Update on Grant Part 2 & Intro to American Savage Garage

Bonus: a Consideration of Higher Education’s Demise: Is it Already Dead?

Maybe this will end up being major announcement, but, I never count my money before the dealing’s done, as Kenny Rogers sang. Most people who know me saw this coming. Without delay:

First off, consider Grant, 1869 put to bed. Last week, I finished chapter 12. It was difficult and required much research as I noted in a prior post. Tracking down sources—which academics seem to never do—is arduous, and this caused me to pause my expeditious progress. I apologize for that for those who were expecting more content. But, I have been engaged in a biography of sorts different from ALL the rest. I also am trying to make sure I get nothing incorrect, which no academic really does any more.

While I like footnotes, and references, I have to say it has been a bad for readable writing and real scholarship—it makes the prose stilted and, well, academic. I admit I have picked up the habit, which, I would like to dispense. No one reads that crap really. As my frand BAP noted, no one will read any of the writing coming from academe in 100 years. He is correct. So, time to do something different. Yet, I must say that my book will be loaded with notes, real notes, and more notes than any other. This is not to write to the notes (as academics do) but provide a baseline for the reader who wants to know how widespread, or popular, or propagandist, the “media” was in the 19th century. Notes are just that, references that deserve the fullness of consideration, but they are not the basis of some attaq passed off as truth (McFeely, Chernow, and Calhoun play fast and loose in these alleys).

1870 Looms. I am on it this weekend despite Idalia [which is blowing through as I write this]—a non event for us.

Secondly, I have created a new channel. Let me explain. For the last 2 years I have been restoring my F350—actually the impetus for purchasing it (which was for a song) was remembering the old truck of my father—a 1973 C/20 ¾ ton. It was a manual stick and manual hubs (of course) I loved that truck—so much I always bough manual stick vehicles, until the government told us we couldn’t (essentially). I had a small truck and a Bronco and both were manual. Neither were really what I wanted as they were a part of the downsizing era after Carter wrecked our economy and encouraged (through stupidity) OPEC to wage war on us (he was weak and feckless and his White House was a drug infested orgy—Democrats never change).

Because of my project, I wrote for Man’s World #9, an article you can find here. In it I detailed how men should be more self sufficient, and self-aware, by creating owned space. I owe a debt of gratitude to The Worthy House for encouraging me to write that essay.

Men are not meant to sit around all day behind a desk, or in a classroom “thinking” and “professing”

Higher Ed should be reimagined. It was never really placed on a healthy foundation. There is something defeating about higher ed as structured in the modern world.

Men are not meant to sit around all day “thinking.” It is not complimentary to the human form. There are several consequences of this “profession” and lifestyle, not the least of which, it is slavish. Academics are always begging for scraps. Meny such cases. They are not paid well, and they are poor because they produce nothing. About 10 years ago, a excellent little college in Ohio offered me a job. The pay was 30k a year. I was offered it twice. I turned them down even though the university would have been a feather in my cap. Honestly, it was an insult to be offered such low pay for what I think I can do, but it was also a blessing in a way, for which I thank them for the reality check.¹ Very smart people work there for such pay, and, well, maybe their talents would be better spent elsewhere?

Academics who do produce something of value (in a book) are far and few between—there’s too much pontification and not a lot of accurate substance. Most are propaganda driven. There’s no such thing as objectivity. Even if they are, say, philosophical, they have no interest in the right way to live. And those who think they know the right way to live, and are philosophical, are damn sure they KNOW. Socrates shames you.

So, if you are one of the few who has succeeded in academics, you are likely making money outside of higher ed by writing books, and getting prime funded appointment visiting somewhere—and this mean GAE funder will be giving you immense paycheck. Yet, even this is not sufficient for the human soul should you accept it, and it still makes you captive of the institution you work, or beholden to corporate press editor who is metro sexual. It makes you less honest about GAE benefactor who is, essentially, buying you off. This reality is even true for all “conservative” colleges and their profs. There is something about the lifestyle and the institution that strikes men down. It makes them less courageous, too timid, and effectively makes them ineffective challengers to the regime at the time when it most needs to be challenged. They are soft patriots you might say.

They may not swim left with Cthulhu, but they are swept along latently by his rip-tide.

More than this, though, is what it does to the human soul, and what it teaches students—in some ways it teaches sloth, in other ways it suggests that you can live off of the pleasure of the state while not really teaching the student about the whole person. It teaches all you have to do is be arrogantly smart and the honors will roll in upon you. Hell you may don the Purple and become Twatter sensation! But, intellectual virtues are but one virtue. And men need more than intellectual virtues to be ελευθυρος ανθρωπος (a free man).

I realize this flies in the face of philosophers who defended their “profession” stating a life of the mind is the superior way of life. Yet they did not live that way; that is they never argued that a life of the mind in pursuit of The Good was to the exclusion of all else.

We could add the quandary whether the life of the statesman [the life of politics] or the life of the philosopher was more important. That tension, though also real, was also not to the exclusion of the other activities. Cicero did not just work the law, or be a statesman. He engaged in the very real human pursuits that is a requirement of all men who seek happiness, and labored.

The Most interesting professors are those who do something besides teach.

Even the most conservative of professors never draw this connection. VDH was perhaps the first person who crystallized this to me in an interview:

What is it about “professors” who teach but yet have, you might say, another more important job?

VDH is primarily a farmer. He has amassed all the experience and skill that comes with that vocation. Angelo Codevilla was a brilliant scholar, but he also ran a vineyard. Winniarski literally left academics to do the same.

There is a saying among the east, and in particular the Muslim East: Merchants must guard against their greed; scholars must guard against their arrogance.

The tendency for any academic is to think his mind is the shit. This is seen in any academic circle of any political persuasion. It is unsightly, and does harm to the soul not only of the person, but the students who think they are “in on the secret life of the mind.” None of this discounts the fact that people do write with a mindful awareness of persecution, but that is not what I am talking about—I am talking about the sin of thinking you know more than anyone in the room, especially about the political. Politics is hard; academic media person wants you to think it is easy and that he has special gift. He doesn’t.

This reality especially afflicts media people (again from any political persuasion left-right). Many of these people are former academics, no shock. Yet, their particular arrogance comes from the combined temptation of their own assessment of their knowledge along with the relative fame the job in legacy/alt tech media carries. Example? One person noted some time ago that Budweiser would not take much of a hit for going woke. I thought that was laughable because I talk to the Tractor Supply crowd and they are not dumb. The Harley people I know went to Sturgis, and avoided TransheiserBusch. Yet, still, this person was quite self-assured in his assertion. Keep in mind that the Founders also successfully boycotted certain goods. But that was forgotten by RW academic too. They are so very high on their own supply.

I know more non-academics who are far more intelligent than full time academic [and/or turned media personality] who thinks he knows all the ins and outs of classical philosophers. Humility is hard to find. They want to create a new elite. Be Wary. Slaves are made in such ways.

I saw a lot of the arrogance from academics and media RW “interlackshuals” over the DeSantis candidacy who passed off their feelings that DeSantis was the stronger candidate as “reasoned” “intellect.” The list is long and includes many people I once listened to. It was shameful. The level of dishonesty in the academic/media profession is rather remarkable. Most all these people literally libeled anyone who supported Trump, like Rich Baris.

Are there exceptions to this rule? Of course. But, the exceptions prove the rule.

A point I will develop in a book I am likely going to write, is that there is something good for the soul to do something productive. You want to teach? Good for you. But do something else. Having some sort of independent skill is humbling as well as grounding. Creating owned space that you have to work for teaches you that you do not know everything. It humbles the soul by fulfilling the revelation that you must labor in this life.

This is something not necessarily noted by Matthew Crawford in Shop Class as Soulcraft [which I will write a review here in this substack]. He makes many astute observations, but also misses some important elements. Regardless, he left academics to open a motorcycle shop, and could not be happier. Yet he still lives a life of the mind too. Based.

All of this windy intro is necessary to understand why I did this:

The immediate cause of this was when someone I do not know at a local pick stated I should print up business cards. He had heard me describing a way to preserve old plastic pieces in classic vehicles. He thought, if I was good enough, I could make something out if it.

Another motivation: the practical preparation one needs because of the GAE onslaught is real too. But, I am going to save that argument for another day.

If you are interested in any of this, please consider subscribing to my youtube channel. I understand, YT is not the best, but places like Rumble and Bitchute are one trick ponies, and man cannot live on political opinion all the time every day. If we are to make anything of ourselves, it is best to leave the chattering classes to chatter amonst themselves; we will build something real, thank you very much.

There is no cost, and it is free. But, maybe you learn how to take some of your life back, or simply subbort those who are trying to create that space.

1. I was also the #2 candidate for a job at a private and conservative college in charlotte. I would have taken it at the time, because, I had nothing else at the time. In hindsight, glad I did not get it because it would have been about 28k/ year. No thanks.