I cannot help but think that the entartete-treatment of Habermas serves a dual purpose that's disconnected from anything he's actually said.
He's more or less a living legend in a field where the norm is that the theorist the works of whom we partake of is long-dead, so challenging him and winning (if only by un-personing and memory-holeing) is for the modern academic the equivalent of a Cro Magnon jumping on an already dead cave bear, claiming it proves his hunting prowess as his tribe comes upon the scene.
It also sends a clear and unmistakable message to all in academia or with academic backgrounds:
Even a legend can be brought low, and you're no legend so don't even think of challenging the new Führer-prinzip.
As much as I hate shit-talking 'colleagues', Behrends (whom I actually know personally) and their ilk would probably be giddy with excitement if their work would have been received by Habermas.
Your reading of academia chimes with my impression, and, as is so often the case, I've kept those receipts, too:
Universities typically have a two-layered system in place: a) professors (faculty) self-administering themselves, aided by b) a cadre of permanent administrators who, while they may themselves typically have credentials, are not faculty.
In practice, this configuration means that while the professors vote on their own representatives (typically in sham ‘elections’ of only one person running without an opponent) organised by the permanent bureaucracy.
As such, ‘the university’ represents a perfect, if almost entirely idiosyncratic, example of how 19th-century bourgeois leaders thought about ‘democracy’: anarcho-syndicalism (one professor = one vote) for the few, replete with grandiose, if vacuous, statements about inclusive democratic representation—and a kind of pseudo-feudal organisation in various ‘estates’ (German-language academia actually uses that term, Stand) that is governed by an iron fist.
Do note that the overwhelming majority of university employees isn’t democratically represented, as administrators, non-professorial academic staff, and students are under-represented. In other words: what pissed off the National Assembly in Paris in 1789 is still deemed ‘good enough’ for the professoriat.
If you’re outraged, that’s why I told you, but it’s not even the worst aspect, for in practice, everyday work is done in the following way: the ‘elected’ professors (a) are typically senior scholars with limited, if any, management experience—and they make decisions while the permanent bureaucracy (b) are non-scholars with more or less management experience executing these decisions about issues (higher education) they virtually know nothing about.
In other words: ‘the university’ is governed by pompous narcissists (professors) without a clue while their actions are implemented by people without any knowledge of scholarship—what could go wrong?
That is essentially the way our universities are structured, with the addition that at the highest level (the committee having the over-arching mandate over the entire university) there is always at least one politician or politically appointed person sitting in, in "an advisory capacity".
No guesses as to why it is so.
For a sampler of what goes on behind the curtains at our "centers for higher learning", check out Academics Rights Watch:
Currently, our new governement has given the UKÄ (Universitetskanslerämbetet; tasked with oversight of all higher educational institutions) the task of investigating "cancel culture" in our academica. Said academia has immediately responded with "it doesn't exist, it's a right-wing myth, and when you find it and try to stop it we'll ignore any rules and laws to that effect and cancel anyone who helps you".
My brother is still in there, albeit in the natural sciences. He once expressed disbelief and despair two years ago when new instructions came down from on high, about equity in the source materials (to have the correct race, sex, et c ratios among the researchers and works making up his source-material for his students).
My advice, which seems to have worked well, was to add a general boilerplate sweeping statement about inclusivity, using all the buzzwords, and put together a politically correct list of sources to present to the board, then tag the real sources as "minimum mandatory reading for exams" in the list that goes out to students.
His disbelief stems from the simple fact that how water flows through the ground in all its different compositions have nothing to do with sex, race et c. To us in the social sciences/humanities, such stuff is business as usual and we know how to fight and how to roll with the punches, but the techies and natural scientists are like a deer in front of a lumber truck at night when exposed to it.
Eh, a rotten tree cannot be saved, it must fall to give nutrition to saplings. European academia had a good 800 year run. Inside a century something new will have taken its place.
I recall the worst piece of BS I ever had to compose, back when I was applying for permanent positions in, among others, the US, was a 'DIE Statement'.
Quota hires, under-achieving 'colleagues', and BS-peddlers are everywhere. Together with 'career politicians' and 'legacy media journalists', academia is the 'unholy trinity' of this insanity.
As to your brother's examples: I could fill page upon page about what you describe. Currently, my university is facing budget cuts, in particular affecting the Humanities--and the 'solution' is to cut back on future hiring and demand less of the students.
This is, in my opinion, exactly the wrong solution. Why study watered down Humanities stuff? The opposite direction must be taken: tougher entrance requirements, much tougher grading. If a diploma ain't worth a bit of effort, it won't be worth anything.
I agree, it is a collective failure. All western governments are subverted, but are there significant differences among peoples in how much natural resistance they’ve offered? Even within countries, are there regional differences? If so, what accounts for such differences?
I'm really envy of the french spirit when it comes to fight! It should be happening in every western country for a couple of weeks everyday until they abdicate
If you care to take a trip down memory lane, here's what I wrote in autumn 2021:
I think it’s not so much going to be a ‘Dark Winter’. Don’t get me wrong, if the academic and statistical references cited above are correct, we’ll see significantly elevated mortality events (excess deaths are up in the U.K. and Germany as well as in a number of other European countries for 1-2 months now), but my point is: at some point, reality will trump ‘reality’ as understood by the globalist sympathisers masquerading as national gov’ts.
And then the question turns into: will the fallout look like March or October 1848?
Becoming ever knowledgeable and discerning often causes separation between "earth man" and the intellectual. Maybe the path is to explore the lower humble parts of life. It seems one difference between real education and lack thereof is one of high vocabulary, ability to use words prudently with attention to etymology et al, and a good faculty for conceptualizing about anything; it seems to give a "god-like" feeling to one so disposed, so erudite. I think if one does not learn to be humble, then that person runs the risk of being extremely arrogant, and extremely insufferable. I heard from one banker that a mark of a "superior" mind, higher intelligence is also the ability to hold two opposing thoughts in mind simultaneously without dissonance.
Given the sad state of what passes for 'education' these days, I think most people are not taught, never experience, holding two opposing thoughts--and think about it themselves.
Its very difficult to find actually. I should've warned you. Professor Hamamoto Channel on YT mentions this. Also, I have a Patreon with him so I get exclusive access. Let me see if I can get you a link to the book. Give me a few days perhaps.
"The secret seems to be: 'these people' never went away..."
<< DING DING DING >>
We have a winner. Except that it's been anything BUT a secret for decades, filed under subject headers like : GLADIO, et al. NATO has always been the hub of their post-war European operations, with Gehlen's network assumed whole into the organization.
Of course, academia and media have been successfully marginalizing and/or distorting historical truth among the western populations for as long as they've existed as institutions, regardless of how many dissidents are hiding in plain sight among them -- such as yourself.
Meanwhile, the well-informed "conspiracy theorists" who've been positioning themselves out on the social fringes for years (like myself), who've actually been doing the homework and extra credit assignments since the 80's, are (once again) largely correct in their analysis.
And just as disrespected, disdained and disenchanted as ever. C'est la vie.
I cannot help but think that the entartete-treatment of Habermas serves a dual purpose that's disconnected from anything he's actually said.
He's more or less a living legend in a field where the norm is that the theorist the works of whom we partake of is long-dead, so challenging him and winning (if only by un-personing and memory-holeing) is for the modern academic the equivalent of a Cro Magnon jumping on an already dead cave bear, claiming it proves his hunting prowess as his tribe comes upon the scene.
It also sends a clear and unmistakable message to all in academia or with academic backgrounds:
Even a legend can be brought low, and you're no legend so don't even think of challenging the new Führer-prinzip.
Yep.
As much as I hate shit-talking 'colleagues', Behrends (whom I actually know personally) and their ilk would probably be giddy with excitement if their work would have been received by Habermas.
Your reading of academia chimes with my impression, and, as is so often the case, I've kept those receipts, too:
Universities typically have a two-layered system in place: a) professors (faculty) self-administering themselves, aided by b) a cadre of permanent administrators who, while they may themselves typically have credentials, are not faculty.
In practice, this configuration means that while the professors vote on their own representatives (typically in sham ‘elections’ of only one person running without an opponent) organised by the permanent bureaucracy.
As such, ‘the university’ represents a perfect, if almost entirely idiosyncratic, example of how 19th-century bourgeois leaders thought about ‘democracy’: anarcho-syndicalism (one professor = one vote) for the few, replete with grandiose, if vacuous, statements about inclusive democratic representation—and a kind of pseudo-feudal organisation in various ‘estates’ (German-language academia actually uses that term, Stand) that is governed by an iron fist.
Do note that the overwhelming majority of university employees isn’t democratically represented, as administrators, non-professorial academic staff, and students are under-represented. In other words: what pissed off the National Assembly in Paris in 1789 is still deemed ‘good enough’ for the professoriat.
If you’re outraged, that’s why I told you, but it’s not even the worst aspect, for in practice, everyday work is done in the following way: the ‘elected’ professors (a) are typically senior scholars with limited, if any, management experience—and they make decisions while the permanent bureaucracy (b) are non-scholars with more or less management experience executing these decisions about issues (higher education) they virtually know nothing about.
In other words: ‘the university’ is governed by pompous narcissists (professors) without a clue while their actions are implemented by people without any knowledge of scholarship—what could go wrong?
Source: https://fackel.substack.com/p/covid-in-the-north-norways-corona
That is essentially the way our universities are structured, with the addition that at the highest level (the committee having the over-arching mandate over the entire university) there is always at least one politician or politically appointed person sitting in, in "an advisory capacity".
No guesses as to why it is so.
For a sampler of what goes on behind the curtains at our "centers for higher learning", check out Academics Rights Watch:
https://academicrightswatch.se/
In swedish obviously.
Currently, our new governement has given the UKÄ (Universitetskanslerämbetet; tasked with oversight of all higher educational institutions) the task of investigating "cancel culture" in our academica. Said academia has immediately responded with "it doesn't exist, it's a right-wing myth, and when you find it and try to stop it we'll ignore any rules and laws to that effect and cancel anyone who helps you".
My brother is still in there, albeit in the natural sciences. He once expressed disbelief and despair two years ago when new instructions came down from on high, about equity in the source materials (to have the correct race, sex, et c ratios among the researchers and works making up his source-material for his students).
My advice, which seems to have worked well, was to add a general boilerplate sweeping statement about inclusivity, using all the buzzwords, and put together a politically correct list of sources to present to the board, then tag the real sources as "minimum mandatory reading for exams" in the list that goes out to students.
His disbelief stems from the simple fact that how water flows through the ground in all its different compositions have nothing to do with sex, race et c. To us in the social sciences/humanities, such stuff is business as usual and we know how to fight and how to roll with the punches, but the techies and natural scientists are like a deer in front of a lumber truck at night when exposed to it.
Eh, a rotten tree cannot be saved, it must fall to give nutrition to saplings. European academia had a good 800 year run. Inside a century something new will have taken its place.
I recall the worst piece of BS I ever had to compose, back when I was applying for permanent positions in, among others, the US, was a 'DIE Statement'.
Quota hires, under-achieving 'colleagues', and BS-peddlers are everywhere. Together with 'career politicians' and 'legacy media journalists', academia is the 'unholy trinity' of this insanity.
Care for a telling example? https://www.planet-today.com/2023/03/im-expert-i-have-phd-based-audience.html
I would laugh, too, if this wasn't too idiotic.
As to your brother's examples: I could fill page upon page about what you describe. Currently, my university is facing budget cuts, in particular affecting the Humanities--and the 'solution' is to cut back on future hiring and demand less of the students.
This is, in my opinion, exactly the wrong solution. Why study watered down Humanities stuff? The opposite direction must be taken: tougher entrance requirements, much tougher grading. If a diploma ain't worth a bit of effort, it won't be worth anything.
Just a quick thing: the link above made my protection program throw up a warning and abort the connection, for malware.
Empire has its agenda, but German speaking world has its amnesia.
Oh well, what else is there to say? 'Never again', eh?
Trouble is, this time, failure is 'collective' in the West (or what remains of it).
I agree, it is a collective failure. All western governments are subverted, but are there significant differences among peoples in how much natural resistance they’ve offered? Even within countries, are there regional differences? If so, what accounts for such differences?
I'm really envy of the french spirit when it comes to fight! It should be happening in every western country for a couple of weeks everyday until they abdicate
https://youtu.be/qU0RMFH48ic
Black Rock in Paris assaulted pacifically (but enuf to scary...) by protesters
I've seen these images. Way to go.
If you care to take a trip down memory lane, here's what I wrote in autumn 2021:
I think it’s not so much going to be a ‘Dark Winter’. Don’t get me wrong, if the academic and statistical references cited above are correct, we’ll see significantly elevated mortality events (excess deaths are up in the U.K. and Germany as well as in a number of other European countries for 1-2 months now), but my point is: at some point, reality will trump ‘reality’ as understood by the globalist sympathisers masquerading as national gov’ts.
And then the question turns into: will the fallout look like March or October 1848?
Source: https://fackel.substack.com/p/forget-about-dark-winter-its-actually
Total treason. Sounds like they are the same people reincarnated and retooled.
The secret seems to be: 'these people' never went away.
And there's no shortage of brown-nosers, narcissists, and block wardens in academia.
Speaking from personal experience (I'm one of them), it's a constant, daily struggle to try not to become like them.
Becoming ever knowledgeable and discerning often causes separation between "earth man" and the intellectual. Maybe the path is to explore the lower humble parts of life. It seems one difference between real education and lack thereof is one of high vocabulary, ability to use words prudently with attention to etymology et al, and a good faculty for conceptualizing about anything; it seems to give a "god-like" feeling to one so disposed, so erudite. I think if one does not learn to be humble, then that person runs the risk of being extremely arrogant, and extremely insufferable. I heard from one banker that a mark of a "superior" mind, higher intelligence is also the ability to hold two opposing thoughts in mind simultaneously without dissonance.
That seems quite an apt observation.
Given the sad state of what passes for 'education' these days, I think most people are not taught, never experience, holding two opposing thoughts--and think about it themselves.
Have you read "Committee of 300" by John Coleman?
No, I haven't, but I shall look for it now. Thanks for the suggestion!
Its very difficult to find actually. I should've warned you. Professor Hamamoto Channel on YT mentions this. Also, I have a Patreon with him so I get exclusive access. Let me see if I can get you a link to the book. Give me a few days perhaps.
I found some talks on youtube, and now I've also gotten the book.
"The secret seems to be: 'these people' never went away..."
<< DING DING DING >>
We have a winner. Except that it's been anything BUT a secret for decades, filed under subject headers like : GLADIO, et al. NATO has always been the hub of their post-war European operations, with Gehlen's network assumed whole into the organization.
Of course, academia and media have been successfully marginalizing and/or distorting historical truth among the western populations for as long as they've existed as institutions, regardless of how many dissidents are hiding in plain sight among them -- such as yourself.
Meanwhile, the well-informed "conspiracy theorists" who've been positioning themselves out on the social fringes for years (like myself), who've actually been doing the homework and extra credit assignments since the 80's, are (once again) largely correct in their analysis.
And just as disrespected, disdained and disenchanted as ever. C'est la vie.