So what does Harper have against sociology? First, Harper is clearly trumpeting a standard component of neo-liberal ideology: that there are no social phenomena, only individual incidents. This ideology is so seductive not only because it radically simplifies our world, but also because it mirrors the two social institutions neo-liberals actually believe in — the “free” market and law and order. Everything is reduced to either a simplistic market transaction or a criminal case. In the former, you either have the money to buy stuff, or you don’t and it’s up to you to get more. In the latter, a lone individual is personally responsible for a crime and is punished for it. Easy peasy. No sociology needed. -- Jakeet Singh When it comes to climate change, Harper warns us not to commit science. But these positions on science and sociology are never evidence based. They are purely belief based - beliefs (when you drill down) drawn from biblical (or Koranic ) myths. But history is littered with tyrants who draw on myths not reason. This is the tactic of theocrats. Putin is fuelling his popular-at-home Ukraine strategy on Russian myth; ISIS on badly misinterpreted Koranic myth. -- Russell McNeil
Posted on: Sun, 31 Aug 2014 16:32:26 +0000
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