David Brooks Archives - Public Seminar

Economy

David Brooks & Economic Inequality

Consulting the “Great Books”

January 23, 2020 • by David Lay Williams

Yet in his column published in the New York Times on January 16, entitled “The Bernie Sanders Fallacy,” echoing similar pieces in the past, I had hoped that he would have consulted them for wisdom again. In it he argues that despite the rapid growth of economic inequality in the United States, ...

Democracy

The Radical Center as a Utopian Project?

7 notes on the ideal of a free, intelligent and consequential public life

October 12, 2018 • by Jeffrey C. Goldfarb

1. From a critical point of view, “the center” is the ground of the wishy washy: too attached to the ways things are to commit to the radical change of the left, not sufficiently informed by the wisdom of customs and traditional values to fully embrace the good of the ...

The Radical Center as a Utopian Project?

Uncategorized

A Minor National Disgrace

A New Low for David Brooks, Self-Important Windbag

October 5, 2018 • by Jeffrey C. Isaac

David Brooks long ago appointed himself the moral scold and philosopher kinglet of American society. For years he has pontificated about the importance of “moderation” and “epistemic humility” and the dangers of “incivility.” Without any sense of irony or performative contradiction, this pseudo-philosophic prepster has lectured intellectuals, most of whom ...

Multi Media

Wiretapping, Wellness Real Estate, and Late-Night TV

Past Present Episode 74

March 16, 2017 • by Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, Neil J. Young and Nicole Hemmer

In this week's episode, Niki, Natalia, and Neil debate Trump’s wiretapping allegations, “wellness real estate,” and late-night TV.

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Wiretapping, Wellness Real Estate, and Late-Night TV

Feature

“Hamilton” and the Women’s March

A response to David Brooks

January 30, 2017 • by Renee Romano

He concludes his piece by offering the musical Hamilton as an example of what a more useful politics might look like. As Brooks writes, the march didn’t come close to offering a vision that can “rebind” the polity. “The musical ‘Hamilton’ is a lot closer.” His praise of Hamilton reflects that ...