User:Caius/Intellectualism

Ames, #1
Andy,

I'm personally offended by the suggestion that few intellectuals are liberal. Having dedicated myself to a highly intellectual profession I have met in just the past year some of the smartest men and women that I have ever met in my life. A good deal of them are liberal. Since you have spent some time in the legal world, I know you have also met a good deal of liberal intellectuals. I'm shocked to think that, just because of personal disagreement on political beliefs, you would deny them the basic respect of crediting their achievements.

For my part, I, like most individuals capable of respect and compassion, divorce my objective assessments of an individual's worth and intelligence from my feelings on their political beliefs. Just so, while I disagree passionately with almost everything that Antonin Scalia writes, I would be foolish to deny that he is one of the century's great legal minds. His Chevron jurisprudence is especially notable for being fair and far ahead of its time: when some of my more favorite justices (Stevens) seem wrangled instead in administrative red tape, Scalia attempts to create fair and predictable rules. I can even praise some of his other decisions for their logical consistency, while disagreeing with their conclusions, due to certain assumptions of his which I do not share.

You may note that I have no respect for a lot of the opinions on your site, and no respect for the people who advance them, either. You are correct. Some of the people on your site completely lack any iota of intellectualism or academic honesty. For example, "Conservative" (have you read "Evolution"? You and I both know that the writing is puerile). But that does not mean that, when I recognize intelligence in an ideological opponent, I will refuse to honor it!

Beyond this, many of the points in your article are completely laughable, and do nothing but impugn (without good cause) the intelligence of people with whom you disagree. The Rhodes Scholarship is simply "resume building stuff"? Please. The Nobel Prize is "liberal," and therefore worthless? Give us a break. Just because you don't understand science (and neither do I) that doesn't make scientific achievements without merit.

Also none of this "Law Review" snobbery. Please. If only Harvard Law Review alums were worthwhile lawyers, as you seem to argue in your futile attempt to defame Tribe, then even Clarence Thomas would fail your silly test.

If the perspective that few liberals can be real intellectuals, despite truly astounding achievements, actually represents your beliefs, you betray yourself as a truly intolerant man, devoid of compassion in most cases. However, if (as I hope) this latest "essay" results merely from angry, late-night ramblings, which you are now fighting a rearguard action to defend so as not to look foolish, then I will feel slightly better. Slightly. Please retract the essay in its entirety. You're better than this. At least I hope.