Mike Hawk's Journal: Nihilism; Bolton and the Pope

There is nothing a liberal fears more than someone who believes in something. This is why they fear and hate John Bolton and Pope Benedict XVI. These men have Conviction and Believe in Something. The attacks on Bolton have not been about what he has done, but how he has done it. This is very similar to what they tried to do to Clarence Thomas. Someone who believes in something will not be tripped up by every obstacle, and will push those aside who stand in their way. You can't compromise with a nihilist. They don't want anything so there is nothing you can offer them. I probably don't agree with these men in every detail, but I can relate to them. I cannot relate with someone who doesn't believe in anything.

The Cardinal Ratzinger said things like: "Not all moral issues have the same weight as abortion and euthanasia.... There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion, even among Catholics, about waging war or applying the death penalty, but not, however, with regard to abortion and euthanasia." Despite the obvious nod to diversity of opinion, this kind of talk scares people who don't even believe in the concept of moral issues. It doesn't leave room for whining or compromise or cooperation. He Believes what he Believes. For this, some think its wise to try to paint him as a Nazi. These people are very small minded, and in the realm of de facto racism against Germans. (Let us not forget that blue-state, Prius-driving favorite Trader Joe's was founded by Germans who had been captured by the USA as POW's during WWII. By your own standards, each sip of that 2-buck Chuck contains a little drop of Hitler.)

I am not even a Catholic, but I can respect someone who will say: "Relativism is letting oneself be 'swept along by every wind of teaching.' It looks like the only attitude acceptable to today's standards. We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism, which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires." That's a statement of Belief. I see lots of writing from people who know what they stand Against, and almost notiong about what people stand For. This man stands Against nihilism and For the concepts of Belief and Values.

Its useful to find out who is a nihilist. I like to know what I am dealing with. What to know a quick way to out a nihilist? In conversation, pay them the "compliment" of being "very non-judgemental". Only a nihilist could possibly accept that compliment without reservation. In fact, this is the highest compliment you can pay a nihilist. Their reaction will clearly indicate this.

Tolerance is the virtue of a man without conviction. -G.K. Chesterton

And finally:

"Nihilists!... Fuck me!... I mean, say what you like about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude. At least it's an ethos!" -- Walter Sobchak

"Is consistency important?"

[geoswan]

A slashdotter asks "Is consistency important?" [slashdot.org] Here is their answer:

No.

There are actions that benefit me and ones that do not. The only position that I hold consistent to is that I want me and my way of life to be sustained. This is totally selfish, except to say that I want to share my way of life with others because, well, I like it.

If killing someone is necessary to protect or advance my way of life, I am for it. I imagine your subject felt the same way. But I refuse to be bogged down in arbitrar

Perfect!

[Mike Hawk]

Wow, that meshes perfectly with my journal. I had forgetting about that post, thanks for reposting that. I believe in something and am willing to fight for it. Because I believe in something (my way of life- America, Christianity, etc), I will not be worried about notions of consistency. Only someone who believes in consistency AS AN END would. Of course, noone ACTUALLY believes in consistency as an end, they merely use it to attack people who DO believe in something. Worshipping at the temple of cons

Liberalism Is Not A Nihilism

[mercedo]

So according to your passage, you think liberalism advocates nihilism? So you think you are a man of some belief and conviction, you are looking for liberals, advocates of nihilism, to hunt down?

But I cannot dare to say liberals are nihilists. Liberalism is very distant from nihilism. I'd suggest you should try thinking separately liberalism from nihilism. Many people don't like nihilism, but liberalism is always thought to be one of the greatest ideas among even very conservative people. I think you are a