Modern Times

http://westernstandard.blogs.com/shotgun/2008/05/the-sock-puppet.html

Very good article with interesting thoughts. My favorite passage:

"Modern leftism is premised upon an almost-deliberate ignorance of all of human history. It is rooted in a bizarre conviction that human nature is inherently good."

I've been reading Modern Times by Paul Johnson and think it is the best history book I have ever read. I continue to be absolutely astounded by the scale of genocide, murder, and totalitarianism that took place in the 20th Century. Every single continent with the exception of North America was plagued into chaos, terror, and unspeakable horrors through the past 100 years. It is so ignorant and stupid to believe that without a strong voice for democracy and liberty (America), the world would be in better shape, and that it is somehow our fault whenever people behave badly anywhere. Despite our Civil War, which despite the tragedy, was a fight to save the American Experiment (and also elminated slavery), was a mere blip in our genocide-free history. We owe it to our ancestors to constantly promote freedom and the value of human life around the world.

The story of the woman who planned to bicylce to the Middle East in a wedding dress is so depressingly sad. I saw her route on a map - she made it barely 100 miles into Turkey before she was raped and murdered. There are dangerous people in this world and it is our duty as lovers of liberty and freedom to stand up to them.