Hungarian Conservative

Given the uncontrollable nature of AI and its potential to shape social perception, legislative action in this area has been long awaited. The European Union, recognizing the urgency and importance of this issue, has been at the forefront with its recently adopted Artificial Intelligence Act.

Law professor and legal philosopher Jenő Szmodis appeared on the Glóbusz podcast hosted by Jonatán Nagy-Bato, where they discussed the changing concepts of humanity over the course of history, alternating between individualistic and community-centred ideas.

‘You have to have different levels of political engagement. You have to win at different levels, the intellectual level, the battle of ideas level, you’ve got to win at this  level. And then you’ve got the next level down, that you’ve got to win on policy, and win the debate politically, and then politicians translate these ideas into their own language and then they have to be able to convey that message to the voters. These are two different roles, but they are also overlapping. Like Edmund Burke, one of the greatest conservative thinkers, was also an active politician.’

Day 2 of the Rule of Law as Lawfare Conference featured speeches by István Stumpf, a former justice on the Constitutional Court of Hungary, Aleksander Stępkowski, Supreme Court of Poland justice, and Dr Reinhard Merkel, law professor at Universität Hamburg.

On the first day of the Rule of Law as Lawfare Conference experts such as Minister of European Union Affairs János Bóka of Hungary and MEP Ryszard Legutko of Poland discussed how the legal concept of the rule of law has been turned into a political weapon by EU bodies, and analysed the double standards applied to different Member States with rule of law assessment procedures.

Professor Gottfried sat down for an insightful, two-hour discussion with host Meg Hansen of the Danube Institute, in which they covered topics such as the different branches of American conservatism, the current state of the political right in the United States, and ‘paleoconservatism’, a term coined by Professor Gottfried himself.

‘The phenomenon of the conservative revolution was partly a consequence of the collapse of the German state (formed in the 19th century by Bismarckian ‘state-building) after the First World War, and was born out of its internal and external crisis, its defeat in the war. In the broader context of ideological and political history, however, the conservative revolution, albeit a cataclysmic one, cannot be seen as the consequence of a single political event.’

Roger Scruton had a special interest in and affection for Central Europe, cultivating a symbiotic relationship with the region. His work influenced the political, cultural, and social dynamics of many CEE countries just as profoundly as they shaped his own work and worldview. In tribute to the British conservative philosopher, a conference was held in Budapest, with a specific focus on Scruton’s ties to Central Europe.

Spengler’s work has not lost any relevance over the century that has passed since it was released, but rather has become increasingly significant: it is now one of the inescapable foundations of the philosophy of history. Many of the predictions concerning the fate of humanity—especially the distinctions Spengler drew between culture and civilization—do not seem to contradict the major ideological, political, artistic, cultural, social, and economic trends of the present day.

Discussing philosophy in general and whether it should be incorporated in education is an everyday topic. In this interview, Cornell University professor Barry Strauss delves into the issue, explaining why philosophy is essential in universities, and also shares his take on AI being used in the classroom.

In Scruton’s philosophy…the social practice of legislation and jurisdiction could not be realized outside the national framework, because—regardless to their origins—the interpretation and the enforcement of the set of legal rules and moral duties, even human rights, are bound to nation states…

The high-profile conference on education continued with its second day at the MCC Budapest campus, with another slew of illustrious expert guests sharing their knowledge and opinions regarding the role of family versus the role of a school in a child’s education, the role of philosophy in education, and the current state of print books.

‘Before the corrosive spirit of purely rational analysis without synthesis became widespread, societies were conservative because they perceived the non-variable essence behind phenomena not only through their most eminent intellectuals but also collectively. The ‘‘men of the spirit’’ in each age had a particular connection with this spiritual essence, a relationship of a different quality than most of society. This is the origin of true priesthood and also of true ‘‘intellectuality’’.’

One simply cannot put something as complexly different as the Chinese intellectual field onto either the American left–right axis or the West-European ideological taxonomy. Ultimately, the Chinese field is a different world, albeit one that bears affinities with, and shows much interest in, us Western conservatives.

The inherent dilemma regarding the rules of engagement in a just war is that they tend to become either vague or restrictive when military operations fail to achieve victory or a ceasefire leading to peace.

The brand new edition of our magazine features a piece by Miklós Szánthó, director general of the Center for Fundamental Rights, who wrote about the subversive nature and history of the new Woke ideology; as well as a statistical analysis of the difference in the ways democracies and autocracies wage war by political scientist and military historian Bruce Oliver Newsome, and two Christmas-themed articles as well, as per the holiday season. You can pick up the latest edition of Hungarian Conservative magazine at your local bookstore or newspaper stand; or, subscribe to our quarterly magazine on our website to make sure you never miss an issue.

‘The duality of God and man is the most fundamental reality of existence: a reality which can structure and constitute all relations of human beings. This principal duality is the source of everything: epistemology, ontology, moral philosophy, politics, and—of course, as Martin Buber said before—the “Ich und Du” relationship is the source of the true philosophy of religion and theology. This point of view is close to the most fundamental personalities of modern Catholic thought, and the philosophy of neo-Thomists such as Jaques Maritain and Étienne Gilson. According to Molnar, this “I and Thou” is the message which the true Christian philosopher has to protect against modernity’s aggressive immanentism, which could be materialist or spiritualist, too. The essence of this immanentism is the dissolution of transcendence into man’s imaginary “divinity”—to reach the deification of the world.’

‘What is less known is that Tsiolkovsky essentially wrote his groundbreaking contributions to rocket theory as supplementary notes to his philosophy of space exploration, which was the primary focus of his attention and consumed most of his efforts. What is even less acknowledged is that the philosophical foundations of his framework had an inalienable influence of Christianity that played an important role in shaping his perspective, a fact which Tsiolkovsky himself recognized.’

‘For Gyula Tellér, humanity, nation, education, and critical thinking were the core values. First and foremost, he believed in humanity, as well as in civilization and its achievement. He believed in the human being as an individual who is able to contribute to society, and who takes responsibility for his own actions.la

‘The term “liberal” was undoubtedly originally associated with the aristocratic spirit of freedom and generosity (in Latin: liberalitas), which, recognizing a natural hierarchy among individual beings, finds diversity welcome and does not desire to make things equal in all circumstances. Since many of the theoreticians of liberalism did not take this principle into account, it can be derived that most liberals strongly oppose the principle of authority.’

Tom Holland, the British author argues in his book, Dominion, that even the most fervent Western secular humanists are deeply influenced by Christian values, perhaps more so than they might be willing to acknowledge.

‘Transhumanism—at least in the form in which it is represented and explained by Harari—stands, above all, on the ground of anti-religion. The mechanical man, who becomes immortal, as the meaning and purpose of history, is above all the opposite of the eschatological perspectives of all religions.’

The brand new edition of our magazine features articles by famous American columnist Rod Dreher, advisor to the European Parliament and Ludovika University of Public Service researcher Lénárd Sándor, and Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business professor Ray Kinsella; as well as an interview with French historian of philosophy Professor Rémi Brague. You can pick up the latest edition of Hungarian Conservative magazine at your local bookstore or newspaper stand; or, you can subscribe to our quarterly magazine on our website to make sure you never miss an issue.

Fundamental rights and their supplementary responsibilities are essential parts of our culture and heritage, the speakers at the Mathias Corvinus Collegium’s (MCC) conference on human rights agreed. The event examined the process of the distortion of the idea of human rights as well as the vital role of sovereignty and subsidiarity in enforcing them.

Hamvas’ focus on metaphysical questions in the field of philosophy did not simply stem from his belief in God or his religious predisposition, but rather from this critical attitude towards modern natural science, from a ‘scepticism against scepticism.’

It takes courage to see which situations and expectations the conservative should reject. And it takes courage to say ‘no’. The dilemma of when courage is appropriate and when moderation is needed is not logically insolvable. In the words of Winston Churchill: ‘It is better to be both right and consistent. But if you have to choose—you must choose to be right.’

‘Nachtmann argues that due to the important role the state had in Hegel’s thinking, it can be described as having both right-wing and left-wing components. It, however, stands in stark opposition to liberalism.

For liberals, the individual is a phenomenon standing alone by itself, envisioned as isolated. However, for Hegel, individuals only existed as part of the community, family, and nation.’

‘If a society is exhausted in immanence, if people are not aware of the finitude of their own life, knowledge, and power, and if every goal of the person, the state, and politics is directed towards material interests, then the state will be exactly that Civitas Terrena, which is also Civitas Diaboli. Everything is justified by the stronger interest (Hobbes), pragmatism and secular science serve the immanent power goals of the great Leviathan, while real wisdom, taste, and arts, that make life pleasant (or just bearable) start to decline, wither, dissolve into a gigantically increased bureaucracy called the state.’

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the work is that its author is brave enough to challenge completely the established thinking and vision that takes historical progress and the associated rise of liberalism for granted.

Since its inception, the left has seen the school as an important means of ‘enlightening’ people and creating a new world. The anti-school, anti-knowledge, and anti-teacher sentiments of former Chairman of the Communist Party of China Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution and of its Western importers, the ‘68ers have spread everywhere before our eyes over the last two decades.