Journals of Lord Malinov

the poetry of madness

passions

A wise scientist fellow, speaking about lake monsters and sea serpents, saith something like . . .

Never listen to a passionate believer describe the evidence.  Their passion can be convincing, but only the evidence can provide proof.  Evaluate the evidence yourself, with an objective mind.  Would you be convinced by the evidence if your life depended on it?

It occured to me that we praise passionate speakers, for their ability to inspire emotions within us.  But passion and factual analysis are synchronously incompatible.  We follow emotions in contexts where reason would be more reliable.

Civilizations fall because all the smart people die.  One of the unfortunate consequences of rational government is that the smart people tend to fear the other smart people and often kill them.  When too many smart people die, the civilization crumbles.  It has happened all through history, all over the globe. 

Keep the smart people alive, if we can.  It can help our survival.

Malinov

posted by: Malinov at 12:48 | link | comments (4) |

Comments:

#1  14 September 2005 - 10:37

 

I couldn't agree more with your wise scientist fellow..

denimfairy

#2  14 September 2005 - 12:09

 

Sometimes, I think that civilizations die because all the smart people say "to hell with it" and go lock themselves in their rooms and paint. They die because of the tendency for people who are routinely ignored to ultimately consider themselves to be something separate, and apart, rather than an element of the civilization. Do I really want to be a part of this? No one listens anyway. How many times do you fortell disaster, and then forgive them for ignoring you? How many times until you have no sympathy left, at all?

SianNorah

#3  15 September 2005 - 14:22

 

"Never listen to a passionate believer describe the evidence."

So true. Just what I think when I see your comments about your sweet former wife. Loved the cowboy hat.

Mo'nonymous

#4  15 September 2005 - 16:01

 

If you come to a blog seeking evidence, you are very confused. Sweet? Cowboy hat? You must have the wrong number.

M.

Malinov

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