Eric Wayne’s runaway rant is very thought-provoking on the state of the world today. He shows the neverending need to protect open societies and individual freedoms from the predations of the powerful and of governments seeking to force particular narratives on their populations.
And the purpose of that freedom is not a life of watching Netflix, pleasant as that may be. It is the becoming of better human beings, along the lines of Maslow’s hierarchy.
Are people still reading the classics? Are the great thoughts of humankind that have endured for thousands of years still relevant? Antigone is a play written by Sophocles in 441 BCE, or 2,463 years ago. I read it a couple decades ago, and never forgot its core message.
I find it odd that there is such great thought before the birth of Christ. This is just a byproduct of my passive education via the media and dominant culture, whereby I generally think of the Greeks, and the great philosopher Socrates (who died in 399 BC), as having more advanced ideas, and as coming later. While I did manage to earn an “A” in my college level year of history, I found the instruction deadly boring, and mostly rote memorized facts that I promptly forgot the day after whichever exam. Fortunately, I greatly appreciated literature, and learned a thing or two…
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I can't believe it! 
“I find it odd that there is such a great thought before the birth of Christ.” Really???!!!!!!
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Hi Jane, Although I reblogged Eric’s post for its passion and message, I didn’t necessarily identify with everything he said! I think that Sophocles was born less than 30 years before Socrates…
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It is indeed a good article but I think it applies to more totalitarian societies and not necessarily our Western ones. I believe you have hit the nail a little more centrally with your observation about protecting us form predatory governments and powerful people. It appears at times we are being lulled into complacency and led down an undesirable path that appeals to a large swath of humanity.
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