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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

1 Aug

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In any human community, when modes of communication change and ideological orders disintegrate, rare opportunities arise to establish new habits of thinking and communicating about politics and policy.

This is where America finds itself today.

The American Right now has an unprecedented opportunity to reground discourse & Republican party upon principles of justice & common good. It’s uncertain—perhaps even doubtful—that the Right’ll rise to meet the challenge, but the potential is real, and will not last indefinitely.

Regardless of the extent to which one thinks we live “After the Republic,” many observers outside of Claremont Institute circles now acknowledge that we live in a time of “Cold Civil War” revolving around a dispute over “two constitutions”—two mutually exclusive visions—

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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

24 Jul

Do we really have to respond to these talismanic mantras yet again? OK, fine.

Normally, looking "to the plain meaning of the words" is fine for judges. But obviously that meaning is *precisely what is in dispute* when cases wind their way up the chain

wsj.com/articles/supre…

This = why we hold that in order to interpret disputed/ conflicting meanings judges must turn to underlying principles/purposes that give meaning to texts they interpret. The concept is not novel. "Conservative" judges need to stop hiding behind textualism as cover for cowardice.

@DavidRivkin

True, as @DavidRivkin/@AndrewmGrossman say, citing Hamilton that "The duty of a judge in a system of self-government is to exercise 'neither Force nor Will, but merely judgment.'" *And this judgment in certain cases requires recourse to the underlying principles/purposes of law.*

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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

24 Jul

It’s time to break some real stuff down for you cucks.

There’s dude levels. One thing I appreciate is young guys being like “you fatass dad I hope I NEVER lose it like that.” That’s legit. You have no idea but also you are correct: dadding and life happening is no real excuse.

Being out of shape is gradated thing causally, OK, but as it moves towards extremes is indeed indicative of problems. There’s no doubt about this. I could write essay regarding my own life and failings and the bottom line is life happens, etc. but your body is on you as a man.

Now if you think by becoming jacked in your twenties—which I am for at all ages—that you are somehow thereby going to become Napoleon…OK, I have news for that extreme as well. Napoleon was not… Anyhow. This isn’t our problem. Out of shape guys are.

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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

23 Jul

They have destroyed the concept of citizenship, of one's right and duty as citizen. This transforms the civic body into an atomized mass. The border into a sieve. And elites into a calcified oligarchy. Yet only way to return is to address and inspire people to act as citizens.

This is not easy to do, since it seems as if they effectively not citizens, and it's hard for them to imagine what this might mean, or that it is possible. After all, does it matter what a majority of Americans think about a given topic when their ruling class (D or R) disagrees?

The pledge must be: "You have sacred rights and noble duties as citizens. They have lied to you and hidden them both from sight. They wish to render you people of the pod, the bugs, the animalistic pleasures. But you are more than this. You must rise above it."

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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

5 Jul

Without real underlying virtues/excellences, natural human relationships, and warm settings (hearth, home, church, civic communities, and natural world sans weird enviro messages) all aspirational advertising and products have to rely on to keep from cold consumerism is wokeness.

So they either sell with soulless, bloodless consumerism (car pulls up to empty modernist house) or actual vice (immoderation/garbage food for the masses) or the positive elite virtue-system of the day, which is wokeism.

Note re natural world theme in ads: it has to be enviro or single person now, not families and human communities enjoying nature in human ways. This is partially why boating and even picnics or grilling now present right-leaning image.

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Matthew J. Peterson

@docMJP

5 Jul

I wrote this for the 4th 3yrs ago:

“…habitual patriotism is better than intentional value-signaling; and even thoughtless patriotism is better than witless cynicism, as cynicism is not a virtue, but the default mode of decadence.”

amgreatness.com/2018/07/04/god…

“The intelligentsia loves to think that the many are simple idiots who adopt a ‘my country right or wrong’ mentality even as the commoners generally understand political life in a much more realistic manner.”

But in this respect Jimi Hendrix’s “Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock, for instance, could be considered serious work of political philosophy, providing a better definition of politics and patriotism—for good and ill—than much modern political science.

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