Crunchy Cons

Re: Crunchy Cons

I started it on Saturday and finished it on Saturday. I'm not going to write a detailed review. Rather, I offer these random thoughts.

First, the good news. Dreher is a delightful writer and his sentiments are in the right place. He's a disciple of Russell Kirk. I like that.

Thing is, I've always wondered about how to make Kirk's ideas work. How, in other words, to apply the philosophy? That's the question. I had hoped Dreher would shed light on this issue, but his advice is the same as Kirk's: put your own house in order, and society will take care of itself.

It's the Platonic formula that Eric Voegelin and Kirk liked to recite: Society is man writ large. If its members are virtuous, society will be virtuous. It's true. Problem is, our society doesn't have virtuous members. How do we develop a virtuous citizenry, especially since no one--properly--trusts the state to undertake the molding?

In this, Dreher offers no guidance. Crunchy Cons is about individual virtuous choices--organic foods, home schooling, NFP, modest expenditures. They're important choices, yes, but as applied political philosophy? It doesn't help much.

Still, Dreher says things that need to be said, and that's a valuable service. Let other people work out the application. Dreher has done a valuable service in getting the permanent things back into the conservative culture's mental landscape.

Unfortunately, Dreher at times strike me as a guy who hasn't been living the crunchy con game long enough. It's hard to describe, but he occasionally comes off as a little to excited about the crunchy con lifestyle, like a young man who thinks he has found his dream job, but hasn't been doing it long enough to realize all its hassles.

For instance, his praise for NFP, including its effectiveness, sounds like the praise of a guy who hasn't done it for more than three or four years. As long time readers of this blog know, I don't think NFP is terribly effective, which is a good thing. If it were effective, I wouldn't have seven children, including baby Tess whom I adore, since every one of my children resulted from an unwanted pregnancy. I'm not the only obedient Catholic who has properly questioned the idealistic claims of NFP proponents after doing it for ten years. After a few more "screw-ups," I seriously doubt that Dreher will wax eloquent about understanding his and his wife's bodies. Then again, he's my age, so their fertility is decreasing. A late marriage may save him from the barrage.

All that being said, I'm glad I bought and read the book. It was fun to read, even if I did grow tired of the term "crunchy con." Such cutesy talk is best left for toddlers, and it's unfortunate that Dreher had to resort to such a phrase to have a hope of reaching a larger audience. No matter. The book makes excellent points and is a good piece of writing.