Monthly Archive: November 2015

4

From Under the Rubble, Episode 0: Introduction

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Dr. Fleming explains the theme of the series, invoking the example of Russian dissidents who were not content to criticize specific policies of the USSR but zeroed in on the flawed principles on which the regime rested. The USA, which began as a constitutional republic, has tended more and more to accept the principles of the French Revolution. Even conservatives accept leftwing theories of equality and human rights as the cornerstone of their ideology. To resist the radicalization of America, we must debunk the false principles that justify the destruction of authentic American liberties. Original Air Date: November 20, 2015...

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Greek Interview with Thomas Fleming

Thomas Fleming was recently interviewed (10 November) by Nikolaos Hidiroglou for the Greek newspaper Ελεύθερη Ώρα (Eleftheri Ora).  Is Donald Trump the man for the job in the White House for the Republicans? The “Grand Old Party” has been fielding impossible presidential candidates that have made Republicans a political joke:  Bob Dole, John McCain,  Mitt Romney.  Perhaps the worst was George W. Bush, who won two elections, squandered money and lives on a pointless and fruitless war in Iraq, and bankrupted his country.  How could Trump do any worse?   Trump’s great strength is his candor:  He openly talks of...

2

Meditations of a Dog: Getting Ready for Greece

We used to have a dog named Robert or, to be more precise Robert the Bruce.  Robert was a Scottish Terrier of a particularly independent mind.  Though he obeyed me, loved my life, and loyally guarded the family, it would be misleading to say we owned him.  The reverse was closer to the truth.  If previous Scotties in the family had been “jaunty,” as almost all of them are, Robert went them one better in being cocky or, rather, arrogant. Although each of us was of two minds about Robert, we all agreed at his funeral, as we drank the ...

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Wednesday’s Child: Letter from Munich

I am writing this from Munich, a place known universally since September 30, 1938, for democracy’s sacrifice of strategic interest — or honor, for that is what strategic interest is in the life of individual or nation — to tactical advantage. The advantage, during the next few weeks or months, would benefit a politician, Chamberlain, and his party; the sacrifice, in the course of the century, would mean the death of hundreds of millions and half of Europe in chains. Before going any further, however, I should like to apologize for this choice of subject.  I had been hoping that...

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FF Podcast, Episode 1: The Paris Bombings

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On this maiden voyage of the Fleming Foundation into podcasting, Dr. Thomas Fleming and Dr. Srdja Trifkovic discuss the recent bombings in Paris from both an American and a European perspective. Please enjoy and feel free to give feedback and ask questions. This is a work in progress so please be gentle on us!   Original Air Date: November 18, 2015 Show Run Time: 54 minutes Show Guest(s): Dr. Thomas Fleming, Dr. Srdja Trifkovic Show Host(s): Stephen Heiner The Fleming Foundation · FF Podcast, Episode 1: The Paris Bombings   The Fleming Foundation Podcast℗ is a Production of the Fleming...

0

Branding Disaster

Earlier this year, after the Charlie Hebdo shootings, I reflected on the conversations that may or may not ensue from the changing of a facebook profile picture.  As my facebook news feed in the last few days has changed into a wash of the modern French flag (the tricolor) I’ve reflected further on our need, as a consumer-driven culture, to “brand” disaster. Clearly the French didn’t start the #prayforparis trend – as it’s an English phrase.  #jesuischarlie started up so quickly because the attack was directed at a specific target for a specific reason.  The French reacted, in their own...

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How Correct Are You? By Diogenes the Dissident

Answer these questions honestly.  If you score zero, you are rightwing; 5-10 makes you a conservative liberal, while a score of 15 tells you that you have reached the highest plateau of political correctness. 1. I have a nice Muslim friend; therefore ISIS is not Islamic. 2. The vast majority of the world’s “1.6 billion Muslims” are not part of ISIS or al-Qaeda; therefore ISIS and al-Qaeda have nothing to do with Islam. 3. The presence of large Islamic populations in Europe and North America is culturally enriching and intellectually invigorating. 4. Christianity and the Catholic Church have historically suppressed...

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Huis Clos (No Exit) from Terrorism

If you listen to the official press or even look at comments on news websites, Islamic terrorism is some sort of natural disaster caused by sun spots, global warming, or the political equivalent of fracking.  One comment on the Washington Post summed up the popular despair.  The commenter wanted to know why our government could not stop these attacks, but added he had no idea of how it could be done. On leftist news sites,  a favorite talking point is to blame religion in general.  Yes, those vicious Buddhists, Confucianists, and Neo-Platonists, for centuries they have been waging war on...

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Cicero III: Great Caesar’s Ghost

Caesar’s family, though they traced their ancestry back to Aeneas and to Venus, had not amounted to much in generations until his aunt Julia married Marius.   Julius was on Sulla’s list to be executed, but he was begged off by friends.  Sulla is said to have warned, “There are many Mariuses in this one man.”   Already identified with the popular party, Julius married the daughter of Lucius Cornelius Cinna, one of Sulla’s radical enemies, and he refused to put away Cornelia at Sulla’s request, though Pompey complied with similar order.  Already he was showing his independence. Julius went...

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More Second Thoughts, Round Three

At first glance, President Obama’s selection of this years’s winners of “The Presidential Medal of Freedom” seems bizarre.  Lee Hamilton, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra, Shirley Chisholm and Barbara Mikulski, music entrepreneur Emilio Estefan, Gloria Estefan, Indian activist Billy Frank, Stephen Sondheim and Stephen Spielberg, Barbara Streisand, James Taylor,  and Jap rights activist Minoru Yasui.  Gee, what is warhawk Lee Hamilton doing with these freaks?  The only other straight white  male with a name ending in a consonant, James Taylor, is a drug-using  mental patient. On second thought, perhaps it is perfect.   This is the face of the new America–‘athaletes,’ entertainers,...