Second Baron David Trefgarne ’63 of the British House of Lords is likely among the nicest fellow alumni I might ever meet (“Legislation Ends 64-Year Run in the House of Lords,” June issue). Yet he is reported as “one of the most ardent defenders of hereditary peerages.” Today, in this 21st century, one questions his quizzical convictions.
The 18th century pamphleteer Thomas Paine put up a convincing argument against such outdated thinking (like that of the Second Baron), succinctly summarizing it in his seminal and purposeful publication “Common Sense.”
Mr. Paine’s argument proved so persuasively powerful that an entire nation (our own), was founded on its principles. One suspects that the Good Baron (when enrolled as an undergraduate) did not capitalize particularly on the depth of course offerings in the Department of History.
Second Baron David Trefgarne ’63 of the British House of Lords is likely among the nicest fellow alumni I might ever meet (“Legislation Ends 64-Year Run in the House of Lords,” June issue). Yet he is reported as “one of the most ardent defenders of hereditary peerages.” Today, in this 21st century, one questions his quizzical convictions.
The 18th century pamphleteer Thomas Paine put up a convincing argument against such outdated thinking (like that of the Second Baron), succinctly summarizing it in his seminal and purposeful publication “Common Sense.”
Mr. Paine’s argument proved so persuasively powerful that an entire nation (our own), was founded on its principles. One suspects that the Good Baron (when enrolled as an undergraduate) did not capitalize particularly on the depth of course offerings in the Department of History.