Butler (Re: cop shows, postmodernism and all that

[Carl Remick]

Re Catherine's:  "Some of
what 'Butler and her ilk' would challenge is that pervasive
philosophical
system where truths are 'self-evident' rather than contingent
expressions
of interest. Not all of what is expressed in the Declaration of
Independence needs ot be thrown out, perhaps, but holding currently
dominant truths to be self-evident is usually not conducive to social
change."

On the contrary, I would argue that very radical social change *can*
flow from the "self-evident" truth of the Declaration of Independence,
e.g.:  "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all humankind is
created equal and hence entitled to live in not merely an
equal-opportunity society but an *equal-outcome* one."  That statement
has internal logic and certainly points in a progressive direction.

Carl Remick