After drawing a caricature of Ronald Reagan that he attributes
to historian John Patrick Diggins, George Will demonstrates his
commitment to the concept of human fallibility by
whacking that strawman into pieces. Reaganite optimism is too
much for Will, who writes that "Reagan frequently quoted [Thomas]
Paine's preposterous cry that 'we have it in our power to begin the
world over again.'"
When Paine wrote that line, in
Common Sense, he was refering to a specific historical
moment: "A situation, similar to the present, hath not happened
since the days of Noah until now." At that moment, on the eve of
the American Revolution, he was absolutely right. And when Reagan
quoted Paine on the eve of the fall of Communism, he was
absolutely right. It's indeed good to be mindful of the failings of
the masses, but if Will's conservatism is one that finds the very
notion of liberation "preposterous," it neither has nor deserves
any future in American politics.
topics:
Communism, Conservatism
