Ross Douthat: From Jacobites To Populists

Ross Douthat omits a crucial detail from his historical analogy in this article.

New York Times:

“There were also plenty of opportunists, familiar from the grifter politics of our own day — smugglers and privateers seeking relief from a centralizing British state, bankrupt gentry seeking relief for their accumulated debts. But at the same time there were many sincere adherents of what came to be called the Country ideology — defined by opposition to high taxes, a soaring national debt, a standing army and various corruptions associated with the swamp and the deep state (if you will) of early-18th-century London.

You did not need to be a Jacobite outright to be a member of the Country party. Rather, the Stuart cause existed in a dynamic and ambiguous relationship with the more respectable and non-treasonous conservatism of the early-18th-century Tories — again, much like populist parties interacting with the center-right establishment in Western Europe, albeit with armed insurrection as a more consistent aspect of the dance.

A contemporary liberal might take a certain comfort in this analogy, given the eventual fate of Jacobitism; perhaps populism is just another foredoomed revolt against the march of modern progress. Certainly it can seem sleazier and more self-parodic than its antecedent: McLynn emphasizes the high moral character of many of the Jacobites, whereas in today’s populism the grifters are more often in the vanguard — and whatever their faults, the Stuart claim to the throne was much, much more defensible than Trump’s claim to have won the 2020 election. …

Fortune almost favored Charles Edward Stuart. It might still favor Donald Trump, even as he’s pursued by prosecutors the way Bonnie Prince Charlie once was pursued by redcoats. And the close-run aspects of the past stand as a perpetual reminder of just how many different futures might await us.”

The Country Party fell out of favor in Britain. It was a very different story in America from the 1740s on.

Note: Few people who read the New York Times have a Wikipedia level grasp of world history. The past is largely irrelevant to progressives unless they are invoking it to condemn something.

18 Comments

  1. Things in the US are more like Europe in the 17th Century, than in 18th Century Britain. This isn’t some of the Highland Scots vs. Johnny Bulls. This will be more like Northern Europe White Christians vs. mixed race Southern Europe’s Catholicism and its Judaism and paganism.

    The Catholic Church, its Pope, Cardinals and Bishops owed money to the Jews for their Church decorating spree, and tried to tax farm the Northern Europeans to pay for it. That is often forgotten.

    Let’s not forget that no man is infallible under any conditions.

    The Catholic’s claim that Mary was the mother of God, but, how could that be, was she created before God? That makes Mary present before God. You Catholics should think before you accept what your Church claims.

    This goes on and on with more Catholic cult beliefs. Unfortunately your Catholic cult and cult believers are tearing the US apart. From the Bidens, Pelosi, on down.

    • Orange, do you HAVE to show your theological ignorance on a public forum in such a stupid manner?

      Mary (per the Seven Ecumenical Councils) is indeed, the Theotokos, or ‘God-bearer.’
      The Latin equivalent of that would be “Mater Dei.” Which is, correctly, the Mother of God, as Jesus is God IN THE FLESH.

      The Incarnation is the ‘rock’ on which the entirety of Christianity is based. If God is NOT incarnate (necessitating a Mother for that: incarnation, gestation, development, and birth), then OUR SALVATION AS CHRISTIANS is non-existent!

      But, as God is ALSO a Trinity, the miracle of Incarnation means that Jesus/God could submit to the will of the Father, and ’empty’ himself to deign to have the Theotokos be both his literal, physical mother.. and his own Creation. This is what the message of John 3:16 ff. means- God so loved the world, that he gave His only Son….for God sent not His Son into the world…. but that the world might be saved THROUGH HIM.”

      Only a Man could be our ‘Avatar.’ Only a God could be Perfect enough. Christ God was BOTH, at the same time, in an indissoluble union. THAT is not Roman dogma, that is CATHOLIC FAITH, HELD BY ALL TRINITARIAN CHRISTIANS, whether Roman, Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, Presbyterian/reformed, or even [sic] Christians like Baptists….. if they have a brain to think with.

      Please, don’t show your stupidity on fora such as this. Especially if you claim to serve the God whose mother you so willingly impugn. As the Holy Spirit was the means to the Incarnation, insulting God’s Mother, is akin to blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

      Misericordie, Domine.

      • Father John,

        Your patience in dealing with Orange (Krafty Wurker) is admirable. I sometimes think he is really pro-Catholic and is only here to make anti-Catholics look dumb. Yet I realize that I am thinking like a female and a Latin.

        We are more subtle and suspicious than Anglo men.

        It does appear however that Orange is the real deal in his obsession. He might think of my religion more often than I do.

        • @Father John and Cristina,

          Orange, Krafty Wanker, and/or Tom Watson is truly the meme of tell me that you’re jewish without telling me.

          Guys like him would walk ‘point’ in any platoon or scouting party that I would be in, so he could not shoot or stab us in the back.

          His theological ignorance is exceeded by his historical biases. Germany and Italy are the two European nations that have been the most indispensable in contributions made to Western civilization. The French and British are in a tie for third place, but the British wear the crown for their responsibility for the greatest existential crisis to Europeans worldwide, since the last Ice Age.

          • It’s Simply an ignorant Who beliefs that catholic are responsible for all the faults…… Wokism come from anglo-saxon, specifically from USA and also how you can think that southern europeans are inferior than you……USA are the creator and the imperium of woke.

          • November,

            Well written. In mentality I am most like the traditional Spanish outlook on matters.

      • Father John,

        Does it not appear that Orange is violating Rules number 2, 4, and 5 that Hunter Wallace has in the upper right?

      • LOL. So Mary is now part of the Trinity, and the Mother of God.

        I guess those good Roman Cathoics Joe, Jim and Hunter Biden are out making Novenas?

  2. This painting depicts Scottish fighters armed with swords against English Red coats using bayonets.

    Does anyone thing bayonets are at all practical in home defense or defense in Antifa, BLM riot, attacks?

    I see lots of videos for putting a bayonet on a 12 gauge shot gun.

    I saw photos of Federal troops marching off White Southerns protesting racial integration in Arkansas. Don’t think they actually drew blood.

    We’ll definitely have street protests, riots, confrontations in the coming Presidential election year…

    Some might even.

    “Try that in a small town”

    • Mr. Ryan,

      Bayonets are almost useless in modern war or home defense. Modern firearms have rendered them useless except for soldiers digging in but then they usually possess spades to do that.

      My opinion is derived from family/relatives who are military officers. As well as my common sense.

    • Senor Ryan,

      Wish to hear an American song I found that is my favorite drink? Yes.Let’s have fun.
      It is Tequila by the Champs. I hope it plays. My Windows 7 computer is sometimes lacking.

      • Thanks so much for the Champ’s “Tequila” song – another great Christiana music call.

        Let’s make Miss Christiana our semi official Music Maestro .

        Miss C, I recommend using a nom d plum (pen name) to protect your privacy, and let’s find lots and lots of ways to fund raise, do advertising, pay our contributors and not try to make everyone give away their talents for free.

        That’s just another terrible habit we do in the Old Right Wing Conservative “Movements”.

        Sigh

    • The painting is a fairly accurate depiction of the disaster at Culloden, where the exhausted Jacobites faced off against a well-armed and rested British army who slaughtered them with artillery and musket volleys before closing in with a bayonet charge to finish off the survivors. Most of the Scottish Jacobites only had pikes and broadswords. Brad’s the historian here so he should be able to fill in any details I missed or got wrong. Bonnie Prince Charlie was every bit the grifter and idiot Trump is.

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