"If our difference of opinion is so inclusive that we can agree on nothing political, our differences have gone from mere opinion into the depths of ideology. Here the institutional framework is affected. You and I would not want to live in the same city; we could not feel safe in one another's presence; each would be afraid of the effect which the other might have on the morals of the community. If I were a Nazi, and you a democrat, you would not like the idea of my children living next door to yours. If I believed that you were a good enough creature—poor deluded devil—but that you were not fit to vote, scarcely to be trusted with property, not to be trusted as an army officer, and generally subversive and dangerous, you would find it hard to get along with me."
Keeping in mind that Linebarger was writing with an eye to being "unobjectionable on the score of security by the Department of the Army", and from other dots scattered through the text, I would not be surprised if the last sentence had had a more concrete reference than its abstract wording suggests.
George Wallace's grandson (1996) asked why his grandfather did such horrible things to other people.
(Apparently left to his own devices, Wallace might've been more moderate. But his constituency demanded more, as in The Candidate, so he declared "I was out-niggered by John Patterson. And I'll tell you here and now, I will never be out-niggered again.")
Another reminder of the importance of taking the periodic, thoughtful moment to document the type of imprint each of us would like to have left on this world once we're gone.
If you don't know his story, it's worth taking the time. He got himself beat up to unconsciousness so that the rest of the United States would not be able to ignore the brutality of its racist South.
Thanks for this. Read his Wikipedia page[0] and a few blue links. Crazy how wild the 60s were with racism! The police did nothing to stop mobs because of people riding on a bus... Mind blowing
FYI just in case you're not a native English speaker, you generally can't end a sentence with the contraction "it's."
The actual reason is much more complex than the simple rule of thumb, but if you're interested in a thorough explanation: https://english.stackexchange.com/a/2547
By coincidence John Lewis’s graphic-novel memoir _March_ was released around the time of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and it made me feel optimistic in what otherwise felt like a dark winter. I can’t recommend it highly enough.
This is not hacker news. Every time I find a tech site that has good tech news it eventually gets flooded with political articles. Sometimes vaguely tech related. While I respect John Lewis this isn’t the place for this article. We will be hearing about this all week from other sources.
He lived the fight for justice and equality through almost or all of modernity. His weapons were his will, his strength to face violence with nonviolence, the truth of equality, the evil realities of racism, and justice, and nonviolent protests. And he was a politician. House Representatives are not graced with the immunities US Senators are. To my knowledge, John Lewis never once was investigated let alone found guilty of offense as a Representative. His is an example for generations to follow - and he did lead generations.
I genuinely hope to see an America someday in my life which expects and enforces the highest of its politicians again. There was a time where being a politician was respectable and honorable. It’s the position they should hold. I hope we regain that societal cohesion again. I think John Lewis was one such politician.
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[ 2.6 ms ] story [ 47.6 ms ] threadWe are closer to barbarity in time and in fact than we are comfortable acknowledging. Vale.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23869499
[1] also from 1948: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/48612/48612-h/48612-h.htm
"If our difference of opinion is so inclusive that we can agree on nothing political, our differences have gone from mere opinion into the depths of ideology. Here the institutional framework is affected. You and I would not want to live in the same city; we could not feel safe in one another's presence; each would be afraid of the effect which the other might have on the morals of the community. If I were a Nazi, and you a democrat, you would not like the idea of my children living next door to yours. If I believed that you were a good enough creature—poor deluded devil—but that you were not fit to vote, scarcely to be trusted with property, not to be trusted as an army officer, and generally subversive and dangerous, you would find it hard to get along with me."
Keeping in mind that Linebarger was writing with an eye to being "unobjectionable on the score of security by the Department of the Army", and from other dots scattered through the text, I would not be surprised if the last sentence had had a more concrete reference than its abstract wording suggests.
[2] reasons for optimism: https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/18/politics/peggy-wallace-ke...
George Wallace (1963): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Wallace%27s_1963_Inaugu...
George Wallace's grandson (1996) asked why his grandfather did such horrible things to other people.
(Apparently left to his own devices, Wallace might've been more moderate. But his constituency demanded more, as in The Candidate, so he declared "I was out-niggered by John Patterson. And I'll tell you here and now, I will never be out-niggered again.")
To your point, what we think of as "history" wasn't that long ago.
If you don't know his story, it's worth taking the time. He got himself beat up to unconsciousness so that the rest of the United States would not be able to ignore the brutality of its racist South.
0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lewis_(civil_rights_leade...
We need more of this -- finding agreement despite differences.
Edit -
I was waiting for Obama's statement, and here it's - https://medium.com/@BarackObama/my-statement-on-the-passing-...
Our country is full of hypocrisy, but every so often citizens like John Lewis call us out on it and push us a little closer toward our ideals.
The actual reason is much more complex than the simple rule of thumb, but if you're interested in a thorough explanation: https://english.stackexchange.com/a/2547
(It’s also funny that it’s only called violence when normal ppl do it, and not when the state does it)
I genuinely hope to see an America someday in my life which expects and enforces the highest of its politicians again. There was a time where being a politician was respectable and honorable. It’s the position they should hold. I hope we regain that societal cohesion again. I think John Lewis was one such politician.
He is missed.