This is the topic for the newest Public Square discussion over at Patheos.
Is Greed Good?
July 21, 2009 at 9:43 pm (Book of Mormon, Marginalia, Mormon Studies, Political Economy, Political Philosophy, Scripture)
“By Night in Chile”: Reflections on a novel by Roberto Bolano
April 24, 2009 at 3:01 am (Marginalia)
By Night in Chile by Roberto Bolano is not so much about Chile and its troubled past, as it is about Chile’s intellectual elite. While the focus of the stories is on the literary elite of Chile, the message of the book is not just about the intellectual elite of Chile, but intellectual elites in general and their response to the world around them.
This short book is narrated by Sebastian Urrutia Lacroix, an elderly Catholic priest. Sebastian’s life is presented as the rambling thoughts of an old man who cannot sleep. While his thoughts cover the entirety of his life, these thoughts appear in the narrative as they pop into his mind during the night. Stories from his life interweave with each other throughout the book. This book has two paragraphs with the second paragraph consisting of one line on the last page. While this style takes some getting used to, it does give one the sense of his thoughts and who he is as a character.
The Story
Sebastian is from a poor Chilean family, though he is quite proud of his European roots. He describes practices that are Chilean as lowly and common. He enters the seminary at the age of 15, despite the misgivings of his father. His father appears throughout the night as a shadow in Sebastian’s memories.
In the seminary, Sebastian finds his life’s love. However, it is not a woman, or even the ministry but instead poetry. His poetic pursuits lead him to fall within the sphere of influence of an influential literary critic, Farewell, who encourages Sebastian to venture into literary criticism as a career. While he continues to write and teach poetry, it is a critic that Sebastian becomes a notable member of the literary community of Chile.
While he likes literature, Sebastian is most enamored with the literary life-style. First, he enjoys the status and celebrity that he has enjoyed. Secondly, he enjoys the social life which comes with it. He enjoys the late-night literary discussions, with the accompanying meals and cognac, that he is a regular partaker of.
Sebastian’s desire for the intellectual life style is one that I am sympathetic with. My master’s advisor was a major political theorist with a budget that allowed him to invite well known scholars to Utah. I would sometimes be invited to attend social gatherings at his house following lectures on campus. Good food and great conversation, the type of conversation that you could only have with a group of people who cared about liberal political philosophy the way that only we did. These events were intoxicating. I also vividly recall the feeling of not being invited. As an ackward outsider who got a taste of these gatherings, I could relate to the young Sebastian.
Religion and Politics
For a story about a priest, religion does not play a huge role in Sebastian’s life as he reflects upon it. The priesthood was more a path to the comfortable life, which would not have been otherwise possible for a poor Chilean boy. While it is unlikely that this was the reason for entering the seminary, his life as a clergyman is very peripheral as he reminisces about his life.
Election Reflection: It is good to be right
November 9, 2008 at 2:31 am (Marginalia, Politics)
I have to admit, one of the main reasons that I looked forward to Election Day results was pride. I wanted to grin and chuckle as my conservative students (80 percent are conservative but I have the more boisterous in mind) loudly expressed their disbelief at the supposed stupidity of the American people. True to form this has happened. But given that I won, I have no problem with their rants. I fully understand that losing sucks (when the Utes eventually lose I will relate even more), my chosen presidential candidate was not one since 1988 – when I was in the seventh grade.
But, the best part is that the polling turned out to be accurate. All of those ridiculous posts about the polls tightening or being inaccurate were well….bunk.
The Real Clear Politics average of the polls in the end turned out to be accurate. The electoral college predictions by RCP (based on the polls in the states), like mine, actually underestimated the electoral college margin of victory.
So liberalism and political science both win. What a great week.
My Predictions for Tuesday
November 3, 2008 at 1:16 am (Marginalia, Personal Issues, Politics, Speculation)
While I am not sure if anyone will read this, I want to go on record.
Obama will win by 4.5 percent.
Of the current toss up states (Those that are leaning or toss up at RealClearPolitics):
Obama will win:
Florida, Virgina, Ohio, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Missouri (my nail-biter)
McCain will win:
North Carolina (though I am hoping for Obama on this one), Indiana, Georgia, Montana, Arizona, and South Dakota
Electoral Count:
Obama: 349
McCain: 189
Democratic seats in the Senate in January: 57
Overall, I predict a Happy Day.
Please add you predictions in the comments.
Why the Redistribution of Wealth?
October 28, 2008 at 1:43 pm (Doctrine, Mormon Studies, Personal Issues, Political Economy, Political Philosophy, Politics)
Because it is the right thing to do.
3 Nephi Chapter 6:
4 And they began again to prosper and to wax great; and the twenty and sixth and seventh years passed away, and there was great order in the land; and they had formed their laws according to equity and justice.
5 And now there was nothing in all the land to hinder the people from prospering continually, except they should fall into transgression.
7 And it came to pass that there were many cities built anew, and there were many old cities repaired.
8 And there were many highways cast up, and many roads made, which led from city to city, and from land to land, and from place to place.
9 And thus passed away the twenty and eighth year, and the people had continual peace.
Sounds much like the United States since World War II.
Pick Romney….Please
August 9, 2008 at 2:49 pm (Marginalia, Mormon Studies, Speculation, Uncategorized)
With the Olympics started it looks like all of the VP chatter will have to wait until after the Summer Olympics. The question had been whether or not McCain, or Obama, or both would announce there veep choice before the summer games. Alas, that was mostly wishful thinking on the part of us political junkies.
We Obama supporters (I have no idea as to whether this applies to anyone else at FPR, so I mean Obama supporters in general), are a bit concerned about the inability of the Democratic candidate to break away from McCain in the polls. There are of course a variety of reasons for this. The primary reason, in my political scientist opinion, is that we are not likely to see a huge popular victory not matter who wins. We are a deeply divided country and rather evenly divided between those of us who are red and those of us who are blue. So lingering with a two to five percent lead might be the norm through November. Either way Obama appears to have a strong electoral college advantage.
I have found a solution to the VP selection game that will make both conservative Mormons and me happy: Have McCain pick Mitt Romney. This act would help Mormons again feel safe within the GOP. They need to have an institutional home (we Mormons are big on institutional belonging), and feel spurned after having their golden boy rejected. I felt the same way about the Dems rejected Bill Bradley (though I do not quite categorize him as a golden boy).
I would be happy if they picked Romney, because it would ensure McCain’s defeat in November. What is better in a time of economic turmoil than for the Republicans to put a filthy rich guy in the VP slot. It would help to highlight the disconnect between the GOP and everyday economic troubles. The GOP takes pride in defending the economic interests of people like Romney. However, when they do it, they pretend that they are protecting the economic interests of the middle class common man. That is real faith base politics. Romney on the ticket would remind everyone of who the GOP really looks out for.
I know that Mitt is true.
June 12, 2007 at 4:59 pm (Marginalia, Politics)
In testimony meeting this month, a good sister bore testimony of Mitt Romney. She stated that she knew that God had prepared Gordon B. Hinckley to be the prophet is these days. Then she said that she knew that God had also prepared Mitt Romney for this day. She went on to talk briefly about having recently read the Hugh Hewitt book on Romney and how much she liked it (“…and he is not even a member…”).
The best part was watching the bishop squirm. It obviously made him nervous. Of course, it is nothing like the time when a high counselor went on for 30 minute about secret combinations plotting to destroy our national sovereignty and bring about world-wide communism. The bishop was ready to jump him, though all ended peacefully.
I expect that talk about Mitt at church (and in testimony meeting) will become more common. Maybe I lack faith. Do I need to pray and find out for myself whether Mitt is really true?
“My Husband is a Socialist”
January 22, 2007 at 4:56 pm (Marginalia, Personal Issues, Political Philosophy, Politics)
Here is another post that does not fit in with the normal FPR post:
I am taking an independent reading on political economy with a member of the economics department at the institution where I am working on a doctorate in political science. The readings focus on theories of capitalism and socialism with a particular focus on socialist critiques of capitalism. While I am very much on the socialist side of the capitalist-socialist divide, I officially label myself as a liberal because of my joint commitment to individual liberty and economic justice. Yet, my belief that a redistribution of wealth is vital to ensuring liberty to all makes me in many ways fit within what many might call socialism.
I often refer to myself as a socialist when talking politics with my wife. I also refer to myself as a socialist around others both for shock value and to emphasize that I really am on the left and not just another “Democrat” (though I am one of those too).
I mention all this because a few years back my wife and I went to stake center for the stake portion of our temple recommend interviews. I was interviewed by a counselor in the stake presidency and my wife met at the same time with the stake president. The stake president is an active conservative Republican in Utah and a former speaker of the House of Representatives in the Utah State Legislature. He knew that I was Democrat and that I was in graduate school at the Univ. of Utah studying political science. He often stopped to exchange political small-talk when we ran into each other.
As we walked to the car, I asked how her interview went (we both passed). She said that politics had come up while discussing my schooling and then she said “I told him you are a socialist, just like my dad.” I was a bit stunned. While she was more or less right, about both her dad and I, neither of us would have presented it that way to the stake president (my father-in-law was a bishop in the stake at the time). This left me with an appreciation of my wife’s candor. I feel ashamed that my reaction to my wife’s comment was one of embarrassment and not pride.
The Canadian political philosopher Wil Kymlicka, states in his textbook on contemporary political philosophy, that most Marxists and Socialist today are in many ways more liberal egalitarians than they are Marxists. I tend to agree with him. Yet I feel that the socialist voice is an important one. Is it a label that I should try to revive and wear with pride? I will let you know what I discover over the next semester.
Political Economy and the BOM
July 20, 2006 at 10:14 am (Doctrine, Marginalia, Political Philosophy, Politics)
On July 13, over at By Common Consent Taryn Nelson-Seawright posted about the nature of economic and political liberalism and leftism amongst Mormons. The post and the related 127 comments can be found here.
I am not going to comment directly on the post, though I agree with much of its sentiment and the author’s frustrations. The comment stream seemed to focus on whether the Book of Mormon supports socialism or not. This is my concern.
The Book of Mormon does not support socialism. It also does not support capitalism. I say this because the civilizations discussed in the Book of Mormon are primitive societies where the modern/contemporary theories of socialism and/or capitalism would be completely foreign.
The Original Position and the Council of Heaven I
January 14, 2006 at 11:50 am (Doctrine, Political Philosophy, Politics, Speculation)
As a political philosopher, I often feel lost in the deeper and more detailed discussions about scripture, doctrine, and the ancient world. However, the pre-existence, particularly the concept of a council in heaven is of direct interest to me and my own political theory. Let me explain:
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