White Water Space-Hopper Polo

Trying to summarise an essay from the great conservative philosopher Roger Scruton is likely to meet with as much success as white water space-hopper polo....

Unless it goes something like; 'He is very clever and I am thick.'

If there was an SAS of the culture wars, Professor Scruton would be in the troop recruited mainly from the Guards regiments.


Well, I am thick..
And this is a conservative political blog and what with Barack Obama in the White House and Gordon Brown having nearly another two years to use his inherited massive Labour majority as only he knows how, and with the Iranians not far from getting the Bomb it's not like I'm unaccustomed to pain and fear, so you can either:

A) do the sensible thing and read his recent and typically brilliant City Journal essay here - which I recommend, or

B) read my précis below.

Western society today lacks self-belief.
Western society today lacks a sense of common belonging and a cause around which its population can unite.
Alienated Moslems find Islamism a better alternative to this apparently aimless and rootless existence.
Christendom equipped us with two priceless treasures:
# The ability and inclination to forgive an so we don’t tear each other apart, and
# A sense of irony: that is as individuals we can be judged as being imperfect as well as judging others.
These two make western civilisation agreeable and worth preserving.
Alienated Muslims find release and a nihilistic pleasure in the destruction of others and self in jihad.
We can't hope to stand against jihad...
Unless we have the courage of our cultural convictions and accept that a polity which encompasses forgiveness and ironic self-criticism is worth fighting for by all means necessary.
Then we better do it.

Now, I hope that you read his essay before my summary.
And if you did, it will have demonstrated two things:
1) He is very clever, and
2) I am thick.

In which case,
QED.

But if you read my summary first, I suggest you now go on to read the essay here.

Done that?
See?
1) He is very clever, and
2) I am thick.

QED.
Sometimes I'm so thick, I'm almost clever.

Home.