I've been thinking of a way to describe what I think is the problem with a great deal of left intellectual dissent. David Brooks, once again, proves his value and insight.
I just got yet another entreaty from Front Page to send money to support poor pitiful Republicans on college campuses. I don't go in for that kind of charity, and quite frankly David Horowitz has gotten on my last nerve several times. On the other hand, it is true that he suggested I get a sponsor for my writing. Perhaps that is foreseeable, but in the meantime I get quite annoyed with the suggestions that there is something wrong with the academy. I have tried to reconcile what I think is obviously true about it - those who can't do teach. And there's a great deal of utility in any institution that forces one to examine all the possibilities.
But out here in the marketplace, all the possibilities don't count. And it is a mark of great intelligence to know what to discard.
Now read David Brooks:
Knowledge-class types are more likely to value leaders who possess what may be called university skills: the ability to read and digest large amounts of information and discuss their way through to a nuanced solution. Democratic administrations tend to value self-expression over self-discipline. Democratic candidates — from Clinton to Kerry — often run late.Managers are more likely to value leaders whom they see as simple, straight-talking men and women of faith. They prize leaders who are good at managing people, not just ideas. They are more likely to distrust those who seem overly intellectual or narcissistically self-reflective.
Excellent. This is exactly what I think.
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