28 August 2018

. . . the slide into “post-truth” is not inevitable. In order to have the “post” you have to have had the “truth”, or at least some rough and imperfect arena in which it was actively pursued. That arena didn’t happen by accident. It was created and sustained by democracies for their own survival. History tells us that the awful questions never go away – but also that the decent answers don’t disappear either.

Fintan O'Toole

(There was a time when I found his writing sort of insiduous, distant, with that slight bit of contempt reserved to the lesser educated. But recently, he seems to be spot on and serious about it.)

7 comments:

37paddington said...

Yes, he's definitely a critical witness to what's unfolding. His voice will endure.

Ms. Moon said...

I do find those words heartening. Yes. The decent answers don't disappear either.

am said...

"History tells us that the awful questions never go away – but also that the decent answers don’t disappear either."

Once again, thank you for a link to something good that I might not have been exposed to otherwise.

Anonymous said...

I'm going to have to start reading him. I need smart perceptive voices right now.

ellen abbott said...

one can only hope and hope that those with the decent answers don't get outnumbered.

Linda d said...

Reading this caused me anxiety. We are so up in the air. We are so divided. When and where will the decency reappear?

beth coyote said...

thanks for this. we're on a wave length.