tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4638619958588096610.post4456302376611075439..comments2023-11-22T09:11:01.567+00:00Comments on George Szirtes: Retrospect of Budapest 2George Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08889600788146987089noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4638619958588096610.post-17128387884557545032008-08-31T12:56:00.000+01:002008-08-31T12:56:00.000+01:00What a remarkable man, Plump! And you are dead rig...What a remarkable man, Plump! And you are dead right that the European heritage is not just democratic. I think there is plenty of historical evidence the other way too, especially in smaller dependent countries governed by other, larger powers, with a strong hand.<BR/><BR/>I think there is almost something classically Freudian here. Early dependency, violence and powerlessness breed fetishism. Democracy is insecure and feels like chaos. Bring back the strong hand. Bring back the well known demons so we can find a safe deposit for our fear and self-hatred. Or let us at least dress things that way. In the name of democracy, of course.<BR/><BR/>It shows how brittle and fragile our democratic habits and institutions really are. We think it's the normal state of the world, but it's not. The great trick is to maintain them as democratic in the face undemocratic challenges.George Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08889600788146987089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4638619958588096610.post-29607387261677392932008-08-31T12:24:00.000+01:002008-08-31T12:24:00.000+01:00I was taught political philosophy by a Soviet diss...I was taught political philosophy by a Soviet dissident. He was a Lithuanian Jew and a Holocaust survivor. Though I didn't share his classic liberalism, I respected his astonishing erudition and learnt more from him than I have from anyone. <BR/><BR/>This was back in 1978-81. Then he said, to much incredulity, that the Soviet Union would collapse in ten years time. He also added that fascism was not dead and that it would re-emerge in Russia. <BR/><BR/>Reading this post reminded me of the fact that the European heritage is not just democratic, there is also an authoritarian and anti-Semitic one and there is an inherent conflict between the two traditions.<BR/><BR/>There is a need for vigilance and to support light and reason against the darkness that lurks in European culture. Jewish cultural renaissance provides hope against the shadows cast by the opposition.The Plumphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09244528534476387323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4638619958588096610.post-69831240665487612712008-08-31T08:41:00.000+01:002008-08-31T08:41:00.000+01:00Well, here I am, now in full comment outfit.Well, here I am, now in full comment outfit.George Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08889600788146987089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4638619958588096610.post-67190532012480962402008-08-31T07:33:00.000+01:002008-08-31T07:33:00.000+01:00tis a funny thing, i got up this morning and thoug...tis a funny thing, i got up this morning and thought to see what you were up to where you were traveling and a parallel thought was, what a shame your blog/news didn't have a comment post... only to find you've gone over to blogger, thats incredibly niceAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com