![\"atticus](\"http:\/\/www.thegospelcoalition.org\/blogs\/erikraymond\/files\/2015\/06\/atticus-finch1-1024x666.jpg\")
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Atticus Finch<\/a>:\u00a0\u00a0Old school<\/a>\u00a0lawyer who now might say\u00a0<\/em>\u201cFirst thing we do, let\u2019s\u00a0kill all the clients\u2026\u201c<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n It noted there are\u00a0some<\/em><\/strong> college campuses\u00a0where a robust\u00a0freedom of speech<\/a>\u00a0still exists. \u00a0That is, there are notable exceptions to those college campuses – especially lately – where demonstrations disrupt controversial speakers<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0(As show at left.)<\/em><\/p>\n And what are those campuses with\u00a0freedom of speech<\/a>\u00a0still? \u00a0They’re called\u00a0law schools<\/a><\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n \u00a0Law school conditions you to know the difference between righteousness and self-righteousness. \u00a0That’s why lawyers know how to go to war without turning the other side into an enemy. \u00a0People love to tell lawyer jokes, but maybe it’s time for the rest of the country to take a lesson from the profession they love to hate.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Put another way, law schools teach people – and hopefully lawyers as a profession – how to\u00a0zealously<\/a>\u00a0argue the merits of an issue without\u00a0demonizing their opponents<\/a>,\u00a0name calling<\/a>,\u00a0or\u00a0character assassination<\/a>. \u00a0And that’s something we could use in this era of\u00a0polarized politics<\/a>. \u00a0That is, in this time where “moderate voices often lose power and influence.”<\/p>\n When he tried to speak at\u00a0Middlebury College<\/a>\u00a0last March 2, he got shouted down. \u00a0<\/em>Rather than listen to his\u00a0controversial ideas, students chanted “Racist, sexist, anti-gay, Charles Murray, go away” and “Your message is hatred. \u00a0We cannot tolerate it.”<\/p>\n Compare that with Murray’s reception at\u00a0Yale Law School<\/a>, where Murray spoke “twice during the past few years,” with a different reception:<\/p>\n Students and faculty engaged with him, and students held a separate event to protest and discuss the implications of his work. \u00a0But he spoke without interruption. \u00a0That’s exactly how a university is supposed to work… \u00a0 People love to tell lawyer jokes, but maybe it’s time for the rest of the country to take a lesson from the profession they love to hate<\/strong>. \u00a0(E.A.)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And speaking of\u00a0lawyer jokes<\/a>: \u00a0That\u00a0brings up\u00a0Dick the Butcher<\/a>, a character in\u00a0Shakespeare<\/a>‘s not-so-well-known play,\u00a0Henry The Sixth, Part 2<\/a>.\u00a0<\/cite>\u00a0He’s the character who famously said, “The\u00a0first thing we do, let\u2019s\u00a0kill all the lawyers<\/a><\/strong>.” \u00a0(The quote is more famous than the play…)<\/em><\/p>\n That is, maybe there are too many nasty-bastard lawyers and politicians precisely because<\/em><\/strong> there are too many nasty-bastard clients – and voters – who hire them. \u00a0“The problem with lawyers is \u2013 after all \u2013 that they\u2019re only doing what their clients\u00a0want\u00a0<\/em>them to do.”<\/p>\n Which leads to my better quote: \u00a0\u201cThe\u00a0first thing we should do is, let\u2019s\u00a0kill all the clients<\/a><\/strong>.\u201d \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Or the nasty-bastard voters<\/em><\/strong> who keep electing nasty-bastard politicians to represent them.<\/p>\n But the better course<\/em> would be to bring back respect for the “professionalism” shown by\u00a0old school<\/a>\u00a0lawyers and<\/em> <\/strong>politicians. \u00a0(The term old school<\/strong>\u00a0is “commonly used to suggest a high regard for something that has been shown to have lasting value or quality.”)<\/em> \u00a0In this case, it could refer to the kind of professionalism shown by the likes of Ronald Reagan<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Ted Kennedy<\/a>.<\/p>\n For example, even though they\u00a0were<\/em>\u00a0political arch-enemies,\u00a0Kennedy<\/a>\u00a0admired Reagan:<\/p>\n He [Reagan]\u2019s absolutely professional<\/strong>.\u00a0 When the sun goes down, the battles of the day are really gone.\u00a0 He gave the Robert Kennedy Medal, which President Carter refused to do\u2026\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019s very sure of himself, and I think that people sense that he\u2019s comfortable with himself\u2026\u00a0\u00a0 He had a philosophy and he\u2019s fought for it.\u00a0 There\u2019s a consistency and continuity at a time when many others are flopping back and forth.\u00a0 And that\u2019s an important and instructive lesson for politicians, that people admire that.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Having a personal philosophy and fighting for it with consistency and continuity. \u00a0And with\u00a0professionalism<\/a>. \u00a0What a great idea! \u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Which brings us back to\u00a0Atticus Finch<\/a>.<\/p>\n Even though he’s a fictional character, one law-school professor wrote that\u00a0“the most influential textbook from which he taught was\u00a0To Kill a Mockingbird<\/a><\/em>.” \u00a0Another wrote that “Atticus has become something of a\u00a0folk hero<\/a>\u00a0in legal circles.” \u00a0And no small wonder:<\/p>\n The folk hero often begins life as a normal person, but is transformed into someone extraordinary by significant life events\u2026 \u00a0One major category of folk hero is the defender of the common people against the oppression or corruption of the established power structure.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It is true that Atticus Finch is a fictional character. \u00a0And it’s also true that far too many lawyers fail<\/em> <\/strong>to live up to the standard of “defending the oppressed” that he set. \u00a0But the main truth is that lawyers as a whole have made him the kind of\u00a0folk hero<\/a>\u00a0they try to imitate. \u00a0And they are willing to listen to and “engage” with people they disagree with, sometimes vehemently.<\/p>\n People like\u00a0Charles Murray<\/a>. \u00a0Yale law students disagreed with him, some vehemently. \u00a0But they were willing to hear him out, to listen to him and engage with him. \u00a0And people like Ronald Reagan and Ted Kennedy, political arch-rivals who could “fund-raise” together, back in 1985.<\/p>\n So as I noted in closing the post on\u00a0Reagan, Kennedy \u2013 and \u201cDick the Butcher<\/a>:\u201d<\/p>\n * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n Two lawyer-like political rivals \u2013 in the\u00a0old days<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>when they could \u201csup with their enemies\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n The upper image is courtesy of\u00a0gospelcoalition.org\/blogs \u2026 atticus finch<\/a>. \u00a0And as to\u00a0Atticus Finch<\/a>\u00a0–\u00a0the\u00a0fictional lawyer in\u00a0Harper Lee<\/a>‘s<\/em>\u00a0To Kill a Mockingbird<\/a>\u00a0–\u00a0a Michigan Law Review\u00a0article said “No real-life lawyer has done more for the self-image or public perception of the legal profession.”<\/em><\/p>\n The full title of the Time article,\u00a0Yale Law School Dean: Free Speech on Campus | Time.com<\/a>. \u00a0For an opposing point of view, see\u00a0No, Law School Didn\u2019t Teach Us to \u2018Engage\u2019 With Racists<\/a><\/em>, and\u00a0Yale Students Demolish A Dean\u2019s Weak Argument | Above the Law<\/a>:<\/em><\/p>\n Confronting racism is difficult, but essential, work. \u00a0Promoting civility can undermine this work by policing the tone and speech of those who are oppressed, diverting our attention away from efforts to combat ongoing white supremacy.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Re: \u00a0The\u00a0True Conservativism<\/a>\u00a0link: \u00a0The article linked-to began by saying that in the last 50 years “the word conservative<\/strong> has undergone diverse changes in meaning and value… \u00a0in short, a word reduced in quality of character and integrity.” \u00a0 The writer –\u00a0George Panichas<\/a>\u00a0– added this:<\/em><\/p>\n …our conservatism is ultimately the moral exemplification of our conservatorship; that the conservative as conservator guards against violations of our reverent traditions and legacy, and is, in fine, a preserver, a keeper, a custodian of sacred things and signs and texts…<\/p><\/blockquote>\n All of which led me to the home page for\u00a0The Imaginative Conservative<\/a>. \u00a0(Which to some people may seem a contradiction in terms.) \u00a0The key difference: \u00a0That site offers<\/em>\u00a0a “conservatism of hope:”<\/em><\/p>\n Far too often, those who call themselves conservative<\/strong> offer nothing in the realm of art, literature, or theology, choosing instead to adopt the petty practices of modern American politics, interrupting questioners and hurling epithets at those who dare to disagree with them. \u00a0In addition, an essential part of true conservatism …\u00a0is a commitment to liberal learning<\/strong>. \u00a0[“Be still, my beating heart<\/a>…”]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Another point of view: \u00a0“Moderation is the true conservatism.” \u00a0See for example,\u00a0A Conservative’s Case for Moderation | RealClearPolitics<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/h1>\n
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I just read a great piece in the July 13 issue of Time<\/em> magazine,\u00a0Free Speech on Campus<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Charles](\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/6\/6a\/Charles_Murray_Speaking_at_FreedomFest.jpeg\/220px-Charles_Murray_Speaking_at_FreedomFest.jpeg\")
The article noted the telling example of Charles Murray<\/a>, shown at right. \u00a0He’s a conservative political scientist who argued – for example – “that all social welfare programs cannot be successful and should ultimately be eliminated altogether.”<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/img0.etsystatic.com\/000\/0\/5689691\/il_570xN.104987268.jpg\")
I wrote about Dick the Butcher in\u00a0On Reagan, Kennedy \u2013 and \u201cDick the Butcher<\/a>.” \u00a0That post from April 2016 noted a number of things about that infamous quote. \u00a0But the main point was that\u00a0maybe<\/em><\/strong> people don’t like either lawyers or<\/em><\/strong> politicians mostly because they are an accurate reflection of themselves. \u00a0(As shown at left; \u00a0“Mirror, mirror, on the wall…”)<\/em><\/p>\nNow that\u2019s what I would call\u00a0True Conservativism<\/a>\u2026<\/em><\/h3>\n
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