WaPo: Hillary And Kristen Aren't Women

One of my pet peeves is how "ideology" has evolved into a good thing. Even an eminence like Bill Bennett routinely refers to his "ideology" when he means his principles. Until very recently we all knew the word implied socialism, fascism, communism, or any creed to which a person might cling in spite of evidence.

"Ideology ... is usually taken to mean, a prescriptive doctrine that is not supported by rational argument." [D.D. Raphael, "Problems of Political Philosophy," 1970]

That's why it's a bad thing to be an ideologue. It is very bad to have an ideology rather than principles. A principle admits of being applied to new circumstances through the virtue of prudence. An ideology requires the circumstances to fit it, with death camps and killing fields generally the result.

If you are an ideologue, you are incapable of the virtue of prudence and can't admit a new fact into your closed system. Here, permit me a demonstration. On Friday Anne Kornblut of WaPo penned a column --and editors let her print it-- opining that Caroline Kennedy was "denied" her NY Senate seat because of the glass ceiling.

WaPo seriously wants us to think that Kennedy lost a seat being vacated by Hillary Clinton and soon to be filled by Kristen Gillibrand out of sexism. Yes, dears.