Policraticus or Why Courtiers are Still Frivolous

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Posted by Ben Anders at 3:20 PM

Ben Anders: Policraticus: of the Frivolities of Courtiers and the Footprints of Philosophers, a work of the 12th century English political philosopher John of Salisbury, warns of Kings and paltry advisers who do not heed the wrath of God. Today, again, in a certain way our political culture is defined by an overabundance of advice. Be they economists, political scientists, pollsters, columnists, pundits, or journalists, our political establishment would have us believe that it is best to let the experts handle it. Yet never before has criticism of "the status quo" and "common wisdom," not to mention "trust in the American people" been such a ubiquitous list of stand ins for actual critical thought in our discourse. Clearly, like all contradictions, this double speak of the new courtiers is a single phenomenon. Broadly speaking, this blog seeks to explore the deadlock. I attend The New School in New York, and am studying philosophy and history. This blog will contain long and short form pieces, mostly commentary on news stories and perhaps commentary on recent books, articles, and films.

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