To the extent that philosophical positions both confuse us and close doors to further inquiry, they are likely to be read more

To the extent that philosophical positions both confuse us and close doors to further inquiry, they are likely to be wrong...

Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed.

Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed.

The affairs of life embrace a multitude of interests, and he who reasons in any one of them, without consulting read more

The affairs of life embrace a multitude of interests, and he who reasons in any one of them, without consulting the rest, is a visionary unsuited to control the business of the world.

The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it read more

The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new; nor can it keep people persuaded once they have ceased to believe. It penetrates into minds already open, and rather than instill opinion it articulates and justifies opinions already present in the minds of its recipients.

It is appropriate here to recall that the so-called Dark Ages began with the flight of the individuals into the read more

It is appropriate here to recall that the so-called Dark Ages began with the flight of the individuals into the protection of lords or chapters and came to an end when the individual again found it to his advantage to set forth on his own. We live at a time when everything conspires to push the individual into the fold.

Society knows perfectly well how to kill a man and has methods more subtle than death

Society knows perfectly well how to kill a man and has methods more subtle than death

Do not be in a hurry to tie what you cannot untie.

Do not be in a hurry to tie what you cannot untie.

It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds.

It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds.

Cultures contain many cues and inducements to dissuade the individual from approaching ultimate limits, in much the same way that read more

Cultures contain many cues and inducements to dissuade the individual from approaching ultimate limits, in much the same way that a special warning strip of land around the edge of a baseball field lets a player know that he is about to run into a concrete wall when he is preoccupied with catching the ball. The wider that strip of land and the more sensitive the player is to the changing composition of the ground under his feet as he pursues the ball, the more effective the warning. Romanticizing or lionizing as "individualistic" those people who disregard social cues and inducements increases the danger of head-on collisions with inherent social limits. Decrying various forms of social disapproval is in effect narrowing the warning strip.