The Briefing Room
General Category => Editorial/Opinion/Blogs => Topic started by: Sanguine on June 24, 2019, 02:31:04 am
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The 1950s was the decade of mass. Mass thought, mass movements, mass media. Americans casually discussed “the lonely crowd†and “the organization man.†But one book saw the masses for what they were – disillusioned and desperate.
The True Believer was hailed as “brilliant and original.†The book captivated philosophers, political scientists, even presidents. Who was this insightful author? In what university did he teach? Finally, someone him found him — on the docks of San Francisco, loading freight.
Eric Hoffer spoke with a gruff German accent, but he was an American original. He never traveled outside the country. Orphaned at eighteen, he “wandered up and down the land, dodging hunger and grieving over the world.†He pondered suicide, survived Skid Row, and worked as a field hand, dishwasher, longshoreman. Yet he kept his faith in America, and shared it....
https://www.theattic.space/home-page-blogs/2019/6/19/the-working-mans-philosopher (https://www.theattic.space/home-page-blogs/2019/6/19/the-working-mans-philosopher)
Hoffer was IDW before IDW was IDW.
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Full endorsement of Eric Hoffer, I got a few of his paperbacks back in the day... I'll bet some of his stuff is available to read online.
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Anybody that lived among the "working men" of those times in America, was immersed in hardship, common sense and traditional values, etc.
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Eric Hoffer was one of the very few who saw through the siren song of collectivist government in that era.
His sad but inspiring life made Hoffer himself a true believer— in truth.