Rest in piece, Mr. Howard Zinn

[DontSayBanana]

Intellectual. 

I guess being a brain-dead blame America leftist does count as being an intellectual nowadays, at least amongst the academia, which is why "intellectuals" are held in such low esteem nowadays.

The only ones coming across as brain-dead are the types like yourself who fear anything that can't be automatically assumed as gospel truth.  Don't project your phobia of analyzing your source material on us.

[Valmy]

Hobsbawm's a genius

His barely concealed attempt for the mid 19th century middle classes did hurt my feelings though

[grumbler]

Hobsbawm's a genius

His barely concealed attempt for the mid 19th century middle classes did hurt my feelings though

But it is true that the mid-nineteenth-century middle class was more concerned with political change (i.e. they just wanted to be part of the "responsible class' that had a voice in government) than enacting needed social change, and so muffed the revolutions of 1848, which in my opinion was the true "European Catastrophe."  Imagine how European history would have been different if Germany had been unified as a liberal state in 1848.

[Martinus]

Hobsbawm's a genius

His barely concealed attempt for the mid 19th century middle classes did hurt my feelings though

I assume you mean "contempt"? 

[grumbler]

Hobsbawm's a genius

His barely concealed attempt for the mid 19th century middle classes did hurt my feelings though

I assume you mean "contempt"? 

Duh! 

[Martinus]

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1957283,00.html

One of my favorite historians and professional role models gone. It is sad, but he had a long and decorated career. RiP.

In that article, liberal historian, Arthur Schlesinger jr. calls him "a polemicist, not a historian."

The fact that Matt Damon and Ben Affleck as well as Oliver Stone love him is enough to make me go 

I liked "Dogma" and "Alexander". WTF.

[Sheilbh]

Just though of another one.  As historians go I don't think you'll find anyone more enjoyable to read than Carlyle.  Now he was hardly a moderate, restrained and temperate voice dispassionately surveying the past

[Jaron]

I cant believe I put "piece" 

[Hansmeister]

Way to stay classy Hans.

This piece of shit supported every genocidal regime of the 20th century (even Al Qaeda after 9-11 when Zinn identified the "real terrorists" as of course being the USA).  He thought Mao's China epitomized true democracy and that the attack on Pearl Harbor was a conspiracy by the US to to build a global empire (him and Pat Buchanan probably got along well).

Howard Zinn loved and defended every evil, barbaric totalitarian state while reserving all his hatred for the US and Israel.  He was an infantile marxist polemicist, whose "scholarship" was laughably riddled with massive factual errors.  he was neither an intellectual nor a historian, only a hateful, deranged piece of shit who spent his life excusing the worst behaviors by the most evil regimes because of his unhinged hatred for his own country and his own race.  Just like that other hatemonger Noam Chomsky.

[Razgovory]

Did he support Franco?

[Queequeg]

Just like that other hatemonger Noam Chomsky.

Chomsky is one of the greatest minds in the history of Linguistics, no matter what you think of his politics.  You are an idiot if you think otherwise; even his sworn intellectual enemies in the field acknowledge as such.

[Razgovory]

Just like that other hatemonger Noam Chomsky.

Chomsky is one of the greatest minds in the history of Linguistics, no matter what you think of his politics.  You are an idiot if you think otherwise; even his sworn intellectual enemies in the field acknowledge as such.

Ideological purity comes first.

[Queequeg]

Just like that other hatemonger Noam Chomsky.

Chomsky is one of the greatest minds in the history of Linguistics, no matter what you think of his politics.  You are an idiot if you think otherwise; even his sworn intellectual enemies in the field acknowledge as such.

Ideological purity comes first.

Chomsky is to Linguistics as Einstein is to Physics.  Find it odd that Hans could ignore Einstein's political and religious beliefs while respecting his contributions to the field, while Chomsky ist verboten.  Maybe the fact that Chomsky is alive, and able to fight being steamrolled by the Conservative White-Wash Express?

[Admiral Yi]

Chomsky is to Linguistics as Einstein is to Physics.  Find it odd that Hans could ignore Einstein's political and religious beliefs while respecting his contributions to the field, while Chomsky ist verboten.  Maybe the fact that Chomsky is alive, and able to fight being steamrolled by the Conservative White-Wash Express?

Maybe the fact that Hans made no mention of Chomsky's work in linguistics?

I've not joined in the fray so far because I haven't read anything by Zinn, but Chomsky I've read.  "Conservative White-Wash Express??"  Are you out of your mind?

[katmai]

Chomsky is to Linguistics as Einstein is to Physics.  Find it odd that Hans could ignore Einstein's political and religious beliefs while respecting his contributions to the field, while Chomsky ist verboten.  Maybe the fact that Chomsky is alive, and able to fight being steamrolled by the Conservative White-Wash Express?

Maybe the fact that Hans made no mention of Chomsky's work in linguistics?

I've not joined in the fray so far because I haven't read anything by Zinn, but Chomsky I've read.  "Conservative White-Wash Express??"  Are you out of your mind?

Apparently you haven't read Queellus or you'd already know the answer to that