Liberalism and Irritable Mental Gestures

I’ve been rereading Lionel Trilling lately. I’ve long been a fan of his unique ability to write a meandering essay that nonetheless feels as though it has a singular focus.

In any event, a recent editorial by Matt Franck in the Washington Post made me think of Trilling.

Franck surveys the many ways in which proponents of gay marriage and other progressive social causes ignore the arguments made by conservatives, falling back on the assertion that resistance is based on “hate.”