Over at Quadrant, Theodore Dalrymple considers the great cultural accomplishments of European civilization against the backdrop of recent obnoxious acts of green radicals and SJW extremists.

Suppose that mankind had always applied its efforts strictly according to the most pressing needs of the time, that is to say according to the values of the contemporary equivalents of those who stick themselves to the walls of art galleries, what of value would it ever have bequeathed to subsequent generations?