tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post7760791635388017168..comments2024-03-29T08:36:39.917-04:00Comments on Daniel Greenfield / Sultan Knish Articles at DanielGreenfield.org : The Values EconomyDaniel Greenfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13575285186581875356noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-25249548952273814282015-01-03T23:59:20.763-05:002015-01-03T23:59:20.763-05:00"The Earth is degenerating today. Bribery and..."The Earth is degenerating today. Bribery and corruption abound. Children no longer obey their parents, every man wants to write a book, and it is evident that the end of the world is fast approaching." - Assyrian tablet, circa 2800 BCMichael Piznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-67579668981359908062013-01-01T12:26:53.559-05:002013-01-01T12:26:53.559-05:00the young spend more on entertainment than the old...the young spend more on entertainment than the oldDaniel Greenfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13575285186581875356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-1602362784635158522013-01-01T12:04:31.845-05:002013-01-01T12:04:31.845-05:00Curiously, I found two very important elements of ...Curiously, I found two very important elements of culture missing, those who I would like to call "shapers" (as opposed to mainstream "contributors" and "consumers"), people on the opposite ends of life - young children, who just learn to appreciate culture, and elders who know too well what culture means for the nation's long term well being and survival. Important investments in culture are not limited to consumer choices, like one prefers/pays for classical concert, and another for concert of Lady Gaga, we skew the picture toward the former and call it a success. Whatever cultural choices or investments people in the middle of the life cycle make, the erosion of culture is unlikely to stop, unless younger generation is given proper education. But I am certain that conversations about culture and education do not end with one important thought provoking article.Leohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09675076348134024844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-55700158487481771072013-01-01T10:01:52.274-05:002013-01-01T10:01:52.274-05:00Yes we pick and choose and that's what everyon...Yes we pick and choose and that's what everyone must remember. There is a choice and the choice has meaning.Daniel Greenfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13575285186581875356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-54651341459368898732013-01-01T08:03:44.220-05:002013-01-01T08:03:44.220-05:00The thing about temptation is... Well it is so Tem...The thing about temptation is... Well it is so Tempting...<br /><br />America is in love with its SIN. It revels in its SIN. The only pleasure, or pleasure of choice has become what in the past would have been considered a guilty pleasure.<br /><br />America is addicted to SIN.<br /><br />As another said, it will take the hand of God to stem this tide, and without it we humans do not have the spine to shake off our addictions...VA_Ranchernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-46338580771014838252013-01-01T06:26:02.770-05:002013-01-01T06:26:02.770-05:00Classic art is all about building culture; modern ...Classic art is all about building culture; modern art is about tearing it down, which leaves what Eliot called the wasteland.<br />Somewhere between those two polls of creation and destruction is the neverland of creative endeavor. It is no safe, nor easy, place for the artist, as Van Gogh demonstrated.<br />From that frontier we occasionally see some good work come forth. Beauty is in the mind of the consumer, er, excuse me, the beholder.<br />Great art and music arise from passion, which itself is squeezed forth from extreme cultural tension. Warhol is bread and circuses stuff. Bach is now, as it were, Greek columns. Vivaldi and St. Saens are survivors, as are Rembrandt and Wyeth. But that's only my opinion. My opinion also says Warhol is dead, but then we live in a culture that courts the thanatos death wish as if it were a legitimate art form. Maybe Freud could have explained this, but who cares what he says.<br />In the long run though, life goes on, not death. So each of us must pick and choose.All of life is about what we choose, and how choose to spend our time and precious attentions.<br />I choose to spend a few precious moments reading Sultan Knish, instead of, for instance, usa today or some other rag.<br />Although, I do, you know, appreciate ragtime music.<br />Selahcareyrowlandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17958687878367659875noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-11477081330432198382012-12-31T21:45:48.228-05:002012-12-31T21:45:48.228-05:00As for education:( I'd love to see a restorati...As for education:( I'd love to see a restoration of civic classes but can't fathom what would pass for civics, being a good American, would look like in a liberal education system.Keliatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11413494251297514882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-42560325382020864882012-12-31T21:44:17.257-05:002012-12-31T21:44:17.257-05:00I've never been a fan of Bach but I respect th...I've never been a fan of Bach but I respect those who are. I lean more towards French impressionlism in music and paintings. There is something about the blurring of colors in art and, what some call the lack of focus in its music that appeals to me, touches my heart and soul.<br /><br />Great music, the arts, literature, history will never die. Every hand movement of every muscian in a philharmonic brings the music to life even after centuries.<br /><br />One of the best things society can do is to expose children to these things without interpretation at first, don't adultrate it. Let them experience the pure beauty of art.<br /><br />Yes, even the movies. Will film live as long as other arts? I can't say. But if it does, this stunning scene from The Elephant Man, the last sleep and Samuel Barber's adagio surely will<br /><br />Keliatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11413494251297514882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-3820784251221118622012-12-31T21:14:55.757-05:002012-12-31T21:14:55.757-05:00"Every person has a set of values that they l..."Every person has a set of values that they live by. The test of any cultural investment is whether it meets those values, fails to meet those values or has values that runs counter to it. Most culture is not entirely one thing or another. There are conservative impulses in even the most liberal works and liberal impulses in even the most conservative works. And so our cultural investments confront us with the entirely subjective question of whether a thing will do more to build our culture than to tear it down."<br /><br />Thank you, Daniel:) That was beautiful and truthful. If only more people understood that<br /><br />Keliatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11413494251297514882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-57501375848765417522012-12-31T21:00:28.615-05:002012-12-31T21:00:28.615-05:00** d u d e ** Really? Elitist libs have been ...** d u d e ** Really? Elitist libs have been on the bleeding edge of destroying our cultural heritage on many fronts. On our dime. And, as they love to say, for our "benefit." The fact that many of us see that the Emperor has no clothes, and are finally willing to speak up about it, is refreshing. May be too late in coming, but it is a sign of hope.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-13096378764277539762012-12-31T17:11:05.929-05:002012-12-31T17:11:05.929-05:00Bach, like all great composers, lives whenever any...Bach, like all great composers, lives whenever anyone plays his music, either on a recording or, as I prefer, on an actual musical instrument. Rembrandt lives whenever anyone looks at one of his paintings, either a reproduction or an original. Shakespeare lives every time someone reads or watches one of his plays. People continue to invest in art every day of the week -- ordinary people, quiet people, private people. Our cultural treasures live.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-27857171641777244212012-12-31T15:36:37.927-05:002012-12-31T15:36:37.927-05:00This descent into the "uncivilized" worl...This descent into the "uncivilized" world is approved and aided by Government. Keeping the masses fed and not responsible makes them very malleable and reliable voters. The "free lunch" is always attractive, and if others are taking it, why shouldn't I? The wise know there is nothing "free", but it is hard to take back something given, after they have learned to "need" and expect it.<br />Reversing will be painful, but it can be done, once those freebies are taken away by forces of economics. The longer the correction takes the more painful the process, and the greater the danger that public violence will generate a tyrannical police state. If I respected the intellects of those on the far Left, I'd say that was their goal, but I don't think they are capable of thinking far enough to realize they will lose power in the process.<br />Denis<br />DenisOnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-76099818673935301132012-12-31T14:36:20.550-05:002012-12-31T14:36:20.550-05:00Nice post DougNice post DougAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-29082100898001604372012-12-31T13:45:49.828-05:002012-12-31T13:45:49.828-05:00Someone once said about modern art, which in my vi...Someone once said about modern art, which in my view is neither modern nor art, 'MA is created by the untalented, sold by the unprincipled, and purchased by the unthinking'<br /><br />So much nowdays is the brain dead herd or group grabbing the latest trend without thinking about the consequences.<br /><br />The key is thinking as an individual, reasoning independently, especially long term. If I interpret DG's remarks correctly, he makes the point that such thinking is an 'endangered species' in our culture.<br /><br />In my view, it began nation wide, culture wide, with the 60s, when living in filth, with the aid of the false emotional crutches of drugs, alcohol, and indiscriminate sex, was elevated to the ultimate value in life.<br /><br />Is the trend reversible as DG believes? I hope so but I must say I am dismayed by what I see<br />currently in politics as the choice between the rabidly Socialist Democrats, who would love to see a Castro or Chavez style dictatorship in this country, and the weak, cowardly, 'me too', semi-Socialist Republicans.<br /><br />How can any nation survive as a free country when the choice in leadership is so utterly pathetic? I will be delighted to ultimately look silly and be proven wrong.Doug Mayfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14620167852028046807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-290808309373352932012-12-31T12:19:47.710-05:002012-12-31T12:19:47.710-05:00Elisandra, people who need to feel something break...Elisandra, people who need to feel something break things, including their own bodies.<br /><br />Elaine, no long term thinking or striving means indeed that everything is momentary.Daniel Greenfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13575285186581875356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-6901455270870335592012-12-31T12:12:18.702-05:002012-12-31T12:12:18.702-05:00 J.S. Bach, while he was alive, was little known a... J.S. Bach, while he was alive, was little known as a composer, and his works were criticized for being dense and old-fashioned — but he was renowned as the greatest improviser on the organ in EuropeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-49688238553882799322012-12-31T12:08:13.488-05:002012-12-31T12:08:13.488-05:00David, another magnificent post. It is so refreshi...David, another magnificent post. It is so refreshing to read your intelligent and thought-provoking posts.<br /><br />Interesting that I was just thinking about how our culture focuses on the mundane, mediocre, meaningless, and fleeting. We can't produce anything great, i.e., something that will last for centuries as Bach's music has, because we have sold our souls for temporary gratification and a values system that values nothing, even human life itself.<br /><br />We have lost our minds as well as you pointed out because a mind focused on the worthless and meaningless is a mind without substance.<br /><br />Can our culture, invested in meaninglessness be turned around? You say it can. I say it cannot without the grace of God. I say the soul of a nation reflects its relationship to God and our nation has severed that relationship and made the state its god.---ElaineAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-50391280974568910112012-12-31T11:56:15.672-05:002012-12-31T11:56:15.672-05:00I don't know about other people who don't ...I don't know about other people who don't have piercings and tattoos, but for me it's not about traditionalism, it's about not being into self-mutilation. I'll never understand why defacing and disfiguring oneself has become so popular.Elisandranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-18049762522169754422012-12-31T09:56:46.554-05:002012-12-31T09:56:46.554-05:00FSY, Bach was the product of cultural investment i...FSY, Bach was the product of cultural investment in his time. Just as Lady Gaga is a product of cultural investment in ours.<br /><br />Ron, thank you<br /><br />Elisandra, traditionalism is always a challenge<br /><br />Ringo, it is reversible, whether it will be is another matter<br /><br />Anon, the biggest consumers of that crap are liberal elitists who love to mock the common man. It's you people who create this crap and talk endlessly about it.<br /><br />Daniel Greenfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13575285186581875356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-89940078560486078622012-12-31T09:34:55.417-05:002012-12-31T09:34:55.417-05:00To fsy regarding the popularity of Bach in his tim...To fsy regarding the popularity of Bach in his time. Bach may not have been as popular as Warhol, but he came along when music could only be listened to LIVE! No CD's, no MP3's, no YouTube, no network television, no internet and virtually no way to mass promote his music. Yet his notes on paper survive centuries later. I'm not sure Warhol's multicolored soup cans will last centuries outside of historical examples of faux art consumed by faux intellectuals.Randy Mastnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-23194153122297867572012-12-31T09:10:14.244-05:002012-12-31T09:10:14.244-05:00The problem is not high culture. The problem is th...The problem is not high culture. The problem is the culture embraced by your teabagger compatriots. It is they who want Honey Boo-boo, not those dastardly high-brows conservatives have always feared. You will not get that remote out of the hands of your fellow travelers; they don't care about your pitiful theories about culture. They just want Swamp Loggers. LOLAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-28357630184657888712012-12-31T09:07:03.413-05:002012-12-31T09:07:03.413-05:00Ringo Says: Beautifully written, well composed and...Ringo Says: Beautifully written, well composed and very well reasoned. I would take issue with only one point......this isn't reversible.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-37243323166452215602012-12-31T09:03:48.385-05:002012-12-31T09:03:48.385-05:00Only a small example, but people now think I'm...Only a small example, but people now think I'm odd for not having any piercings, as I'm surrounded by young men with inch-wide holes in their ears, and women covered in tattoos.Elisandranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-84987274863860330062012-12-31T07:26:08.878-05:002012-12-31T07:26:08.878-05:00You make an important distinction between the spir...You make an important distinction between the spirit and the soul. Thank you.<br /><br />Ron Pavellas<br />Ron Pavellashttp://pavellas.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11368628.post-86342781980998096702012-12-31T05:57:05.926-05:002012-12-31T05:57:05.926-05:00A society can invest in Bach or it can invest in A...<i><br />A society can invest in Bach or it can invest in Andy Warhol.<br /></i><br /><br />My history is pretty rusty, but I'm not sure that society in Bach's time really "invested" much in him. Maybe he had a patron or two and some fans, but the reality of the time prevented him from becoming as "big" as Warhol.<br /><br />In any case, this article is a classic and worthy of much review and study.fsynoreply@blogger.com