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Crowned Masterpieces of Eloquence: We used to be a Civilization

anarchonomicon.substack.com

A piece I wrote on one of the most fascinating and incredible thriftstore finds I've ever stumbled upon.

The Edwardians and Victorians were not like us, they believed in a nobility of their political class that's almost impossible to understand or relate to, and that believe, that attribution of nobility is tied up with something even more mysterious: their belief in the fundamental nobility of rhetoric.

Still not sure entirely how I feel about this, or how sure I am of my conclusions but this has had me spellbound in fascination and so I wrote about it.

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I think it’s more an Industrial Revolution thing. In order to turn a human into a meat machine, it’s best that he never learn to use his brain to full capacity. Compliance is much more difficult if the human in question doesn’t think too deeply.

This seem far too conspiratorial. Comprehensive educations in the 50s weren't basic because they were afraid people might be less compliant, it was simply felt that that was all they needed if they were going to go and work in a mine or steel mill, and resources are always scarce.