2 Responses to a few thoughts on liberal smugness | Fredrik deBoer

1. Harris says:

   April 22, 2016 at 12:59 pm

   I’ve Been musing on this essay, DeBoer’s take mostly matches mine. The one missing, or under-played aspect is how the “don’t be smug” narrative is itself part of the culture it criticizes. That is, it is less about the relations between groups than a kind of appeal about moderating ones own attitititude; it is a moral stance rather than a political one. In that sense it is noblesse oblige dressed up with hipster glasses and an elite degree.

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   • PaulVK says:

     April 22, 2016 at 2:26 pm

     I think that’s right Bill. It is in some ways related to the frenzied pursuit of safety and mortality. It reveals a real inability to trust.

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