Kerby Anderson

Most people would expect liberals to be open-minded, and yet they find that they are often the most intolerant. Kim Holmes explores the reasons for this transformation in his new book, The Closing of the Liberal Mind. He was on Point of View to talk about the history of the radical change in mindset and attitude. Classic American liberalism in this country was based on a belief in liberty. Citizens were to be free from government coercion and thus free to believe something different from an orthodoxy forced on it by the state. They were also free to discuss and debate. And most importantly, was a belief in true tolerance, which accepted the right and freedom of others to believe differently from you. It was a live-and-let-live philosophy. I may disagree with your views, but I would defend your right to believe them. That is not the view of the postmodern left today. They practice the politics of intolerance. They may think they are tolerant, but really live in a world where bigotry and discrimination are allowed against any view that is not politically correct. They are willing to stifle free thought, censor free speech, and use public shaming in order to suppress any idea they do not like. In his book, he talks about the campus bullies. But we also discussed how this has moved into even the business world. Now we have corporate bullies willing to use economic power to stifle and suppress legislation they abhor. He says we have a new ruling class that is wealthy, smart, well-connected, and formidable. Although their numbers are small (in the thousands), their influence in the media, in the academy, and in government is significant. They also believe they have the higher truth which is superior to the common wisdom of the day. We are in a battle with a new kind of liberal mind, and that is why we need to read about The Closing of the Liberal Mind.