For a couple of years, I’ve been fascinated by the conservative fascination with the writer Wendell Berry. So I recently visited with him and wrote a profile for National Review. This morning, we put it on the interwebs. An excerpt:
What’s going on here? Why has this market-bashing prophet of ecological doom won so many fans on the right? On June 17, I drove to Berry’s home in Port Royal, Ky., to find out. He welcomes visitors on Sundays. “There ought to be a day when you don’t work,” he says. He’s well known for these engagements, and for years admirers have made pilgrimages, seeking conversation or advice. On my visit, we sit on his front porch, discussing his life, his books, and his views on everything from farm policy to gay marriage.