Thomas Sowell ( 10 of 95 )
What is history but the story of how politicians have squandered the blood and treasure of the human race.
What is history but the story of how politicians have squandered the blood and treasure of the human race.
The growing complexity of science, technology, and organization does not imply either a growing knowledge or a growing need for read more
The growing complexity of science, technology, and organization does not imply either a growing knowledge or a growing need for knowledge in the general population. On the contrary, the increasingly complex processes tend to lead to increasingly simple and easily understood products. The genius of mass production is precisely in its making more products more accessible, both economically and intellectually to more people.
There are few things more dishonorable than misleading the young.
There are few things more dishonorable than misleading the young.
People who have time on their hands will inevitably waste the time of people who have work to do.
People who have time on their hands will inevitably waste the time of people who have work to do.
Considering the enormous range of human knowledge, from intimate personal knowledge of specific individuals to the complexities of organizations and read more
Considering the enormous range of human knowledge, from intimate personal knowledge of specific individuals to the complexities of organizations and the subtleties of feelings, it is remarkable that one speck in this firmament should be the sole determinant of whether someone is considered knowledgeable or ignorant in general. Yet it is a fact of life that an unlettered person is considered ignorant, however much he may know about nature and man, and a Ph.D. is never considered ignorant, however barren his mind might be outside his narrow specialty and however little he grasps about human feeling or social complexities.
We should listen first and foremost to our own experience...We should stop looking for saviors... Society has not existed for read more
We should listen first and foremost to our own experience...We should stop looking for saviors... Society has not existed for thousands of years because it had a succession of saviors. It's existed because it has institutions and processes through which people can realize their own goals.
The most fundamental fact about the ideas of the political left is that they do not work. Therefore we should read more
The most fundamental fact about the ideas of the political left is that they do not work. Therefore we should not be surprised to find the left concentrated in institutions where ideas do not have to work in order to survive.
The principles applied in economic processes are general social principles.
The principles applied in economic processes are general social principles.
Prices are important not because money is considered paramount but because prices are a fast and effective conveyor of information read more
Prices are important not because money is considered paramount but because prices are a fast and effective conveyor of information through a vast society in which fragmented knowledge must be coordinated.
While rationalism at the individual level is a plea for more personal autonomy from cultural norms, at the social level read more
While rationalism at the individual level is a plea for more personal autonomy from cultural norms, at the social level it is often a claim- or arrogation- of power to stifle the autonomy of others.
