The New Criterion
It operates as a refuge for a civilizing element in short supply in contemporary America: honest criticism
- The Wall Street Journal
Notes & CommentsJune 2009 A word of thanks Aristotle, in an inattentive moment, defined man as “the rational animal.” We’ve often thought that “the ungrateful animal” comes closer to the truth. Why? First, reason seems conspicuously absent from so much of the behavior of homo sapiens sapiens. (Why the two “sapiens”? Does the repetition betoken uncertainty about the quantum of wisdom?) The second reason concerns the regular absence of gratitude among men. Blessings seem seldom counted, let alone remembered. We at The New Criterion endeavor to be exceptions to this rule, as to others. For the past several years, we have taken the occasion of the season’s concluding issue to acknowledge publicly our gratitude to the individuals and institutions that make our work possible. The extraordinary dégringolade we have witnessed in the world’s economies since last September lends a special poignancy to our remarks this ... This article is available to subscribers and for individual purchaseSubscribe to TNC (Print and Online editions) Subscribe to TNC (Online only) This article originally appeared in The New Criterion, Volume 27 June 2009, on page 2 Copyright © 2009 The New Criterion | www.newcriterion.com http://www.newcriterion.com/articles.cfm/A-word-of-thanks-4095
rate this article for your user profile
E-mail to friend
|
On Islamist pressure in New Haven.  The New Criterion is now optimized for Mobile Devices 
New from The New Criterion: "Free speech in
EventsNovember 24 2009 OPEN EVENT: Laura Jacobs reading December 02 2009 Friends Event: The Swallow Anthology Reading December 17 2009 Friends Event: New Criterion Holiday Party Webcasts
New Criterion-Social Affairs Unit Conference: Part 4
New Criterion-Social Affairs Unit Conference: Part 3
New Criterion-Social Affairs Unit Conference: Part 2 Weblog 
|
add a comment
you must have an account to post a comment. {register now}