Tea at Trianon: The Real Reason

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, July 16, 2020

The Real Reason

.From The Stream:

Tens of millions of Americans have not suddenly become concerned about the evils of racism or, for the first time, come to grips with the darker sides of our national history. Again, some Americans certainly are becoming aware of the legacy of our country’s anti-Black policies over the centuries. But do we really think that, overnight, the sports world has woken up and Hollywood has woken up and local mayors have woken up and national politicians have woken up? Are they just now figuring things out?

Or is there a massive wave of virtue signaling? (This a term I hate to use, but it certainly applies.) Is there an all-too-obvious fawning to the crowd? Deeper still, is this simply an embracing of the latest anti-American narrative, the latest nation-bashing trend? Is being woke on racism the latest manifestation of PC-mania? (How bizarre that the new sign of devotion to America is hatred of America.)

For some, perhaps subconsciously, this is a way to get at Trump. He’s for law and order, we’re for anarchy. This is a reelection year, riots in the streets make him look bad. (For more on this, see here.) Or, even more simply, we’re against law and order because we are rebellious. The death of George Floyd is merely our pretense for disruptive action. (Read more.)

julygirl said...: I am among the many who are fed up with America bashing which was precipitated by former President Obama. It to me is a form of racism because underlying this it amounts to White bashing. Here is the question we are asking...if America is so horrible why do people risk 'life and limb' to get here? Anger and resentment has become a mode of political activity that has brought about destruction, violence and death of innocent people.; July 16, 2020 at 4:35:00 PM EDT