Search

The author describes his general philosophical points of view. He gives details of the events which he thinks have determined his present thoughts. The background of his early thinking was a German home in which the ideals of the revolution of 1848 were a living force. His parents had broken through the shackles of religious dogma. An early intense interest in nature and a burning desire to see everything that the author heard or read about dominated his youth. He was shocked when one of his student friends, a theologian, declared his belief in the authority of tradition and his conviction that one had not the right to doubt what the past had transmitted to us.

The author comments on voting and moral values in the United States. We are the 55 million progressives who came together in this election, voted for Kerry and rejected the Bush agenda. We came together because of our moral values: care and responsibility, fairness and equality, freedom and courage, fulfillment in life, opportunity and community, cooperation and trust, honesty and openness. These are traditional American values and principles, what we are proudest of in this country. The Democrats' failure was a failure to put forth our moral vision, celebrate our values and principles, and shout them out loud. We must immediately convince our leaders to unite behind these values, express our common moral vision and hold the line against the Bush agenda because it is immoral! If we communicate our values clearly, most people will recognize them as their own, personally more authentic and more deeply American than those put forth by conservatives. At the very least they will see progressives as having deeply held, traditional American principles. This would be a huge step forward from the present state, in which conservatives are seen as having a monopoly on "values" and progressives are framed as the party of "if it feels good, do it," with no higher principles.

It has been declared by Washington that cabinet minister of the U.S. administration Frank K. Lane, is now wholly without the Presidential favor and attributes this in part to one of those unfortunate social clashes which figure, even when a nation is at the crisis of its history. Whatever the reason, Frank Lane has had strong opinions and high ideals and has not hesitated to express them. He was the only member of the Cabinet to submit written suggestions to the U.S. President as to what the policy of the Government should be.

The inhabitants of North America, Americans and Canadians alike, have often been puzzled at the strange phenomena exhibited by British opinion and policy since 1914. Public opinion in the mass adopted a staunchly democratic and enlightened view of the war, but the British Governments since 1915 have shown on occasion a strange fondness for reactionary policies which appeared in disharmony with the progressive ideals and general enthusiasm of the mass of British citizens. Only strong popular pressure has won ground for new ideas and enlightened statecraft.

A program dedicated to the rebirth of the ideals of the American way of life was born here in the fall of 1959. It was given the title Project Alert, and was based on a similar one-year program that had been conducted at Lubbock, Texas. Since then, Project Alert has grown from a local movement into a regional one involving more than thirty Southeastern communities in Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Florida. The project was launched at a familiarization meeting attended by newsmen, businessmen, industrialists and influential citizens. It became a resounding success practically overnight.

This article discusses the book "Erasmus: A Study of his Life, Ideals and Place in History," by Preserved Smith. While the race is waiting for some such paragon, it may well be lenient in demanding that this or that actual protagonist accomplish all that may some day be expected. Meantime there comes up the other question whether the cause of reason is not best served by those reasonable men who, like Erasmus, persist in acting, against no matter how many evidences, as though the majority of men were reasonable too.

The article discusses the book "Mainstream," by Hamilton Basso. Basso is in quest of "the American" in the book, but he is fully aware that "the American character" is "an ideal figment," shaped by "that other ideal figment we call the American tradition." He asserts that it is impossible to strike an average or a norm. Yet Basso speaks of that myth. According to the author, the book is singularly vivid in tone and intellectually it is a dance of ghosts in the mist at midnight. Every one of the men studied in the book presents a unique problem, at times historical, at times psychological and problems are, if not solved, at any rate stated with clarity, which is an intellectual joy.

The article presents information on Prize-fighting. A country largely devoted to talk of ideals and idealism has need of vices. Prize-fighting caters to a number of instincts not altogether pretty and accordingly it deserves a place in the life of the nation. Man does not thrive on sweetness and light alone. But this business of blood and blows has all but lost its tonic quality by becoming an industry. In the public mind no enterprise involving more than a million dollars can be anything but respectable. A little vicarious cruelty is by no means a bad prescription for people, but surely people in America are in no need of an additional dose of hypocrisy.