Louis Proyect died last Saturday. An announcement is posted on his webpage, which I didn't see until today.
I'm not the person to eulogize him. I never met him personally, and am not familiar with the details of his life. But even from afar, I found him in many ways to be an admirable man.
He had no academic rank, and as far as I know never attended grad school. The man earned an honest living. Yet he was a master historian--mostly self-taught. His lack of academic standing freed him from the corrupting constraints of tenure committees, funding agencies and journal reviewers. He was free to tell the truth as he saw it. He was very knowledgeable about Syria, disagreeing with many of his Leftist friends. I considered him the go-to source for factual information on that conflict.
His blog was wonderful. Very few people can turn a personal blog into an important success--but Mr. Proyect did so, without in any way sullying his reputation by trying to monetize it. He was early to the web, and among its most resourceful users.
He was an excellent writer. Given the quantity of output it must have come easy to him. His work was always clear and entertaining.
Obviously, I did not share his Leftist/Socialist sympathies. I especially objected to his opinions on environmental issues, about which I thought him ill-informed.
As a polemicist, I often thought his arguments were too ad hominem. Instead of addressing issues, he simply lobbed insults at his interlocutors. Entertaining? Yes. Helpful? No.
Had I known he was dying I likely would not have published my most recent essay--very discourteous but written tongue-in-cheek. Though I don't feel too bad--Mr. Proyect sure could dish it out. I assume he could take it as well.
I will miss Mr. Proyect. His blog was always food for thought, and often fodder for a blog post as well. The world is poorer without him.
Further Reading:
I believe Louis attended the New School after he graduated Bard. Don't know if he got a degree from there.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very respectful and generous tribute to the guy, by the way. I tangled with him more than once, but the world will be poorer without him.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteI agree this is a good tribute to him. A fair review. His ad hominem attacks were quite common.
Deletehttps://theunionofworkers.wordpress.com/2021/08/30/the-lonesome-death-of-louis-proyect/
ReplyDeleteI just came across this nasty "tribute" to Louis Proyect. David Rowlands is one of a group of sad-sack alumni of the SWP who lurk Facebook defending their former organization (actual members of the SWP are forbidden to participate in social media.)
"Sad sack" seems like a fair description.
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