“We do not merely study the past: we inherit it, and inheritance brings with it not only the rights of ownership, but the duties of trusteeship. Things fought for and died for should not be idly squandered. For they are the property of others, who are not yet born.”
- Sir Roger Scruton
- Sir Roger Scruton
"I am a strong wind in the face of inferior natures and I offer this advice to my enemies: be careful not to spit into the wind."
- Friedrich Nietzsche
- Friedrich Nietzsche
When you see a lion devouring an antelope, who do you identify with? Who do you sympathise with?
I notice a strong tendency in modern society for people to identify with the victim, the oppressed. This has been a disaster for British society and for British politics. Saying you are British used to be a proud boast of an imperial people, and being able to say you are an Englishman was an even prouder boast within the Empire. Nowadays, this pride has been reversed and subverted. Scots, Welsh, and Irish today often try to disassociate from their imperial past and emphasise their local identities, often acting offended when people call them English. “It’s the English who were the ones going around the world bullying people, not us”, they would say. “The English oppressed us too”, they would also say. They do not realise that building the largest empire to date is a glorious achievement that should be regarded with extreme pride.
What is ironic is that Scots were actually overrepresented in Imperial positions in the colonies, although Englishmen still filled the majority of Imperial positions. Welsh and Irish as well were fully participating in empire building and Imperial rule.
At the height of empire, being British was something people regarded with great pride, and being English was the crème de la crème.
But now people often want to be the victim rather than the victor, the oppressed rather than the conqueror. What a shame.
Even among the English, there is this tendency to identify with the victim. Many English nationalists today would rather identify with the conquered Saxons rather than the conquering Normans, even though the overwhelming majority, likely all, of English people have Norman blood. Likewise, there is a tendency among the middle and lower classes to emphasise their ordinary backgrounds, foolishly thinking that being ordinary is something to be proud of. It is not.
Being extraordinary is something to be proud of! Being a victor is something to be proud of! Being a conqueror is something to be proud of!
Don’t identify with the antelope. Identify with the lion!
I notice a strong tendency in modern society for people to identify with the victim, the oppressed. This has been a disaster for British society and for British politics. Saying you are British used to be a proud boast of an imperial people, and being able to say you are an Englishman was an even prouder boast within the Empire. Nowadays, this pride has been reversed and subverted. Scots, Welsh, and Irish today often try to disassociate from their imperial past and emphasise their local identities, often acting offended when people call them English. “It’s the English who were the ones going around the world bullying people, not us”, they would say. “The English oppressed us too”, they would also say. They do not realise that building the largest empire to date is a glorious achievement that should be regarded with extreme pride.
What is ironic is that Scots were actually overrepresented in Imperial positions in the colonies, although Englishmen still filled the majority of Imperial positions. Welsh and Irish as well were fully participating in empire building and Imperial rule.
At the height of empire, being British was something people regarded with great pride, and being English was the crème de la crème.
But now people often want to be the victim rather than the victor, the oppressed rather than the conqueror. What a shame.
Even among the English, there is this tendency to identify with the victim. Many English nationalists today would rather identify with the conquered Saxons rather than the conquering Normans, even though the overwhelming majority, likely all, of English people have Norman blood. Likewise, there is a tendency among the middle and lower classes to emphasise their ordinary backgrounds, foolishly thinking that being ordinary is something to be proud of. It is not.
Being extraordinary is something to be proud of! Being a victor is something to be proud of! Being a conqueror is something to be proud of!
Don’t identify with the antelope. Identify with the lion!
"We the aristocrats, we are the good, the beautiful, the happy!"
- Friedrich Nietzsche
- Friedrich Nietzsche
"For what is the worth of human life, unless it is woven into the life of our ancestors by the records of history?"
- Cicero
- Cicero