Stirling is writing again, and this is an important, though very long piece, touching on ancient history, dating of events, climate change and much more.
This is an age of post-. We talk of ourselves in terms of our weights from the past, and in terms that show we are not really after a cataclysmic change, but, instead, before one. People look back most when there is a large stretch of years that seem to imply an order to the world, and a stability. Our present is defined not by what we hope for, but by how we justify a position of wealth and privilege which we are no longer earning, but are determined to keep. At the same time, what we are post- is a rent, and the burden of that rent is strangling us, as a polity, as a society, as a country, and as humanity in general. The cost of the privilege, feels heavier, than the lift it provides.
Go, read.
Celsius 233
Ian, yes, I already read it a week ago at The Sorcerer’s Apprentice; and it’s a very dense piece.
I need to go back and re-read to get a broader view, it’s so dense…
His historical references alone warrant much scrutiny.
It boggles the mind, mine at least…
Celsius 233
Your snip is of course right on, but there is so much more…
Ian Welsh
Well, it’s so long that it’s hard to excerpt and Stirling wanted me to refer readers to his blog, rather than post the whole thing here. Glad you liked it. I fear most people won’t read it through, and it’s worth sitting down and taking the time to do so.
atcooper
This reminds me very much of Foucault.
There is such a huge need for synthesis of big ideas.
Petro
Thanks for the link. What a wonderful mind he has.
Celsius 233
Well it seems most here like diving at the shallow end of the pool. No surprises actually, but an interesting response, or lack there of…
Sterling is, as Hesse’s Steppenwolf says; “Not for everyone…”
Spinoza
…heavy.
stirling
yes it’s heavy, and the editing takes some time. but I feel that it’s worth it for some people. off-the-cuff I don’t do the lifting that is required.
someofparts
I read down to the last section. Especially enjoyed the beautiful passages from Milton.
As Ian expected, I’m one who just scanned the last section.
For me the density and length are not a problem, they’re a pleasure.
I just started scanning because I cannot figure out where the piece is going.
I get the sense that it may be another iteration of the idea that, viewed in a very wide historical and linguistic focus, we are a culture in decline. That’s why I started scanning.
Archdruid seems to have read extensively in comparative history and I have immersed myself in his understanding of how our current political moment compares with comparable moments in Roman, Chinese and Indian history.
I’m supposing that Stirling is coming at it linguistically as well as historically and presumably saying something more complex and meaningful than the analysis I’ve studied at the Archdruid site, but I just can’t see it.
Formerly T-Bear
stirling June 24, 2014
Thanks for the gift.
Spinoza
@ Mr. Newberry
“And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented…”
Petro
The linguistics aspect of Mr. Newberry’s analysis is quite insightful. Language is revealed thought, and is further burnished by the fact that it is shared and bent this way and that by the meetings of minds and the events that are shaped by language and then re-reflected back into the minds, further shaping it. I’d love to know what Chomsky would have to say about the essay. I’m still chewing over the perspective expressed there.
barrisj
As a former Agonista going back to the Dark Ages of America ca. 2003 onward, I had followed with great appreciation both the comments and essays of IW and SN on The Agonist website, and now have bookmarked Welsh and Newberry for fully engaged reading whenever I can manage it. So glad that SN has recovered from serious health issues to begin to craft seminal pieces as above referenced.
Nate
So grateful to be reading a new piece by Stirling. Much to unpack. Plan on reading it several times.
S Brennan
Off topic, but directed at Ian,
As the Obama/Salazar/BP oil spill in the gulf proved, Obama is owned and operated by big oil, particularly, foreign oil companies like BP.
http://online.wsj.com/articles/u-s-ruling-would-allow-first-shipments-of-unrefined-oil-overseas-1403644494
“The Obama administration cleared the way for the first exports of unrefined American oil in nearly four decades, allowing energy companies to start chipping away at the longtime ban on selling U.S. oil abroad.
In separate rulings that haven’t been announced, the Commerce Department gave Pioneer Natural Resources Co. and Enterprise Products Partners LP permission to ship a type of ultralight oil known as condensate to foreign buyers. The buyers could turn the oil into gasoline, jet fuel and diesel.”
markfromireland
Glad to see this piece for many different reasons – have printed it out and am now re-reading.
mfi
Lurker the Third
Not surprisingly, Stirling Newberry has had other recent posts worthy of note.
His June 16th post on “Recession and Unemployment” examines the enormous lag time between the onset of a recession, and the official recognition of the decline, leading to (at best) inadequate policy responses. He instead suggests looking toward more timely indicators, such as rapidly rising unemployment. The essay also considers the varying natures of djfferent recessions, including those perhaps caused by inflationary, disinflationary, and deflationary forces. And no, it’s not as dry as my synopsis might make it appear.
On a totally different flank, the first chapter of his “Marne” novel(ette?) was posted on June 21st. Set at the beginning of the First World War, the story involves a number of characters, with some literally in a strange transition zone between the living and the dead. One of these, a former pilot who was so in touch with his dirigible as to consider it an extension of his evil self, now is finding ways to physically extend himself into the real world, and planning to reassemble his dead/undead crew and impose order.
As always, they’re accompanied by intriguing sidebars.
Mudge
A really interesting read, but I’ll have to re-group for a second assault on it. He clearly has a lot to say, but needs a proofer BADLY.
detox pad
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