Victor Davis Hanson
American Greatness
The songwriter, actor, country/western singer, musician, U.S. Army veteran, helicopter pilot, accomplished rugby player and boxer, Rhodes scholar, Pomona College and University of Oxford degreed, and summa cum laude literature graduate, Kris Kristofferson, recently died at 88.
Americans may have known him best for writing smash hits like “Me and Bobby McGee” and “For the Good Times,” his wide-ranging, star-acting roles in A Star is Born and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, his numerous solo albums, especially with then-spouse and singer Rita Coolidge, and the country group super-quartet he formed with Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson.
In other words, Kristofferson was a rare Renaissance man who could do it all in an age of increasingly narrow specialization and expertise.
At certain times throughout history at particular locales, we have seen such singular people from all walks of life.
Classical Athens produced polymaths like Aristotle—tutor to Alexander the Great, logician, student of music, art, and literature, educator, think-tank founder, biologist, philosopher, and scientist. Later Greeks like Archimedes and Ptolemy, as men of action, mastered six or seven disciplines and applied their abstract knowledge in ways that made life easier for those around them.
The late Roman Republic was another cauldron of multitalented geniuses. It produced the brilliant stylist, historian, politician, and consummate general Julius Caesar, as well as his republican archrival Cicero—politician, philosopher, orator, master stylist, lawyer, and provincial governor.
Turn-of-the-century Victorian Great Britain produced giants like Winston Churchill—prime minister, statesman, essayist, historian, orator, strategist, and wartime veteran. As Britain’s war leader, between May 10, 1940, and June 22, 1941, he, almost alone, resisted the Axis powers and prevented Adolf Hitler from winning the war.
But we associate the idea of a “Renaissance man” mostly with Florence, Italy, between the 15th and 16th centuries. In that brief 100 years, the Florentine Republic hosted multi-talented geniuses like Leonardo da Vinci—master painter, sculptor, architect, scientist, engineer, and inventor—best known for the Mona Lisa and Last Supper.
The multifaceted talents of his younger contemporary Michelangelo were as astounding, whether defined by his iconic sculptures David and Pietà, his stunning painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, or as the master architect of the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Basilica.
The American Revolution was a similar embryo of Renaissance men. Thomas Jefferson was perhaps the most famous example of unchecked abstract and pragmatic genius displayed in almost every facet of late 18th– and early 19th-century life—main author of the Declaration of Independence, third U.S. President, founder of the University of Virginia, inventor, agronomist, architect, and diplomat.
But Benjamin Franklin may best approximate the model of the Florentine Renaissance holistic brilliance—journalist, publisher, printer, author, politician, diplomat, inventor, scientist, and philosopher.
Franklin’s life was one of perpetual motion and achievement. In one lifetime, he helped to draft the Constitution, invented everything from the lightning rod to bifocals, founded the American postal service, and successfully won over European countries to the nascent American cause. Theodore Roosevelt—president, historian, essayist, conservationist, naturalist combat veteran, battle leader, explorer, and cowboy—exemplified the idea of an American president as the master at almost everything else.
The history of our own contemporary Renaissance people often suggests that they are not fully appreciated until after their deaths—especially in the post-World War II era.
Why?
We have created a sophisticated modern society that is so compartmentalized by “professionals” and the credentialed that those who excel simultaneously in several disciplines are often castigated for “amateurism,” “spreading themselves too thinly,” “not staying in their lanes,” or not being degreed with the proper prerequisite letters—BA, BS, MA, PhD, MD, JD, or MBA—in the various fields that they master.
But specialization is the enemy of genius, as is the tyranny of credentialism.
Because the Renaissance figure is not perfect in every discipline he masters, we damn him for too much breadth and not enough depth—a dabbler rather than an expert—failing to realize that his successes in most genres he masters and redefines is precisely because he brings a vast corpus of unique insights and experience to his work that narrower specialists lack. The Greek poet Archilochus first delineated the contrast between the fox who “knows many things” and the hedgehog who “knows one—one big thing.” We have become a nation of elite hedgehogs, whose narrow expertise is not enriched by awareness of or interest in the wider human experience.
Renaissance people often live controversial lives and receive 360-degree incoming criticism, not surprising given the many fields in which they upstage specialists and question experts—and the sometimes overweening nature of their personalities that feel no reason to place boundaries and lanes on their geniuses and behavior or to temper their exuberances.
The best American example of the current age is the controversial Elon Musk, a truly Renaissance figure who has revolutionized at least half a dozen entire fields.
No one prior had broken the Big Three auto monopoly of GM, Ford, and Chrysler.
Musk did just that. He exploded all three companies’ dominance with his successful creation of the first viable electric vehicle, Tesla, whose comfort, drivability, reliability, safety, and power rivaled or exceeded the models of all his competitors.
His spin-off battery storage and solar panel companies allowed thousands of families to go off the grid and stay self-sufficient in power usage.
Musk’s revolutionary Starlink internet system—a mere five years old—provides global online service to over 100 countries. Through its some 7,000 satellites, Starlink brings internet service to remote residents far more effectively and cheaply than do their own governments. When natural disasters overwhelm utilities or war disrupts the normality of peace, all look to Musk to restore online reconnections to the outside world.
Musk, almost singlehandedly, transformed the U.S. space program from a NASA 60-year-old government monopoly to an arena of fervent private-public competition. His Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) created a rocket and spacecraft program that has kept the U.S. preeminent in space exploration and reliable satellite launches. When NASA and old aerospace companies falter, the government looks to Musk to bail them out.
Musk, at great personal cost, radically transformed the old Twitter—poorly managed, censorious of ideas and expressions not deemed progressive, and mired in scandal for partnering with the FBI to silence news deemed possibly injurious to Democratic candidates and left-wing campaigns.
His new X replacement is an unfettered platform for free expression. And the more the left abhors their loss of the monopolistic old Twitter’s ideological clearing house, and vows to flee X and start their own new left-wing, censorious Twitters, the more they stay on X.
Musk’s newest companies have now entered the convoluted, little-understood, radically competitive, and dangerous field of artificial intelligence (OpenAI) and the emerging discipline of bonding the natural brain to the electronic online world (Neuralink). To the degree Musk is successful, America will lead these areas of intense international rivalry that involve the gravest issues of national security and survival.
Overspecialization has helped make vulnerable and sometimes doomed complex top-down societies from the Mycenaeans to the Aztecs to the Soviets. A tiny credentialed and often incestuous elite manages the lives of a vast underclass whose daily lives are scripted by top-down master planners—as an autonomous and skeptical middle class disappears.
America is increasingly becoming a bifurcated, two-tiered society of a specialized government-corporate-media-political-credentialed class of degreed overseers and managers who attempt to micromanage an increasingly less well-educated, dependent underclass.
The overclass cult lacks sufficient common sense and pragmatic expertise outside their narrow areas of specialization to direct society, and the masses are often without the education, money, and power to challenge them or the esoteric complexity of their modern society. And the result is often disastrous, as we see everywhere, from the trivial to the existential—from our currently paralyzed state space station program and inability to build a floating pier in Gaza, to ineffectual and insensitive state responses to natural disasters like Hurricane Helene and an increasingly dangerously incompetent Secret Service.
Renaissance people provide a link to the proverbial people, as they master almost anything they attempt while keeping themselves attuned to the practical effect of their achievement among the people.
The Renaissance physicist Richard Feynman once explained to the entire nation why the Space Shuttle 1986 Challenger catastrophically imploded shortly after launch. A polymath Albert Einstein explained to America why it had to begin the Manhattan Project and beat Nazi Germany to the acquisition of an atomic bomb. Theodore Roosevelt used his expertise as a politician, conservationist, outdoorsman, explorer, and writer to help establish and preserve 230 million acres of public lands.
So, we should occasionally pause and reflect on the Kristoffersons and Musks in our midst. They play a vital role in enriching culture and civilization for the many without becoming part of the narrow few. And we owe these people, who belong to a rare and hallowed caste of the ages, for making our lives richer, more enjoyable, easier, and safer.
My approach early in life was better to be good at many things than great at a few. It’s enabled me to interact and connect with a diverse amount of people in a positive way. Thanks Victor for the encouragement as at times I felt I should have gone for the degrees instead of the experiences and relationships.
Thank you for a great article!
Kind regards
Peter
Refreshing, a great read.
Thanks,
Ken
Loved Musk in Butler.
Yes. The world has been greatly enhanced by those people who have been blessed with extraordinary brain power.
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.-Robert A. Heinlein
Well said my friend! As my dad was fond of saying he was a jack of all trades and a master of none.
Just woke up and already know this made my day.
Great article, thank you🇺🇸
Man oh man oh man. Leave it to Prof. Hanson to always put things into such great perspective. This is once again why I rarely miss one of your essays Sir.
Although I agree with your argument to foster Renaissance people, clearly, minimum standards are still necessary. William Mulholland the “self-taught” engineer and architect of the disastrous Saint Francis dam outside of LA, comes to mind. That said, the current list of over 200 occupational licenses that California requires (including dog trainers and tree trimmers) is onerous. Would enjoy reading your take on this area of overregulation.
the contractors did in that dam , not the engineer But it should have been inspected properly..The execution matters too .
Well said. I once held a license there (not training dogs).
I would have never considered Kristofferson and Musk in the same category but you make an excellent point.
If we are to find more Renaissance People, then we must admonish people: Do not let schools stand in your way to an education, and do not let churches stand in your path to God!
To get an appreciation of some of the harm unionized, public schools today bring to students, one merely needs to review mid school writings of students here in the mid to late 19th century. In a few ways, those now long gone surpassed so many of the college/university students we hear screaming today.
Churches do not, on the whole, stand in the path to God, but rather quite the opposite. In particular, some folks have experienced a myopic scenario where this unfortunate outcome may be the case, but that is the exception and not the rule. Do not, my friend, let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
You are correct, Victor, we need them. we’re going to need more than one, however, if Western Civilization is to survive.
Dear Dr. Hanson:
“But specialization is the enemy of genius, as is the tyranny of credentialism.” Most succinct description of our current mess that I have ever heard. The problem derived from such, is the specialized and credentialed actively undermining the independent thinkers they view as threats. Being correct can get one destroyed. Many geniuses of old lived in mortal peril and many others were killed. Our society may be closer to returning to that sad state than we wish to acknowledge.
I have to admit I was not an Elon Musk fan until he bought Twit-err and opened it to all. I felt Musk became wealthy on the back of government subsidies for Tesla. I still have no plans to ever buy a Tesla but he did revolutionize the EV industry.
Now that Elon has shown a real concern for free speech and saving this republic, I 100% agree with Professor Hanson’s assessment of Musk as a renaissance man. One that was truly needed today!
I would not consider Kris Kristofferson as one in the same category as Elon Musk. What did Mr. Kristofferson give the world that numerous others have not. None of his music would rival that of even top country musicians in quanity if not quality. Whereas Musk’s inventions have been a boost to mankind and probably have saved thousands if not millions of lives.
I would place Dr. Victor Davis Hanson, Thomas Sowell and many others in that category of renaissance men well before Kris Kristofferson.
How about some renaissance women as a supplement to the men who changed the course of history.
Jlynn: it seems you have spent little time listening to Kris Kristofferson’s music, with its brilliant, thoughtful lyrics. He was a true philosopher and fine poet.
Your articles always enhance my limited intelligence. Thank you for giving me hope for my children/grandchildren’s future. Thankful for Elon and you Prof Hanson.
Agreed. And I still don’t like that he went to China for a large portion of his manufacturing
Dear Dr. Hanson;
You make it so easy for me to neglect my day and just enjoy your writings. Today’s article opens a whole new avenue of thought.
I do believe we have Renaissance people in our current time however, the issue is survival and also destiny.
History will record those who reach these wonderful levels for humanity.
For those of us just passing through, one foot in front of the other, we take pleasure in a wonderful thing called ‘hope’ that someone
like Elon Musk comes along to give us that step up to a higher road.
I am a retired chemical engineer from the Oil & Gas industry who got a Masters in Christian Apologetics from a premier Southern Baptist seminary in order to get straight answers on various theological issues. Long story short— I ended up writing a book that Barack Obama is our soon to be revealed AntiChrist as announced by Jesus (Luke 10:18) after Jesus received a vision from God the Father.
This hidden prophecy is smothered by religious leaders whose priority is protecting their institutions instead of Truth. See http://www.satanasbarackobama.com
Even Jesus started His career as a carpenter (or engineer) and not part of the religious and political establishment to keep from being crushed by their “traditions”.
Renaissance people give us options and alternatives to the prevailing culture that improve our lives. Developing more solutions to combat Covid would have been a renaissance achievement, but alas there was a concerted effort to go with fewer rather than multiple competing solutions.
Thanks for eulogizing Kristofferson and tying him to other geniuses. A fresh column away from politics. Well said friend
Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, is another Renaissance Man. Less impactful than Musk. Adams in his book “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life” is well worth reading. The central point is be very good at a range of things rather than superlatively excellent at just one thing.
While I’m neither at the Kristofferson, nor even the Adams level, I was able to lash together an OK career and OK living by being an OK curriculum developer + OK technical writer + OK technical artist + +OK videographer + OK a bunch of other things. I could develop a technical training program from a blank piece of paper to a finished classroom or Computer-Based Training. That made me a “one man training department” which is something a lot of small businesses/small business units of large corporations need and can’t quite find.
Cheers,
Great article Victor
This was an intriguing essay. Yes, Musk seems to be the most notable, modern genius.
Thank you, VDH. Since the 8th grade i have held an on-going fascination with the definition of genius, the metrics & standard for recognition & achievement. This was a result of knowing two in our little junior and then high school two years my senior whose iqs were 226 and 195 respectively. It always seemed odd that such a small town and smaller school district could ‘produce’ such brilliance. Interestingly, both came from very humble beginnings. Even more interesting, neither amounted to much in the worldly sense. The teachers encouraged 226 to stay in school when he wanted to stop and stay home to study more. Those teachers finally donated tuition for him to attend Reed College in Portland. However, he dropped out after completing only one semester and then went to work for Honeywell. He passed away in his 30s. 195 flunked out of the UW’s aeronautical engineering program after a short time. He retired from a position managing a parking lot in San Diego and passed away a few years ago. He did describe to me his ‘cognition problem’, so intriguing. Then several years ago a U professor in FL did a book on genius through the ages. Having such an interest i managed to communicate with him on the matter. He argued that the optimal iq tops out around 140 or 150. Above that level, he asserted, was not just unproductive but actually a hinderance. He recommended the Outlier series.
Another excellent column, sir. Made me reconsider Teddy Roosevelt, Kris Kristofferson and Elon Musk.
Thank you and well done!
There is, of course, no shortage of politicians who consider themselves expert in everything under the sun.
Victor be careful writings like that some may think your a leftist 😂😂😂 Super article of course. So many I knew accomplished great things, was so difficult to get them to tell their stories
Walter Chrysler put together his auto company starting in 1924. The Big Three was created by the Great Depression and the New Deal takeover of the economy. In short there is a bit more to it. Hanson is beginning to miss things more here and there
What did VDH miss (according to you)? I believe that you rather missed what he said, which was, “No one prior had broken the Big Three auto monopoly of GM, Ford, and Chrysler. Musk did just that.”
Musk broke the monopoly of the Big Three auto manufacturers. That is what VDH said. No, he is not missing things these days. YOU are missing things. Yet you don’t let that stop you showing your ignorance.
VDH,
Your essay made me think of two Arthur Schopenhauer Quotes.
Great minds are related to the brief span of time during which they live as great buildings are to a little square in which they stand: you cannot see them in all their magnitude because you are standing too close to them.
Schopenhauer
On Judgement, Criticism, Approbation, and Fame
Parerga and Paralipomena (1851)
Talent is like the marksman who hits a target which others cannot reach; genius is like the marksman who hits a target, as far as which others
cannot even see.
Schopenhauer
The World as Will and Representation Volume 2 (1844)
I am so excited hear of another Schopenhauer reader. It seems to me that old Arthur would say that the true secret of the Renaissance man would be the ability to understand will as the optimism of being in the moment – every moment as an opportunity for infinite possibilities.
I agree with all the comments above, Sir, your articles enrich our minds. Love them, especially when you’er fearless politically. Thank you !
Now for an article on Renaissance women???
Winnie Mandela was a renaissance woman in South Africa. She was BRILLIANT. If not for Apartheid and teh prejudice against female professors, she would have rocked the world in the fied of academia. As it was she rocked the world in the field of politics. Everyone remembers her husband Nelson. Because he was imprisoned and a martyr as well as clever. But she was BRILLANT and outwitted the Security Forces as well as helping to generate our Constitution
The results of the coming election may determine the survival of our Republic. I am in awe of gifted individuals (Hanson, Musk, Others) who use their talent for the greater good of mankind .The ability of the current Democratic Party to control a large segment of the American public indicates citizens at large ae incapable of critical thinking.
Alright, here’s the thing: we’re talking about Renaissance people, but let’s bring this into a modern context because, folks, it’s bigger than just excelling in a bunch of disciplines. It’s about the joy—the joy of breaking boundaries, defying expectations, and living your truth in every possible way. Look at Kris Kristofferson. The man was out here writing songs, starring in movies, flying helicopters for the Army, getting degrees from Oxford—you name it. He didn’t just live in one lane. No, he found joy in mastering it all and owning every space he stepped into. He was living his truth, and that’s something we need more of today.
Now, we’re in an era where trans-activism is making waves, and it’s the same kind of boundary-breaking energy. It’s people pushing beyond traditional definitions of who they’re allowed to be and finding joy in their full identity. It’s about saying, “I refuse to be boxed in by narrow-minded expectations.” And guess what? That’s exactly what a Renaissance person does—they transcend the labels, the limitations, and they show us a whole new way of being. Whether it’s Elon Musk revolutionizing transportation and space or activists fighting for their right to exist authentically, it’s all part of the same spirit.
So, let’s celebrate that! Let’s embrace the joy that comes from challenging the status quo, from living fully and freely, whether in art, science, technology, or personal identity.
-Kamala
Trans activism breaks no boundaries, it is only a deluded lie that fails to acknowledge reality.
The truth is that sex chromosomes determine gender. It is another example where secular man rejects observational and experimental science.
It is championed by a debased mind that seeks to express its rebellion against God.
See Romans 1:18-32
Peter, I do not disagree.
Okay, then persuade me to your viewpoint. How did you come to that conclusion?
My mistake, thanks for your clarification.
In speaking of the permanency of marriage, Mark 10:6-9 offers insights into why God made people two sexes.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.’
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
What therefore God has joined together let not man separate.
Two sexes were made not only to reproduce but also to form a unitary entity, a complete partnership called marriage.
God joins people in marriage which is meant to be permanent while divorce tears the unity apart.
Choosing to identify as something you are not denies reality and thwarts the purpose of creation.
Finding joy in being as rebellious as you can be.
Who cares about the scientific method? Who cares about God and his design for creation? It really doesn’t matter when you can create your own reality and force other people to affirm it.
Genesis 3:4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be open, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
“Pushing beyond traditional definitions” that reflect reality is not only delusional but destructive.
You first hurt yourself in denying what is real and then you hurt others who do not affirm your lie.
The thrill in denying reality lies in the sense of power you have in rebelling against God and forcing others to affirm your delusional self-identity.
Renaissance men would find this analogy to be grossly insulting to their legitimate creative genius.
Kamala Harris want to abet those in their delusion. Harris does a disservice to individuals and our nation to promote such detachment from reality.
For this reason alone, I hope that democrats will wake up and vote for Trump.
Make America Sane Again
This derangement is spiritual at its root and cannot be solved by politics but can be accelerated by government.
I hope that God grants us repentance.
Romans 1:16-32
You used the term “corpus of unique insights” in your article about a Renaissance Man. I had viewed Elon Musk as a nutjob” until I saw a pod cast interview featuring him and the writers of the Babylon Bee lampoon website. What amazed me and changed my view of Musk completely was just that: his “corpus of unique insights.” He definitely is a Renaissance Man. A brave one, too.
I’m a recently retired career engineer/executive from the satellite communications industry. I can personally vouch for the unique contributions to the industry, our country and the world that could only be credited to Elon Musk for the Starlink network. On a more personal note, I can share that his Starlink satellite system played an incredible role for my Asheville neighborhood after Helene destroyed power, water, cellphone and internet services this past week. With minimal generator power we were able to provide a unique, critical lifeline at home for countless friends and neighbors to reach out to their concerned remote families. Almost two weeks later we still see folks gathered around our emergency “internet cafe.” Thank you, Elon Musk! I only wish you could witness the endless, tearful thank you’s we have received from so many!
Tony, awesome testimonial.
First, he saves free speech.
Then he and he alone provides vital communications to unfortunate victims of a natural disaster. He had to fight FEMA to get the job done.
He is not just trolling for new business. He is trying to do good for fellow Americans..
This is a man who makes a difference in our world. With only a tinge of weirdness.
We can’t make a Jefferson, Franklin, or Musk, but we can make a Paine and a million other generalists like Jefferson had, to make his stuff work, and that it will take to make America great again. But we can’t wait till we get a million, maybe ten to save Trump and the election, and fifty to block the Left from hobbling Trump’s agenda.
So true. As a construction engineer it is so sad to see a building which took years to plan and build get demolished in one day.
Thank you for finally posting me, Dr. Hanson. Now, if you want to see how to make ten in time, where can I fly to meet you?
Apologies for the “finally”, Dr. Hanson. The time is so short, I’m on pins and needles.
I had no idea that the late Kris Kristofferson had been so multitalented and accomplished. From flying helicopters to Oxford university graduate to songwriter, he had an impressive CV. At our church we sometimes sing Why Me. It’s a powerful song of grace and redemption.
“Why me Lord, what have I ever done
To deserve even one
Of the pleasures I have known
Tell me Lord what did I ever do
That was worth loving You
Or the kindness You’ve shown
Lord help me Jesus, I’ve wasted it
So help me Jesus, I know what I am
Now that I know I needed you
So help me Jesus my soul’s in Your hand”
RIP Kris
Kristofferson was indeed a Renaissance Man, but his foray into politics was decidedly leftist and a failure. He overstepped without sufficient forethought when he got political. His case illustrates that being a Renaissance Man means you have to do the homework and become competent when you enter a new field. Musk does that very, very well!
The leftist elites from Hollywood fancy themselves qualified to lecture us on politics, but they are woefully misinformed on many issues. They try for Renaissance Man but resemble Piltdown Man.
What about the women? Why do we not hear about them?
Victor – Here is a man with a variety of talents including playing the lyre –
1 Samuel 16: 17-19 So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me a man who can play well and bring him to me.” One of the young men answered, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with him.” Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me David your son, who is with the sheep.
“A tiny credentialed and often incestuous elite manages the lives of a vast underclass whose daily lives are scripted by top-down master planners—as an autonomous and skeptical middle class disappears.”
That’s progressivism. A major stone in its foundation is the belief that experts are more qualified to run society and our lives than we individuals are. Because they are smart, and we are dumb.
But knowledge is not wisdom. Experts have knowledge but they don’t have wisdom. Even their core belief that they are best fit to rule us shows how foolish they are.
Men want to be God. Totalitarians believe that they are able to be Lord and rule over others.
Renaissance People all have a few things in common: intellectual curiosity, independent thinking, and a desire to improve the human condition. Kamala Harris has none of these qualities and is toxic to a free and prosperous society. .
Whether it be Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel
artwork, or Elon Musk’s Tesla cars and Starlink technology we have all benefited greatly from their endeavours and achievements.
These same people are exactly the type the Left either tries to control or destroy for their own self serving interests.
Time for democrats to wake up and vote for Trump.
Make America Free Again
“Renaissance People all have a few things in common: intellectual curiosity, independent thinking, and a desire to improve the human condition. Kamala Harris has none of these qualities and is toxic to a free and prosperous society.”
But Donald Trump does ? LOL.
Sounded good until it turns into some strange puff piece for Musk, and then also very anti “left”; this puffery piece together with its anti-left wing bias in such simplistic terms reveals some agenda and ignorance is going on here. Like Ben Franklin was never considered “left wing”, and “the left” has no renaissance persons of it’s own?? So the author of this puffery piece just decided he’d just do his own 360 degree hit job while he’s at it-discredit with criticism of the left while he’s praising all the great geniuses in human history, including Musk; yet by his own logic of hate and criticism of the left, we see the left is then having to endure 360 degree criticism from the likes of this author, which the article is purportedly disdainful of. The left also has its own geniuses and polymaths, true renaissance persons, the author curiously ignores with not a single word or reference, to well, let’s say why don’t we start with, say, just for example of the ignorance going on in this essay I just read, along with other comments in support of the puffery piece: Dr. Martin Luther King. Father, Friend, Pastor, Writer, Organizer, Speaker.
Musk is a fascist racist scumbag who has done great damage to the US. Of course Hanson likes fascists. .
What a fantastic article! And appears to be a different perspective from another genius Hoover colleague: Mr. Sowell.