I think Spackerman is giving Jonah Goldberg too little credit. For all we know, Goldberg is a Hegel expert. A Hegel scholar. No! A gentleman and a Hegel scholar! It's possible that Jonah has nothing but very serious, thoughtful, arguments about Hegel that have never been made in such detail or with such care. After all, he went to Goucher college, and while they don't have a philosophy department, they do have a philosophy and religion department, which includes exactly one course that mentions Hegel:
PHL 219. Nineteenth Century Philosophy (3)
Study of Kant's epistemology and Hegel's phenomenology and philosophy of history to show new confidence in reason; Nietzsche's and Kierkegaard's responses and the subsequent crisis in confidence in reason and the loss of absolute values that give rise to the issues of modern life. Readings include Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, Hegel's “Preface” to the Phenomenology of Spirit, Nietzsche's Genealogy of Morals, and Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling and Repetition. Influence of these works on psychology, social science, religion, and ethics.
It is entirely possible that Goldberg took this course, or one very much like it, while in residence at Goucher. And if spending one fourth of one course on Hegel doesn't give you standing to write books about the man and his ideas, I don't know what does.
