[Greg Swann]

VIST MY NEW WEBLOG: http://www.presenceofmind.net/

gswann@primenet.com
http://www.presenceofmind.net/ (last updated 11/24/02)

Permission is explicitly granted to repost/reprint unmodified.

[Sparta]

The collectivists are a clear present danger to the US and should be eliminated.

[DainBramage]

BS! We have been told we are an Army of One!

[Liberty Tree Surgeon]

Now please reconcile the railing against charity with the Christian doctrine of the same. Could it be that a cub scout might be extolling Christian charity and brotherhood, rather than the Marxist kind? Is this also a bad thing? What Would Jesus Spew?

LTS

[SmithW]

Nice red banner you've got there on your web site, Greg.

[Yardstick]

In the end, it is good for people to contribute for the good of the collective. This can be done voluntarily or it can be done through the force of law. The more it's done voluntarily, the less the socialists can make the case that it should be done through the force of law.

So, to me, the Scouts encouraging contribution to the group is a good thing. It actually prevents socialist encroachment by undermining the argument that individuals must be forced into doing what's good for the collective.

[Spiff]

Speaking of Reds, red banners, marxists, and communists - go to this thread and specifically this post.

[r9etb]

Sorry Greg. Not every act of charity is a Marxist plot. Not every exhortation to help one's community is a Marxist plot. Not every sacrifice for others is a betrayal of the individual.

Nor, may I be so bold as to say it, is the individual the pinnacle of morality.

What you've really done is simply this: your son is going to rebel against your pedantics the first chance he gets. Count on it.

[reloader]

The author of this article uses way too broad a brush. I strongly object to the characterization of the Knights of Columbus. It's hard to decide which is more apparent here, your ignorance or your selfishness. Horseshit All.

[way_south_redneck]

By default,most humans are born collectivists.Its not some big new threat,its been there since we've been here.It will never be the case that individualism is the norm.An individualist will always be going against the grain whether he lives in a democracy or a socialist state.Its all around and always will be in some form.Any self sufficient man should be able to deal with them.

[Greg Swann]

From my weblog:

 
And Reds yet again: The self and sacrifice...

From another email:

There's a gap between these examples and an individual choosing to give for another based solely on his discretion. This sort of sacrifice is at the heart of family.

I guess the question that I'm getting at is this: is there something that ennobles man?

The question of what is called 'Christian charity' came up often in my mail, and it is a vitally important question for this particular weblog:

First, it would be accurate to say that in many (but not all) ways, the Nazarene Hellenized (Westernized) the East.

Second, it would also be accurate to say that Marx was seeking to Orientalize (Easternize) the West.

In what way is Christian charity different from Judaic charity? From Islamic charity?

And: How will the West, sleepwalkingly steeped in Marxism, resist the demand of the sacrifice of the self made by Islam, the loudest voice of the non-Hellenized East?

I answered only part of the email:

I guess the question that I'm getting at is this: is there something that ennobles man?

Ask William Wallace. Ask the Nazarene. Ask Socrates.

People interpret these stories as self-sacrifice for the mob, but this is false. It is the self that each of them refused to sacrifice.

See me at Sacrificing Diana.

Christian charity, Judaic charity, Islamic charity--these are all true sacrifices, the sacrifice of Abel to Cain, the sacrifice of virtue to vice. The sacrifice of industry to sloth, of truth to deceit, of honor to corruption, of the love of life to the contempt of death. The sacrifice of the magnificent human mind to the screeching monkeys of the veldt. The sacrifice of the ego to the mob...

The human ego is the only object of sacrifice, and this is why it is the only enemy of the doctrines of the East--Christian, Judaic, Islamic or Marxist--and the only weapon that can defeat them.

 
Reds again: Cassandra speaks...

This is an email I had, with the correspondent named, as I'm sure he is proud of himself, and as I'm sure he has every right to be proud of himself:

From: "al rabinowitz"
Date: Sun, 24 Nov 2002 18:47:03 -0700
To: gswann@primenet.com
Subject: Reds

Good on you. I've been saying the same for many, many years. No one
listens. Keep going.

Al Rabinowitz

Unfortunately, I'm sure the part about "no one listens" is true. The good news is: The truth will out...

 
Reds redux: Better red than dead...

This is a reply I had to my essay Reds, with the correspondent's name omitted as an act of (ahem) charity:

In the end, it is good for people to contribute for the good of the collective. This can be done voluntarily or it can be done through the force of law. The more it's done voluntarily, the less the socialists can make the case that it should be done through the force of law.

So, to me, the Scouts encouraging contribution to the group is a good thing. It actually prevents socialist encroachment by undermining the argument that individuals must be forced into doing what's good for the collective.

Which says: They can't conquer us if we surrender first!