One could certainly do a lot worse than listening to Thomas Sowell and Jordan Peterson. These two guys are true intellectuals, intellectuals who have done extensive research on history and who apply critical thinking as well as a historical analysis to present-day issues.
Take capitalism vs socialism for instance. These two men are not liberal “intellectuals” who come up with a definitive what’s best answer (as in the case of socialism) when all historical evidence clearly demonstrates that socialism is a failed system of government. One doesn’t need to look further than Cuba, Venezuela or the former Soviet Union to realize that socialism simply doesn’t work. Yet most liberal “intellectuals” begin with the proposition that socialism is superior to capitalism despite the evidence. They pick their system of choice and then try to adapt the parameters to substantiate their flawed perspectives/beliefs.
Liberal “intellectuals” remind me of highly religious people. These highly religious people believe in God, and believe that their particular God is the one true God and that all other gods are imaginary, and that those who believe in other gods are simply misinformed. And no one can convince them otherwise. Whereas agnostics for instance, who would more closely resemble true intellectuals, look for the evidence and analyze the historical perspective of various religions and the world as we know it and come to a rational conclusion regarding whether there is empirical evidence in favor of the existence of God, any God, or not. They then base their conclusions on the acquired facts.
Anyway, that’s my two cent’s worth on the difference between true intellectuals and who I consider to be pretenders on many of today’s issues. True intellectuals, such as Thomas Sowell and Jordan Peterson don’t have an agenda. They don’t start out with the answer and work backward to support their position.
Video: YouTube
https://youtu.be/7pLQQ4vWqds
