(2003-08-22) Arnold Kling On Bobos

Arnold Kling on BoBos (from 1991). What I am is a Constitutionalist. I believe that if we are lucky, an elite will fashion a US Constitution that sets up a system of checks and balances that limit the damage that can be caused either by popular democracy or elitist arrogance... In this essay, I will suggest that the common thread in Bobo moral attitudes is laziness. For most Bobos, their outlook does not reflect an intellectual commitment to Ethical Relativism. Instead, it results from a fear of confrontation... George Lakoff's MoralPolitics is one of the most astute books that I have ever read... Lakoff's thesis is that both liberals and conservatives view the government through a family metaphor. That is, they believe that good government is analagous to good child-rearing practices... My objection to Lakoff's view is simple and straightforward. Most citizens are adults, not children. Government consists of imperfect adults making decisions that primarily affect other imperfect adults...