The always-interesting Tony Esolen has an article over at First Things called “Restoring the Village” which I highly recommend to those concerned about place, liberty and limits. One recalls that in Greek an idiotes was a person who withdrew from broad participation in the civic life of the community. Esolen reminds us that, given the loss of associative life, we are all village idiots, and argues for a muscular and masculine reclaiming of our common ground.
Esolen’s piece, as usual for him, is outstanding. No Porcher should miss his recent book, ‘Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child.’
I only wish that the Boy Scouts were hanging on for dear life. As I’ve mentioned in past FRP instances, my personal experience is that Boy Scouts has devolved into yet another scheduled activity, where boys where uniforms with patches on them instead of jerseys with numbers. Parents and leaders alike treat it like basketball practice.
I’m glad he brought it up, but I’m also glad for the general disposition of the article. It is the sort of excellent writing, though without excessive flourish, that gives me the impression that I might write better after reading it.
My son is headed for a Boy Scout meeting as I type this. I think your experience is going to vary greatly from troop to troop. Leadership makes all the difference. I had all but despaired of the Scouts until someone referred me to an unlikely troop I would not otherwise have considered. It’s great to see my 12 y/o homeschooled son so excited about it. He gets up early and runs a quarter mile (1 min 25 seconds this morning!) just to beat yesterday’s time and knock another accomplishment down. He’s got the Scout manual practically memorized, and he’s chomping at the bit for his first campout next month. Looks great in the uniform, too, and he’s proud to wear it. Anyway – God bless Dr. Esolen for another gem of an article. Even when I don’t agree with him entirely I’m always better for reading his stuff.
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