NEOCONSERVATISM

by Thompson; C. Bradley

• ISBN13: 9781594518317
• ISBN10: 1594518319
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-05-30
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

An obituary'”so soon! Surely the reports of neoconservatism's death are greatly exaggerated. C. Bradley Thompson has written (with Yaron Brook) the most comprehensive and original analysis of neoconservatism yet published and in the process has dealt it a mortal blow. Neoconservatismreveals publicly for the first time what the neocons call their 'œphilosophy of governance''”their plan for governing America. This book explicates the deepest philosophic principles of neoconservatism, traces the intellectual relationship between the political philosopher Leo Strauss and contemporary neoconservative political actors, and provides a trenchant critique of neoconservatism from the perspective of America's founding principles. The theme of this timely book will shake up the intellectual salons of both the Left and Right: Neoconservatismas a species of anti-Americanism. What makes this book so compelling is that Thompson actually lived for many years in the Straussian/neoconservative intellectual world. Neoconservatismtherefore fits into the "breaking ranks" tradition of scholarly criticism and breaks the mold when it comes to informed, incisive, nonpartisan critique of neoconservative thought and action.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Introduction The Neoconservative Persuasion	p. 1
Purposes and Themes	p. 5
Focus and Scope	p. 9
The End of Ideology
The Path to Power	p. 13
A Very Brief History of Neoconservatism	p. 15
Reforming the "Stupid Party"	p. 23
A New Governing Philosophy	p. 31
A Philosophy of Governance	p. 32
"Thinking Politically"	p. 40
A Neoconservative Welfare State	p. 44
The Crisis of Modernity
The Straussian Moment	p. 55
From Leon to Leo	p. 59
Reading Leo Strauss	p. 64
The Road to Nihilism	p. 71
Strauss's Defense of America	p. 73
Neoconservatism and Nihilism	p. 77
The Return to Plato
The Long Trek Back to Plato	p. 91
Plato Old and New	p. 92
The Zetetic Plato	p. 95
The Return of the Old Plato	p. 104
Classical Natural Right	p. 113
Ancient Natural Right	p. 115
Natural Right and Statesmanship	p. 122
A New World Order
The World According to the Neocons	p. 135
Neoconservative Metaphysics	p. 140
Neoconservative Epistemology	p. 146
Neoconservative Ethics	p. 153
Neoconservative Politics	p. 162
Benevolent Hegemony	p. 171
September 11 and the Rise of Neoconservative Foreign Policy	p. 172
The Case for the Iraq War	p. 178
Democratic Vistas	p. 183
"Hard Wilsonianism"	p. 188
Soft Despotism
Leo Strauss and the Fascist Temptation	p. 199
German Nihilism and the Rise of Nazism	p. 202
The World War Between Merchants and Heroes	p. 206
Flirting with Fascism	p. 211
National-Greatness Conservatism	p. 219
National-Greatness Conservatism	p. 221
Foreign Policy and the "National Interest"	p. 227
Permanent War as Constant Vigilance	p. 232
Nihilism and Perpetual War	p. 233
Conclusion In the American Grain	p. 237
Neoconservatism Versus Americanism	p. 239
Could It Happen Here?	p. 246
Notes	p. 253
Index	p. 295
About the Authors	p. 305
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