Eric Scheske

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Local Counter-Conduct

Local Counter-Conduct

Counter-Conduct: "Any action that reasserts the primacy of the right hemisphere." That is my McGilchristization of Foucault's "counter-conduct." The immediate implications: Any action that beats down the left hemisphere in favor of the right hemisphere is counter-conduct. Because modernity is the left hemisphere'

Central Government Causes Loneliness . . . It Sure as Heck Can't Cure It

Central Government Causes Loneliness . . . It Sure as Heck Can't Cure It

Loneliness is a major problem, but governments, especially central governments, can't fix it. In fact, they cause it: By taking over functions that have traditionally been performed locally, central governments have killed millions of the institutions and associations (families, communities, churches, service clubs . . . the "little platoons"

Latinist Moves to Steubenville

Latinist Moves to Steubenville

John Byron Kuhner, a Latinist who published a delightful paean to Central Park in the June/July 2023 edition of First Things, has moved to Steubenville, Ohio. I've been to Steubenville once. It was ten years ago. I was stunned by the desolation. It was a "ghost

Living Off the Grid

Living Off the Grid

If modernity is the left hemisphere's creation, then pursuits that appeal to the right hemisphere, or require us to give primacy to the right hemisphere, are acts of rebellion against modernity. Example 1: Prose is the left hemisphere's flex: the earliest written records are from bureaucrats.

The First Catholic Cleric to Go Over to Saruman (and the Left Hemisphere)?

The First Catholic Cleric to Go Over to Saruman (and the Left Hemisphere)?

In the early nineteenth century, the “tormented, headstrong Breton priest”[1] Hugues-Félicité Robert de Lamennais changed fundamental Christian doctrines to justify socialism. His career illustrates the damage that can be done by presenting socialism as authentic religious doctrine, especially when an individual or group has established the illusion of orthodoxy

35,000-Word Tribute to The Matter with Things

35,000-Word Tribute to The Matter with Things

I typically read the essays I post or link to, but I haven't read this one: "Beyond the Scientific Revolution: Ian McGilchrist's The Matter with Things." But I might be forgiven. It clocks in at 35,000 words. And based on the first 2,

The Picture Book: Foe of the Left Hemisphere?

The Picture Book: Foe of the Left Hemisphere?

A Medieval Christmas Dollar-for-word, this book is a terrible deal. It's 28 pages long and, except for a short appendix, every word is merely a paste job from the 2003 Revised Standard Edition (Catholic Edition) of the Bible. And the book costs $44! These publishers oughtta be locked

Developing: Notes On the Unseen Battle that Goes on Around Us

Developing: Notes On the Unseen Battle that Goes on Around Us

Father Simon recently said that, if we could see the invisible battle that goes on around us, between the demons and the angels, we'd be terrified. It's a blessing that our normal mode of existence doesn't let us see such things. The mystics, however,

Toad Houses

Toad Houses

I told a friend about my huge slug and bug problem this year. He recommended I attract toads to my garden. He said they'd crush the slug population quickly. I stored the advice away, then I ran across someone on the Internet enthusing about garden toads and how

The Zen Koan

The Zen Koan

A koan is a ridiculous expression or dialogue designed to get the listener past the subject-object perspective.