The Virtue Man, then and now

Consider these two statements by William Bennett related to the subject of immigration, one made in 1994, the other in 2006:

America’s immigrants are a net positive gain economically. They tend to live in strong, stable families; possess impressive energy and entrepreneurial spirit; have a deeply rooted religious faith; and make important intellectual contributions to the nation. Most come to America in large part because they believe in traditional American ideals. Their achievements and contributions are worth celebrating, not demeaning or denying.

William Bennett and Jack Kemp, “The Fortress Party?”, The Wall Street Journal, October 21, 1994.

I promise you, they [radical Muslims in the West] have won. They have silenced, these, these mobs have silenced the mainstream media, who are afraid of the mob.

William Bennett, The Situation Room, CNN, February 9, 2006.

Just wondering, but is accountability for one’s past statements—especially when they have been proven disastrously wrong, when they were made with the intent of intimidating and shutting down all dissent on a vital national issue, and when one is substantially revising that position today—among the virtues extolled in Bennet’s best-selling book on the virtues?

I’ve linked the exchange at CNN between Bennett and James Zogby, but it is so broken up with mutual interruptions as to be mostly unreadable. What is the point of holding debates on television on important national issues in which there are no rules of debate and no one completes a coherent point?

Posted by Lawrence Auster at February 14, 2006 08:32 PM | Send
    


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