This list just isn't the place to find the conventional wisdom repeated any more, is it? A while back somebody praised Jim Webb's book on the history of the Scots Irish - a pretty sordid history (my response is pasted to the end of this email).
It's not surprising that Webb found the history of his people admirable (or at least found the spin he liked - militaristic, etc - admirable), just as it isn't surprising to find main stream Democrats swooning over him (as the writer of an article about potential VP choices did):
"But Webb's past, by Democratic standards, is checkered. He was Ronald Reagan's secretary of the Navy; he expressed very public concern about the ability of women to lead men in combat, and he loves, loves, loves his guns. Not the stereotypical traditional Democrat."
I thought the following email (not sure how I got on this guy's mailing list, but I like to read a diversity of opinion) amusing - something else to blame the Scots Irish for! Though I think this guy believes its a good thing. Interesting to hear about the Scots Irish "a profound love of democracy" - where did they get that? During the period of service to the British Empire, when they were imposing foreign rule on the Irish? Serving the American Empire and imposing foreign rule on (fill in the blank) out of economic necessity or because of indoctrination, while saying "stay out of my business" is not a "a profound love of democracy."
But I think the guy I was arguing with is long gone, and I don't know if anybody else cares about this. I don't care much about it anymore, just trying to take my mind off the brutally hot weather, and news of Obama's service to the tyrants in Yeman.
From: Andrew Himes <andrewhimes1@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Jun 9, 2011 at 11:30 PM
Subject: How the Scots-Irish Invented Fundamentalism
To: Matt Love <mattlove1@earthlink.net>
| Excerpt from Chapter 3 of "The Sword of the Lord" by Andrew Himes. The Scots-Irish migration to America in the 1700s helped prepare the way for the explosive growth of evangelicalism in the 1800s and the birth of modern fundamentalism in the early 1900s.The character of fundamentalism was shaped by the experience of the Scots-Irish over centuries of conflict and deprivation, and it included a profound love of democracy, a passion for individual rights, and the placement of God and religion at the center of one's life. The Scots-Irish in my own family historically had the paradoxical capacity to find theological justification for the abolition of slavery or the defense of slavery, depending on their economic situation. Buy the Book Today!Blog the Book. Free review copy! The first 144 free copies went out to bloggers, so I decided to make 50 more available. Apply to get yours now!Thanks for your help! 4669 Eastern Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98103-Seattle United States |
So to recap, Scotland was formed when the Romans built Hadrian's wall, and maintained independence until England finally shook off the last of its string of occupiers, and decided to get into the Empire business itself. After Scotland was subdued, they (some of them at least) got enthusiastic about the imperials enterprise, acting as muscle (so much so that journalist Michael Fry wrote an enter book about it, "The Scottish Empire").
Nowhere is this more true than in Ireland. After many of them were no longer needed there, they fled to the new world, where they were forced into rural ghettos in the mountains. If Webb is correct about deep-rooted, immutable cultural traits, they apparently maintained their zest for service to empire in the guise of nationalistic fervor, "rugged individualism, warrior culture built on extended familial groups (the 'kind of people who would die in place rather than retreat') and an instinctive mistrust of authority" [though a willingness to zealously serve it]. If they have "created an American culture that mirrors these traits," it's certainly a toxic stew they've brewed up. I think it's useful to remember the pictures of Lynndie England in Abu Ghraib; a great archetypal image of the "hillbilly" in the service of Empire.
At any rate, it's hard to construct the Scottish role in Britain's brutal occupation of Ireland as harmless familial fun, like giving your cousin a noogie or something. Sure, it happened a long time ago, but the past informs (at least) the present.
