Wednesday, March 02, 2005

Alive in 2005

Some juicy new sites, especially for NZ readers who are currently being regaled with tales about the Wananga, and down the maw of which we currently tip NZD 0.25 Billion. Like most white folk, I have no particular issue with public money going to what Tom Wolfe characterised in 'Bonfire of the Vanities' as 'steam control'. Having a lot of poor, young males hanging about idle is a recipe for societal distress at the very least, as Lee Harris discusses.

Roger Sandall (author of "The Culture Cult") on his site has some very pithy things to say about this sort of misty-eyed hankering after imagined pasts. Mostly, when translated into current-context policy, these 'designer tribalism' ideas are a disaster in the long run, as they act to increase a sense of identity, but at the direct expense of involvement with and understanding of the wider society.

It's all too recognisable here in the Shaky Isles.

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