[lbo-talk] New Yorker: Conflict of Interests, by Nicholas Lemann

Jordan Hayes jmhayes at j-o-r-d-a-n.com
Sat Sep 13 16:59:28 PDT 2008


[ Ok, how about this for a conversation starter? I think this reviewer is on to something, and if you have 10 minutes, give the article a read: he ties it into Thomas Frank's new book, too; as a kicker, Michael Hoover mentioned onlist in 2006 that Leo Strauss hated and attacked Bentley's book :) --JMH ]

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2008/08/11/080811crat_atlarge_lemann

Does the wrangling of interest groups corrupt politics-or constitute it?

In a year saturated with political conversation, can there be any topic that has not yet been discussed? Well, here's one: 2008 is the centenary of a curious and mesmerizing book that was long considered the most important study of politics and society ever produced by an American-"The Process of Government: A Study of Social Pressures," by Arthur Fisher Bentley. The reason its big anniversary hasn't been celebrated is that "The Process of Government" is an ex-classic, now sunk into obscurity. The reason it should be celebrated is not just that it deserved its former place in the canon but also that it is uncannily relevant to this Presidential election.

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