Gentlemen thank you. Most days I walk around feeling frustrated and isolated. Thank you for distilling the ideas that for me feel voiceless and incomplete. Thank you for saying it "out loud". I feel like I just took a deep and satisfying breath.
Our problems are spiritual at root. Rejecting God, our elites have "loosened this earth from its sun" and "wipe(d) away the whole horizon," as Nietzsche so presciently and eloquently put it nearly 150 years ago. A society whose leaders call into question the fundamental truth of biology (male and female) and declare the dismemberment of human life in the womb a human right is profoundly disordered.
Coincidentally, I came across this quote by TS Eliot this morning, which fits with NS Lyons' pessimistic analysis of our current situation: "I do not believe that the culture of Europe could survive the disappearance of the Christian Faith. And I am convinced that, not merely because I am a Christian myself, but as a student of social biology. If Christianity goes, the whole of our culture goes. Then you must start painfully again, and you cannot put on a new culture ready-made. You must wait for the grass to grow to feed the sheep to give the wool out of which your new coat will be made. You must pass through many centuries of barbarism..."
A friendly reminder: the notion of human rights and human dignity stems from Christianity. I have a grudging respect for atheists who openly (and rightly) admit that human life holds no special worth in their eyes. "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," in PETA's Ingrid Newkirk's mind.
It's gonna get real ugly, real soon, amigos. Stay close to God.
>>>Keeping [woke] ideas out of China while they undermine the West seems to be a core part of Xi’s strategy. I think they obviously see the self-destruction of the West as a huge opportunity.
Great interview. It is tempting for me to believe everyone will just wake up and abandon the performative woke nonsense that manifests in the west. As someone who has always lived pretty far outside these captured institutions and who looks upon the nonsense as some grand virtue signal theater, it has been really valuable to read folks like Yuri and NS, who have lived and worked in the heart of this darkness. They have taught me that this shit is for real, these people believe, and our techno-managerial class ain't going nowhere any time soon.
God-shaped hole indeed - whatever form that God may take. Not a religious person, but the complete absence of any moral north pole, and hence any functioning moral compass across large swaths of the population is leading to destruction of society as we know it. And so it has done in the past in other societies. I had no recognition of this 3 years ago. If there is no objective right vs wrong, no objective good vs evil, no objective truth vs completely ludicrous BS, it truly is (evil) clown world. Great interview and look forward to reading more from NS Lyons.
I could not agree more with the commentary regarding dissent. We must be honest with ourselves that there is a PRICE for that if we take a stand NOW; a price far less than if we leave it to our children to take a stand tomorrow.
Silencing the opposition is a one way ratchet that tightens in the direction of increasingly repressive measures. Wokeness will not be bored into yawning because it is the imposition itself that is the base of all terror.
Power will never concede anything without a demand. So let's turn it around. I don't know who to credit this to but I think those of us here on Substack are like graffiti; like a brick in the face of authority.
A new follow! I have no idea how I will ever finish any article myself. There are entirely too many writers and thinkers on this platform. Much, much better than I even aspire to be. My entire day looks like this: chore, substack, chore, substack, chore, x, substack. From morning to night every day..haha!
Nice interview. I would agree that “The China Convergence” is the best thing I have read on Substack. I recently read the book “Controlagarchs” by Seamus Bruner which connected some dots for me, like the fact that the Rockefeller foundation has been working in China since early 1900s
乱 is "ran" in Japanese. That's how I always read it. 乱れる is the verb "to be confused, tangled, all out of sorts." "Ran" was also the title of Kurosawa's King Lear-with-samurai movie. As a great fan of NS Lyons's work, I keep waiting for him to say something about how Japan fits into his "China Convergence" thesis. I have my own theory but that's for another day.
A fascinating article, learning about Chinese society and its long-range, over-the-horizon view. I'm old now, in my late 70s, but I worry about my school-age grandchildren's political and economic inheritance in the USA. Not hopeful, but I do pray a lot for good to overcome evil, God's will be done.
I think my favorite thing I have ever read from Lyons was his article in UnHerd titled “Why America Will Never Give Up on War.” Few have ever really understood host how The Blob functions and what makes them tick.
This was simply excellent as I have been a subscriber to "The Upheaval" for some time and love how Lyons writes with clarity about his subject matter. And "The China Convergence" is incredibly long as he acknowledges, but it is truly magnificent.
Gentlemen thank you. Most days I walk around feeling frustrated and isolated. Thank you for distilling the ideas that for me feel voiceless and incomplete. Thank you for saying it "out loud". I feel like I just took a deep and satisfying breath.
Excellent interview.
Our problems are spiritual at root. Rejecting God, our elites have "loosened this earth from its sun" and "wipe(d) away the whole horizon," as Nietzsche so presciently and eloquently put it nearly 150 years ago. A society whose leaders call into question the fundamental truth of biology (male and female) and declare the dismemberment of human life in the womb a human right is profoundly disordered.
Coincidentally, I came across this quote by TS Eliot this morning, which fits with NS Lyons' pessimistic analysis of our current situation: "I do not believe that the culture of Europe could survive the disappearance of the Christian Faith. And I am convinced that, not merely because I am a Christian myself, but as a student of social biology. If Christianity goes, the whole of our culture goes. Then you must start painfully again, and you cannot put on a new culture ready-made. You must wait for the grass to grow to feed the sheep to give the wool out of which your new coat will be made. You must pass through many centuries of barbarism..."
A friendly reminder: the notion of human rights and human dignity stems from Christianity. I have a grudging respect for atheists who openly (and rightly) admit that human life holds no special worth in their eyes. "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," in PETA's Ingrid Newkirk's mind.
It's gonna get real ugly, real soon, amigos. Stay close to God.
>>>Keeping [woke] ideas out of China while they undermine the West seems to be a core part of Xi’s strategy. I think they obviously see the self-destruction of the West as a huge opportunity.
Damn.
🔥🔥🔥 Interview
Great interview. It is tempting for me to believe everyone will just wake up and abandon the performative woke nonsense that manifests in the west. As someone who has always lived pretty far outside these captured institutions and who looks upon the nonsense as some grand virtue signal theater, it has been really valuable to read folks like Yuri and NS, who have lived and worked in the heart of this darkness. They have taught me that this shit is for real, these people believe, and our techno-managerial class ain't going nowhere any time soon.
God-shaped hole indeed - whatever form that God may take. Not a religious person, but the complete absence of any moral north pole, and hence any functioning moral compass across large swaths of the population is leading to destruction of society as we know it. And so it has done in the past in other societies. I had no recognition of this 3 years ago. If there is no objective right vs wrong, no objective good vs evil, no objective truth vs completely ludicrous BS, it truly is (evil) clown world. Great interview and look forward to reading more from NS Lyons.
Thanks for sharing Yuri!
I could not agree more with the commentary regarding dissent. We must be honest with ourselves that there is a PRICE for that if we take a stand NOW; a price far less than if we leave it to our children to take a stand tomorrow.
Silencing the opposition is a one way ratchet that tightens in the direction of increasingly repressive measures. Wokeness will not be bored into yawning because it is the imposition itself that is the base of all terror.
Power will never concede anything without a demand. So let's turn it around. I don't know who to credit this to but I think those of us here on Substack are like graffiti; like a brick in the face of authority.
What are the demands of our "graffiti"?!
Or are we just painting?
What a fabulous piece of writing - the best type of education I have received at this point in my very long life .
A new follow! I have no idea how I will ever finish any article myself. There are entirely too many writers and thinkers on this platform. Much, much better than I even aspire to be. My entire day looks like this: chore, substack, chore, substack, chore, x, substack. From morning to night every day..haha!
wow, congrats on nabbing the big fish Yuri!
Lyons is the perfect anaylst for these times. his essay on Tolkien and C.S. Lewis is a must read for any fan of this blog as well...
Nice interview. I would agree that “The China Convergence” is the best thing I have read on Substack. I recently read the book “Controlagarchs” by Seamus Bruner which connected some dots for me, like the fact that the Rockefeller foundation has been working in China since early 1900s
乱 is "ran" in Japanese. That's how I always read it. 乱れる is the verb "to be confused, tangled, all out of sorts." "Ran" was also the title of Kurosawa's King Lear-with-samurai movie. As a great fan of NS Lyons's work, I keep waiting for him to say something about how Japan fits into his "China Convergence" thesis. I have my own theory but that's for another day.
A fascinating article, learning about Chinese society and its long-range, over-the-horizon view. I'm old now, in my late 70s, but I worry about my school-age grandchildren's political and economic inheritance in the USA. Not hopeful, but I do pray a lot for good to overcome evil, God's will be done.
I think the China convergence should be published in book form. Thankyou for your work, I hope you have a joyful and restful Christmas.
I need to quit my job to keep up with all the excellent work you publish Yuri et al. Damnit! Hats off!
I think my favorite thing I have ever read from Lyons was his article in UnHerd titled “Why America Will Never Give Up on War.” Few have ever really understood host how The Blob functions and what makes them tick.
This was simply excellent as I have been a subscriber to "The Upheaval" for some time and love how Lyons writes with clarity about his subject matter. And "The China Convergence" is incredibly long as he acknowledges, but it is truly magnificent.