
Really, really good post, written in reply to Brad DeLong's repudiation of Western Civilization. Here's the thrust of my man's argumentum:
"Brad DeLong holds a faculty position at a state university that owes its very existence to an American war of aggression against Mexico, in a country whose founding documents were written by slaveowners, on a continent that was ruthlessly expropriated from its indigenous population. Is he really sure that he can so cleanly separate himself from the various plunderers, exploiters, slavers and imperialists who have shaped the history of the Western world?"
Now, I am liberal as hell. I believe in the redistribution of fucking everything.* ("Say, Holmes... that's a nice bike. Watch your back.") But I prefer to read sane conservatives over my fellow travelers. There are only like three sane ones left, though, and Douthat is one of them.
*Need I point out that this belief is a bit? Probably not. Still, in light of recent take-Dennis-too-seriously events: it's a bit.