Fight fire with fire

Vincent J. Curtis

25 Aug 22

RE: Right must stop acting like the left.  Op-ed by Mark Milke, who is the executive director of the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy.  The Hamilton Spectator 25 Aug 22.

Mark Milke’s contention that the political right must cease it new practice of using the tactics of the Left I find strange coming from a professed Aristotelian.  Milke argues that when the other side overreaches, and is engaged in anti-reality, is using extreme language, and “hurtling toward the brick wall of reality,” you shouldn’t confuse matters by engaging in a similar form of zaniness.

Fair enough.  But as an Aristotelian, Milke ought to be familiar with On Sophistical Refutations, and Aristotle’s general attitude of dealing with Sophists.  That is, any underhanded trick you can use, go for it.  Given their tactics, they don’t deserve decency.  Beating them is everything.

Nowadays, insults and name-calling works.  Cancellation and banning works for the Left.  Violence works for the Left.  The success of transgender mania proves that reality-denying works for the Left - medicine can’t bring itself to say “women” any more.  The sophistry of irrelevant conclusions is the staple of post-modernist deconstruction method (That’s racist!).  So, why not go with what works?

The public is being hurtled toward the “brick wall of reality” (climate change, transgenderism to name two) by the progressive Left. At this point, fair play is for losers.  Aristotle was very practical.  He would approve the fighting of fire with fire.

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