On Jul 25, 2009, at 12:17 PM, shag carpet bomb wrote:
> I've asked this question three times now, and everyone who thinks
> morality matters, that there is something wrong with carrol, have
> refused to answer me.
>
> What improves politics? What advantage do you get?
For me, it's a couple of things. One is C's habit of denying both morality and the analysis of motivation. But he's as capable of moral denunciation as anyone - he often comes off with an almost Old Testament-y fervor. And he often attributes motive, while denying it of course. I used to find this annoying - now I find it mostly hilarious. Or, as the man said, I used to be disgusted, now I try to be amused.
The other is his view of politics. Somehow the ghost will manipulate the machine and everything will change - but until then, there's not much that folks like us can do to change anything. So he doesn't care that this stubborn denial of morality would alienate about 99% of any potential audience. He doesn't care that he comes off as icy and detached.
Actually, three. It's also that classical Marxist insistence on being "scientific," which is one of Marxism's less fortunate aspects. I'm as hostile to the moralizing, Amy Goodman style of left politics as the next guy, but to deny any appeal to morality comes off as ludicrous.
Doug