On the subject of Modernism, I'm not as opposed to it as JMG is. I love the avant-garde music from the 20th century (Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Cage, etc.) JMG has railed against this in his more recent essays on art from a few years ago in favor of traditionalism. I've been wanting to write an article on what John Cage has to teach Green Wizards... so I may get around to that before to long. There is a lot in those areas of art that could be carried forward, and would be beneficial. JMG thought Cage was a charlatan and artistic swindler. I thought he was a true explorer of possibilities.

I also like Modernist literature. James Joyce, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound. T.S. Eliot etc. There is so much value in their work. I do not think it all has to be discarded the way JMG thinks. I love William S. Burroughs and the Beats in general (all this stuff JMG scoffs at).

It creates a little cognitive dissonance but thats okay, because it also fosters dissensus.

I do like the more traditional buildings, something he's written about in his essay last week on architecture, so I'm in agreement with him there.

That's pretty interesting about the Christian Dominionism though (sounds pretty close to demonism ;). But although I agree it seems people on the Right, and in the government, may have some roots in this Chrisitian Dominion way of thinking, that they follow this theology, there are also a lot of other forms of spirituality brewing in this country that other people are taking too like ducks in a pond. I'm thinking here of the Heathens (Scandinavian paganism and its various flavors) that is also very much on the rise.

On the Wikipedia page you linked to it even says "Some have applied the term dominionist more broadly to the whole Christian right. This usage is controversial. There are concerns from members of these communities that this is a label being used to marginalize Christians from public discourse."

In general though I do agree that as Green Wizards in this time we have to be on the lookout for these kind of fascist groups. But maybe the real problems are just as likely to arise from criminal biker gangs and gangs in general.

I come from a very liberal background. Politically I've always thought of myself as an Anarchist on the leftward side of that philosophy. Yet the voices of the left have become increasingly shrill in my opinion, and it seems that a lot of people in the social justice movement, which had done so much good on many fronts of race, sexuality, gender now wants to tell other people how they need to think and is policing the way people talk and has corrupted the media with this kind of "one true way" of thinking about issues. And from that I start to distance myself. It's kind of the opposite of free speech. The dangers of fascism from within that rhetoric are just as real as from the right.

Since I joined a ham radio club four years ago I'm around a lot more conservative christian than I had been since I was a kid & had to go to church whether I wanted to or not. (I think the hams in other areas might be more of a mix politically, but I'm in Ohio). Most of them whom I've talked to about political or religious issues seem to be of the opinion, of "mind your own business and I'll mind mine. I don't care what you do as long as it's not illegal or causing harm to others, etc." That seemed like it used to be the position of those on the left, but to me its sounding more and more like, "let me mind your business and tell you how to think and what to do." Is it any wonder people are rebelling against that?

I also know some Christian biker / skateboarding / anarchist punks. There are a couple of "home church" communities in my neighborhood of this variety and one of their ministers married my wife and I in a non-christian ceremony. Their views couldn't be more different than the dominionists you talk of. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_anarchism

There is just too much variety in spirituality in America for me to worry about that...

Also, I don't love Trump. I think he is a plutocrat and an oligarch. But I began to question the sheer rudeness and lack of courtesy on the part of those who oppose him. In that way I do hope to see more of an Esc-Center come back into being.

Again, I love Eco's novels, I've read at least four of them, and he is amazing writer. But just as with any writer, thinker, or artist I love, they can say and do things that I'm not in 100% alignment with. That includes JMG who has many points that I love, many ways he's opened my mind, and other points where we won't ever see eye to eye. And that's ok.

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