http://lookingglassnews.org/printerfrie ... oryid=6523
or
http://www.lookingglassnews.org/viewcom ... toryid=136
those are good primers on the contextual use here - i would not call philosophy drivel, but most of it is intellectual masturbation (aka semantics) - sometimes philosophy focuses so exhaustively on epistemology (how do i know?) most people just throw up their hands in disgust at it, as do i. however classical philosophy (plato, aristotle, ptolemy) and enlightenment philosophy (locke, paine, voltaire & other 'natural' law proponents) are pretty plain and not difficult to grasp, and they form the underlying basis for the currents of thought in our modern society so why not know something about it, not to show off but just to know?
"He who votes decides nothing; he who counts the votes decides everything"
- Stalin
“Without a revolutionary theory there cannot be a revolutionary movement.”
- Lenin
“The best way to destroy the capitalist system is to debauch the currency”
- Lenin
Strauss to me doesn't just represent the articulation of a millennia old ruling philosophy that has never been extinguished completely (that might makes right, lies are noble, and that the people ought be treated as cattle) it represents the worst aspects of the human spirit, particularly those feelings of inadequacy and seeking control over ones chaotic and frightening world that create the narcissistic straussian intellectual sociopaths in the AEI, PNAC, and Heritage foundation (people who espouse a 'prolife' position for the sake of fundamentalist appeasement, but who do not hesitate to defund childrens healthcare, or push for a draft, warmonger, etc). Strauss was a proponent of Nietzsche and Machiavelli - if you've read either of those two's works you'll understand that this is the mark of a very sick deranged mind that has no place behind the wheel of the republic
Edited by - Cold_Void on 11/11/2007 7:47:56 PM