Since today is Sunday, I found a great quote from the Bible to go along with the Asimov quote that I put up recently.
Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
she raises her voice in the public square;
on top of the wall she cries out,
at the city gate she makes her speech:
“How long will you who are simple love your simple ways?
How long will mockers delight in mockery
and fools hate knowledge?
Repent at my rebuke!
Then I will pour out my thoughts to you,
I will make known to you my teachings.
But since you refuse to listen when I call
and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,
since you disregard all my advice
and do not accept my rebuke,
I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you;
I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
---Proverbs 1 V 20-27
A nice set up for a climate change post later in the week.
5 comments:
That is a profoundly ironic tag (anti-intellectualism) to hang on a post of Biblical verse. And to do so utterly unselfconsciously - wow.
It's a nice sentiment, but somehow I doubt the knowledge and wisdom the author was talking about was evolution, climate science and immunology.
The second half of the proverb expresses the same smug, self-satisfied air of superiority that people like Michele Bachmann, Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell did, when they say that god sets hurricanes, earthquakes and 9/11 upon us when we "disregard their advice."
The problem with biblical quotes is that everyone uses them to justify their beliefs, even when they are in total opposition to beliefs others hold just as strongly. Biblical verse is allegorical and poetical, and though it often provides psychological insight into the human condition, it is sadly lacking in logical and evidence.
The real problem is that we, as a people, value too much the idea of strength of faith, and we admire people who have an overabundance of confidence. Confident people are no more likely to have the answer than people who are beset by doubts. They don't make better decisions. But they make decisions quickly, and we foolishly think that speed equals quality.
George Bush had plenty of confidence, and made decisions quickly. He was the Decider. But the sad truth is that most of his decisions were wrong.
The second half of the proverb expresses the same smug, self-satisfied air of superiority that people like Michele Bachmann, Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell did
Yep, but smug self-righteousness is no more attractive when practiced by folks of liberal/left beliefs. That is why you resent folks who do it better than you.
How ironic that you claim we are the fools, even as you are in the process of demonstrating that you are a fool. Take a look at this verse:
A fool does not delight in understanding,
But only in revealing his own mind.
— Proverbs 18:2
The post where you started your demonstration is here.
Be sure to check the comments where Mark and his posse demonstrate their unwillingness to pursue understanding.
The first tool of gaining knowledge is asking questions designed to elicit information. Mark rarely asks questions, and when he does, they're almost always rhetorical questions.
Or how about comparing this one to your notion that it's okay for the government to continue borrowing money forever:
The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.
— Psalms 37:21
Or this one:
“For the LORD your God will bless you as He has promised you, and you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow; and you will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you.”
— Deuteronomy 15:6
Is the U.S. in such a position of blessing? Don't you think that needing to borrow has anything at all to do with spending money we don't have?
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