[lbo-talk] Last Supper, in a leather harness

Doug Henwood dhenwood at panix.com
Sat Sep 29 06:53:07 PDT 2007


On Sep 28, 2007, at 6:35 PM, ravi wrote:


> 1. Define "pseudo" in "pseudo-populism"! What other kinds of populism
> are available to understand this term by contrast.
>
> 2. Atheism != freedom from superstition. And luxury (the word I
> used) != advantage. And if we are on definitions, lets define
> "superstition" and why all of it is a bad thing?
>
> 3. There is nothing wrong with being educated. Who doubts the value
> of education? Not me in the passage above.
>
> 4. Explain "faux populist pose"?

Faux and pseudo populism is the brand of cheap anti-elitism deployed by those who are themselves educated and well off, but scorn sophistication and material comfort, presumably out of guilt or self- hatred.

"Over-educated" is a yahoo term of contempt for people who apply their knowledge to a critical understanding of the world around them, usually applied in defense of the status quo.

Superstition is a bad thing because it's false, and leads people to misunderstanding and often bigoted behavior.

Doug



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list