It (The Ayn Rand Library Vol. 1). A case can be made, as Rand does, that what Cramer states as fact can be explained by the lack of sound philosophy being taught to our children for the last 50 or more years.—Joe]

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6 thoughts on “Quote of the day—Clayton E. Cramer

  1. Re “lack of sound philosophy being taught”. I believe you’re right. And I believe that this lack is intentional. The overpowering state depends on the ignorance of the people for its success.

  2. “The overpowering state depends on the ignorance of the people for its success.”

    Exactly. It was openly stated by the communists decades ago, that it is impossible to overthrow a strong and noble people. Here we are some 60 years of really active demoralization and degradation later, and we’re just about “cooked”. Don’t get too angry about it though– we’ve all played a role in it.

    • Well; ignorance and dependence. You must have both, and then you have yourself a gang. Much like a horse, you have to break the person before you can control him.

    • Yup. Who Killed homer goes into this. It talks about how the education establishment started actively talking down and dismissing Classical Education, and what made the Greeks and those that follow them, profoundly different. The Greeks though that not all cultures were objectively equal, modern “Classicists” take the line that either they are all equal, or that they are all equal EXCEPT Greek/western culture, which is worse. The Greeks taught that with rights come responsibilities. With authority came accountability. They taught that criticizing the political class and leadership intellegently was a civic duty. They thought that teaching logic, rhetoric, history, and mathematics were THE foundation for a proper education, regardless of what you were planning on doing with your life. They though standards should be held high, and applied unflinchingly to everyone. They thought generals should be in the battle lines with everyone else. Now, these things are dismissed and talked down, actively, by educators. And as that happens, we decline.

      • I wonder whether you are a diamond cutter by trade. You know what a diamond cutter does– He meticulously removes the outer, rough surfaces of the gem in such a way that it captures the light, seeming to shine with a light of its own.

        Metaphors can be fun, too.

  3. This surprises you? Have you seen the elections lately?

    I mean, really? I’ve been saying this about Americans for decades.

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