Roger’s Rules

By Roger Kimball

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2008-11-03 02:27:21

Rome fell because of language.
It all comes down to reading, writing and listening.

People below thirty, on the whole, can’t read. They won’t learn the difference between the active and passive voice in their lifetimes, and they won’t pick up Barthelme, Faulkner, Morrison, Goethe, Kafka, Dostoevsky, and goddamn read. They’re a huge voter demographic.

Why did Rome fall? Failure of Language. It’s happening people. It’s happening. Cormac McCarthy wrote a great book about what happens when stupidity endures. The Road. Read it. It’s seven dollars when you walk out of your office at the borders on the corner.

You want the right change? Educate.