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Author Topic:   Phat's Bookshelf
Theodoric
Member
Posts: 9076
From: Northwest, WI, USA
Joined: 08-15-2005
Member Rating: 3.7


(1)
Message 166 of 174 (905191)
01-19-2023 12:21 PM
Reply to: Message 164 by Phat
01-19-2023 12:12 PM


Re: The War On The West Chapter One
You do realize my comments are factual not accusations.
quote:
“is an unstable component on which to base an individual identity and a hideously unstable way to try and base any form of group identity.”
Douglas Murray Has Some Queer Ideas About Sex - Crisis Magazine
His own writings embrace racism and hate. So again you accuse me of something that is not true.
Also ask yourself if you would have dug up the same information against a liberal author.
If they were dishonest or promoting racism and hate I would.
And would you be as critical of an author whom you agreed with?
Do you understand the words critical and agree?

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens

Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts

"God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness.

If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?


This message is a reply to:
 Message 164 by Phat, posted 01-19-2023 12:12 PM Phat has seen this message but not replied

  
Theodoric
Member
Posts: 9076
From: Northwest, WI, USA
Joined: 08-15-2005
Member Rating: 3.7


Message 167 of 174 (905200)
01-19-2023 1:24 PM
Reply to: Message 160 by Phat
01-19-2023 11:57 AM


Re: The War On The West Chapter One
How about you develop an argument?
Phat writes:
Theodoric has yet to explain why one cannot be racist against white people. I await his scintillating logic!
I answered. Now you want me to read a racist to get a rebuttal. Are you incapable of supporting your own arguments?

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens

Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts

"God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness.

If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?


This message is a reply to:
 Message 160 by Phat, posted 01-19-2023 11:57 AM Phat has not replied

  
Theodoric
Member
Posts: 9076
From: Northwest, WI, USA
Joined: 08-15-2005
Member Rating: 3.7


Message 168 of 174 (905237)
01-20-2023 8:29 AM
Reply to: Message 156 by Phat
01-19-2023 11:34 AM


Re: The War On The West
Where did you get this drivel from? It does not show up on a Google search. Is this from that racist book? When pseudo-scholars make a pronouncement like this without any footnotes you can be pretty sure they are full of shit.

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens

Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts

"God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness.

If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?


This message is a reply to:
 Message 156 by Phat, posted 01-19-2023 11:34 AM Phat has not replied

  
Theodoric
Member
Posts: 9076
From: Northwest, WI, USA
Joined: 08-15-2005
Member Rating: 3.7


(2)
Message 169 of 174 (905238)
01-20-2023 8:38 AM
Reply to: Message 164 by Phat
01-19-2023 12:12 PM


Re: The War On The West Chapter One
You brought up reviews, so let's look at them. Or did you mean Amazon reviews from fellow travelers?
Murray speaks in absolutes and paints with a broad brush.
quote:
Something of this persists in Murray’s critique, which implies that everyone who is drawn to left-wing identity politics is actuated by a lust for retribution, as opposed to a genuine desire to create a fairer society.
While this is undoubtedly true in some, even many, cases, it does not hold universally. It is not just embittered black people who call for reparations, as plenty of white liberals do this, too. Lots of men are sympathetic to feminism, heterosexuals to gay activism, non-trans people to the trans movement, and so on. Not all of this can be put down to “virtue signalling.” Many people, presumably, accept the social justice nostrums propagated by activists out of a misguided but ultimately good-faith aversion to perceived structural inequities. Such people are not likely to be convinced by Murray’s paean to gratitude. Their sense of the injustices of Western society, many of which are real enough, will not be diminished by having someone tell them not to be resentful, and if anti-Westernism is the only game in town that provides an outlet for altruistic sentiment, it is likely to gain many adherents.
All this implies that the solution, if there is one, must come from the Left. What is needed is a rival movement that caters to people’s aspirations for social fairness and the remission of suffering without recommending that we tear down statues, throw out the Western canon, obsess about superficial aspects of our identities, and so on. It would not be fair, of course, to expect this from Murray, who, as a conservative, is naturally more suspicious of social reform than those of a left-wing temperament, a perspective that is perfectly valid in its own terms. On the other hand, while the defiant stance of his book necessitates a certain combativeness of tone, Murray seems at times to flirt with the notion that any criticism of Western society or foreign policy is an expression of a sinister, vengeful, anti-Western worldview. This inflexibility is not likely to convert any wayward radicals. One can only hope, as Murray probably does himself, that the Left will prove him wrong by showing that there really is another way, that you can be critical without expressing undiluted contempt, and that you can struggle and hope for change without burning everything to the ground.
Douglas Murray's War on the West—A Review
Excerpts from The Spectator review. Not kind. If you can read, the full Spectator review. Behind a paywall.
THE WAR ON THE WEST | Kirkus Reviews
So those glowing reviews?

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens

Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts

"God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness.

If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?


This message is a reply to:
 Message 164 by Phat, posted 01-19-2023 12:12 PM Phat has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 170 by Phat, posted 01-21-2023 1:22 PM Theodoric has not replied

  
Phat
Member
Posts: 18262
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 170 of 174 (905273)
01-21-2023 1:22 PM
Reply to: Message 169 by Theodoric
01-20-2023 8:38 AM


Re: The War On The West Chapter One
Admittedly this review provides a good counterpoint to Murray's claims.

The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of a doubt, what is laid before him.” - Leo Tolstoy, The Kingdom of God is Within You (1894).
When both religious and non-religious people reach the same conclusions then you know religion isn't the reason.--Percy
Democrats should not be the only party. Respect the two-party system. -Phat, in December 2022
We see Monsters where Science shows us Windmills.~Phat, remixed

This message is a reply to:
 Message 169 by Theodoric, posted 01-20-2023 8:38 AM Theodoric has not replied

  
Phat
Member
Posts: 18262
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 171 of 174 (905274)
01-21-2023 1:44 PM
Reply to: Message 86 by Taq
12-27-2022 11:03 AM


Re: Bonds or Gold?
Taq writes:
Gold prices are actually down over the last 2 years. If gold prices were inflating they would be going up, just like prices for many other goods are going up.
I suppose it depends on which chart you look at.
Yahoo Finance reports that over the last 6 months, gold has increased by roughly $200.00 an ounce.

The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of a doubt, what is laid before him.” - Leo Tolstoy, The Kingdom of God is Within You (1894).
When both religious and non-religious people reach the same conclusions then you know religion isn't the reason.--Percy
Democrats should not be the only party. Respect the two-party system. -Phat, in December 2022
We see Monsters where Science shows us Windmills.~Phat, remixed

This message is a reply to:
 Message 86 by Taq, posted 12-27-2022 11:03 AM Taq has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 172 by Theodoric, posted 01-21-2023 2:28 PM Phat has replied

  
Theodoric
Member
Posts: 9076
From: Northwest, WI, USA
Joined: 08-15-2005
Member Rating: 3.7


Message 172 of 174 (905275)
01-21-2023 2:28 PM
Reply to: Message 171 by Phat
01-21-2023 1:44 PM


Re: Bonds or Gold?
On January 22, 2021 the price of gold was 1856.20. Friday it was 1928.20. That is less than a 4% increase in two years. 2% a year
Dow Jones Industrial
1/22/21 30996.98. Friday 33375.49. 7.7% increase. 3.85% per year
But that is only a piece of the puzzle.
quote:
No. There is one fatal flaw in this investment thesis. Let’s revisit gold’s 5,333% return against the S&P Composite’s 3,737% return from 1970 to 2020. Sure, if you just bought the S&P Composite and let it ride for 50 years, the return would underperform against gold.
But that comparison is wrong. The comparison leaves out the eighth wonder of the world—compounding. Add in compounding and now make the comparison. That same investor buying the S&P Composite in 1970 and reinvesting the dividends quarterly would have seen a gain of 68,430% through September 2020.
And that is the problem with gold. Gold pays no dividends. It cannot compound. It does not have economic growth. It does not innovate. It does not generate cash flow. It’s just a piece of inert metal.
Stocks Versus Gold: Which Is A Better Investment? The Answer May Surprise You
What should we expect from that liberal bastion Forbes.

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens

Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts

"God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness.

If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?


This message is a reply to:
 Message 171 by Phat, posted 01-21-2023 1:44 PM Phat has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 173 by Phat, posted 01-21-2023 4:00 PM Theodoric has not replied

  
Phat
Member
Posts: 18262
From: Denver,Colorado USA
Joined: 12-30-2003
Member Rating: 1.1


Message 173 of 174 (905278)
01-21-2023 4:00 PM
Reply to: Message 172 by Theodoric
01-21-2023 2:28 PM


Re: Bonds or Gold?
Noted. You do have an argument, but the consensus is that we are entering a recession and that the past 30 years of compounded gains will take quite a hit. At this point in time, I would invest at least 10% into hard assets. They are not to be thought of as an investment but as an insurance policy.

The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of a doubt, what is laid before him.” - Leo Tolstoy, The Kingdom of God is Within You (1894).
When both religious and non-religious people reach the same conclusions then you know religion isn't the reason.--Percy
Democrats should not be the only party. Respect the two-party system. -Phat, in December 2022
We see Monsters where Science shows us Windmills.~Phat, remixed

This message is a reply to:
 Message 172 by Theodoric, posted 01-21-2023 2:28 PM Theodoric has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 174 by Taq, posted 01-23-2023 4:10 PM Phat has seen this message but not replied

  
Taq
Member
Posts: 9973
Joined: 03-06-2009
Member Rating: 5.7


Message 174 of 174 (905347)
01-23-2023 4:10 PM
Reply to: Message 173 by Phat
01-21-2023 4:00 PM


Re: Bonds or Gold?
Phat writes:
You do have an argument, but the consensus is that we are entering a recession and that the past 30 years of compounded gains will take quite a hit. At this point in time, I would invest at least 10% into hard assets.
Diversification and hedges are always a good idea. I mentioned I bonds before:
I bonds — TreasuryDirect
The return on I bonds shifts with inflation so you are always protected. You can buy a max of 10k per year.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 173 by Phat, posted 01-21-2023 4:00 PM Phat has seen this message but not replied

  
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