Jonathan Bowden’s Correspondence with Greg Johnson, 2012

1,792 words

Edited by Greg Johnson

Editor’s Note

What follows is all my extant correspondence with Jonathan Bowden from the beginning of 2012 to his untimely death on March 29th—and after, because I sent him a couple of emails before learning late in April that he was gone.

This correspondence deals primarily with Jonathan’s visit to California in February of 2012 to speak at a Counter-Currents Retreat.

As far as I know, this is all of our correspondence from the time, but it is not a complete record of our interactions because in late 2011, Jonathan and I began talking regularly on the telephone.

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

Date: Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:01:02 -0800
Subject: CC retreat

Dear Jonathan,

I went to the airport today and scouted out locations. I think the best thing to do is to wait for you at the baggage carousel for your flight. I will have my cell phone on me: 404-xxx-xxxx. Once we meet, I will get Mike to pick us up in our car (he will park nearby and wait to hear from me).

Could you bring the Medusa Now Ventrix painting with you?

I look forward to seeing you again.

All the best,
Greg

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

1/16/2012, 3:42 PM
CC Retreat

Dear Greg,

Thanks for your recent e-mail . . . yes, I think the best thing to do is to arrive at San Francisco airport, collect my bags and wait for you in the area where they’re disgorged. I do have a mobile phone but I doubt that it will operate in the United States. The number is:

(xxxxx) xxxxxx.

The picture which you suggest should prove difficult to transport given that it’s on hard-board (so can’t be folded over) but I think that I’ll manage it alright in a hard plastic art-folder.

On other fronts, I’ve started doing a weekly podcast for Alternativeright.com. There are four of them out there this minute. They are on Nietzsche, the left, the European New Right, and libertarianism, respectively. You might like to have a look at them. I asked Richard whether you could make use of them at Counter-Currents and he said ‘yes’ as long as Alternative Right was credited as the source. Please wait twenty-four hours before making use of any new material. Apparently it’s gone down well, and there have been thousands of downloads already. It may be an idea to run them on Counter-Currents as well, I doubt that the audience base for either web-site is identical, and you don’t have to technically do the talks yourself. It’s just an idea. What do you think?

Otherwise, I look forward to seeing you on February the 23rd (I believe that’s the date quoting from memory). I’ll be in touch before then by e-mail just to confirm everything.

Yours ever,
Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

2/9/2012, 2:58 PM
CC Retreat

Dear Greg,

You asked for people to either forward or resubmit e-mails which fell after the the 20th of December 2011. Here is one which I sent to you on the sixteenth of January 2012. I shall be in contact between now and the 23rd of this month just to confirm everything. Best Wishes!

Yours ever,

Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

Sent: Monday, February 13, 2012 7:17 AM
Subject: My arrival next week

Dear Greg,

This is just to confirm that I will be arriving at San Francisco airport at 4.26pm on Thursday the 23rd of February on United flight 0931. I shall hope to meet you at the baggage handling section at around half past four (your time) around ten days from now. I have both of your telephone numbers stored away. In the worst possible scenario could I have an address, so that, if we missed each other, I could always hail a taxi to a viable destination and wait. This is what happened when I visited Atlanta to meet Sam Dickson in late 2009 or 2010 (I forget which).

I shall be bringing the painting you requested with me. It will cost two hundred and fifty pounds or its equivalent of 374 US Dollars. I look forward to an exciting and enjoyable trip.

Yours ever,
Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

2/17/2012, 10:53 PM
My Arrival Next Week

Dear Jonathan,

Yes, I will be there to meet you.

Here is the address: xxxx, San Francisco, xxxxx. You would tell the driver that it is in the xxxxxx District, between xxxx and xxxx avenues.

I look forward to seeing you.

I can pay you for the painting in a mixture of Pounds, Euros, and Dollars.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

2/21/2012, 6:58 PM
My Arrival Next Week

Dear Jonathan,

You will be eating breakfast with us on Friday and again on Monday. What foods and beverages should we have on hand for you?

Best,
Greg

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

2/22/2012, 1:52 PM
My Arrival Next Week

Dear Greg,

Anything reasonable—bacon and eggs, sausages, tea, coffee, croissants, you name it . . .  I would prefer not to eat baked beans, but anything else is perfectly acceptable.

Yours ever,

Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

2/29/2012, 7:49 AM
Your CC Talk

Dear Jonathan,

I hope you made it home well. We want to thank you for coming and speaking. You were a big hit, and it was really enjoyable hanging out with you.

I have edited the audio of your Santa Cruz talk (there were about 5 uhs in the whole piece).

Mike is now working on a transcription. We will send it to you for your approval.

Could you give us a title for it?

We would like to put it online later this week.

I am planning another retreat in August, and I will keep you posted about our plans.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/2/2012, 8:06 PM
Transcript of your Santa Cruz Talk

Dear Jonathan,

Mike transcribed your Santa Cruz talk. Let us know if you want any corrections.

Best,
Greg

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

Sent: Saturday, March 03, 2012 7:28 AM
Subject: My recent trip

Dear Greg,

Thanks for your recent e-mail. Yes, I really enjoyed my trip to San Francisco, especially the sight-seeing expedition which took place on Monday before I left. I will make a special point of returning to San Francisco this August if you are willing to have me at your next get together. You can call my talk “Western Civilisation Bites Back” if you like.

I shall endeavour to start writing articles for Counter-Currents again very shortly. Thanks again for your warmth, hospitality and the purchase of the computer, et cetera…

All the best for now . . .

Yours ever,
Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/3/2012, 10:26 PM
Re: My recent trip

Dear Jonathan,

Here is the url for the podcast: http://www.counter-currents.com/2012/03/jonathan-bowdens-western-civilization-bites-back/

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/4/2012, 7:38 AM
Jonathan Bowden in the Wild West, Taking Aim at the Intellectual Banalities of our Age

Dear Jonathan,

Here are the best of the pictures that Jef took. If you want to use them, we can crop them and remove the background.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/5/2012, 7:20 PM
The Air-Conditioned Nightmare

Dear Jonathan,

One of our readers would like you to review The Air-Conditioned Nightmare.

I thought I would pass the suggestion along.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/24/2012, 3:05 AM
Kerry Bolton’s ARTISTS OF THE RIGHT

Dear Jonathan,

Attached is a PDF of Kerry Bolton’s ARTISTS OF THE RIGHT. Would you be willing to write a blurb to be used on the book cover/jacket and online? In exchange, I will send you copies of the hardcover and paperback. If you can think of an additional good person to do a blurb, I would also appreciate that.

All the best,
Greg

Jonathan Bowden to Greg Johnson

3/26/2012, 4:22 PM
Kerry Bolton’s ARTISTS OF THE RIGHT

Dear Greg,

I would be delighted to do a blurb for the book you describe having read it in its original Luton Publications form.

“Kerry Bolton’s book Artists of the Right blows away the notion of right-wing philistinism and, instead, leads to a radically different assessment of the Arts during the first half of the twentieth century. For it now appears that almost every significant artist of the period (Pound, Yeats, Eliot, Lewis) rejected both materialism and the egalitarian solutions of the Left. Bolton’s analysis is brash, opinionated, peppery, honest and trail-blazing. In the biographies of his major figures he tends to include the material which is habitually left out or skirted over.” – Jonathan Bowden

I hope that you will broadcast our joint Podcast at some time in the near future. I hope that there’s no technical problem with it, because we had a very good discussion.

Yours ever,
Jonathan Bowden
www.jonathanbowden.co.uk

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/27/2012, 11:37 AM
Kerry Bolton’s ARTISTS OF THE RIGHT

Dear Jonathan,

Thanks so much for this. This is great. I would like to omit Eliot from your list, though, as he does not have a chapter in the book.

I will work up the interview I did for release sometime in April.

Your “Western Civilization Bites Back” is one of our top ten articles this month.

We are setting the dates of the next retreat for August 25 and 26. Let me know if those dates are open for you.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

3/27/2012, 11:41 AM
Bowden Transcripts x2

Dear Jonathan,

Attached are transcripts of two speeches you gave. These were sent by an English fan of yours. Could you look them over and correct them? I think they would be great to publish.

If you have access to the sound files, or know who does, please send them on, so we can put them online as well.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

4/4/2012, 11:46 PM
Writing for CC

Dear Jonathan,

What do we need to do to get you writing regularly for CC again?

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson to Jonathan Bowden

4/5/2012, 1:35 AM
Counter-Currents Summer Retreat

Jonathan,

I would like to have you on the program for the CC summer retreat in Santa Cruz, August 25 and 26. Can you commit to that? We can work out details later.

Best,
Greg

Greg Johnson’s Obituary for Jonathan Bowden

https://counter-currents.com/2012/04/remembering-jonathan-bowden/

Greg Johnson to Counter-Currents’ Writers

5/4/2012
Letter to Our Writers

Dear Friend of CC,

This is my second monthly letter to our writers and contributing editors.

This month the list is one name shorter, due to the untimely death of Jonathan Bowden. I was delighted to report in the first of these letters that Jonathan’s “Western Civilization Bites Back” was one of our most popular articles in March. But the news never reached him. I learned only later that he had already died. In memory of Jonathan, we will publish a memorial volume of some of his best lectures and interviews. We will also make all of his eBooks available for free, since his own website has been taken down. . . .