Friday, November 2, 2007

IHT: 'Bush's dangerous liaisons'

By Francois Furstenberg
28 Oct 2007

Much as George W. Bush's presidency was ineluctably shaped by Sept. 11,
2001, so the outbreak of the French Revolution was symbolized by the events
of one fateful day, July 14, 1789. And though 18th-century France may seem
impossibly distant to contemporary Americans, future historians examining
Bush's presidency within the longer sweep of political and intellectual
history may find the French Revolution useful in understanding his curious
brand of 21st-century conservatism.

Soon after the storming of the Bastille, pro-Revolutionary elements came
together to form an association that would become known as the Jacobin Club,
an umbrella group of politicians, journalists and citizens dedicated to
advancing the principles of the Revolution.

The Jacobins shared a defining ideological feature. They divided the world
between pro- and anti-Revolutionaries - the defenders of liberty versus its
enemies. The French Revolution, as they understood it, was the great event
that would determine whether liberty was to prevail on the planet or whether
the world would fall back into tyranny and despotism.

The stakes could not be higher, and on these matters there could be no
nuance or hesitation. One was either for the Revolution or for tyranny...
 

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