The continuous disasters of man's history are mainly due to his excessive capacity and urge to become identified with a tribe, nation, church or cause, and to espouse its credo uncritically and enthusiastically, even if its tenets are contrary to reason, devoid of self-interest and detrimental to the claims of self-preservation.We are thus driven to the unfashionable conclusion that the trouble with our species is not an excess of aggression, but an excess capacity for fanatical devotion.
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We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the read more
We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe.
Nothing has an uglier look to us than reason, when it is not on our side.
Nothing has an uglier look to us than reason, when it is not on our side.
Any act often repeated soon forms a habit; and habit allowed, steady gains in strength, At first it may be read more
Any act often repeated soon forms a habit; and habit allowed, steady gains in strength, At first it may be but as a spider's web, easily broken through, but if not resisted it soon binds us with chains of steel.
It is loneliness that makes the loudest noise. This is true of men as of dogs.
It is loneliness that makes the loudest noise. This is true of men as of dogs.
There are many who find the burdens, the anxiety, and the isolation of an individual existence unbearable. This is particularly read more
There are many who find the burdens, the anxiety, and the isolation of an individual existence unbearable. This is particularly true when the opportunities for self-advancement are relatively meager, and one's individual interests and prospects do not seem worth living for. Such persons sooner or later turn their backs on an individual existence and strive to acquire a sense of worth and a purpose by an identification with a holy cause, a leader, or a movement. The faith and pride they derive from such an identification serve them as substitutes for the unattainable self-confidence and self-respect.
The less satisfaction we derive from being ourselves, the greater is our desire to be like others.
The less satisfaction we derive from being ourselves, the greater is our desire to be like others.
He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is the greatest innovator.
He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is the greatest innovator.
When you learn not to want things so badly, life comes to you.
When you learn not to want things so badly, life comes to you.
The mentality of an army on the march is merely so much delayed adolescence; it remains persistently, incorrigibly and notoriously read more
The mentality of an army on the march is merely so much delayed adolescence; it remains persistently, incorrigibly and notoriously infantile.
