Anti-intellectualism has long been the anti-Semitism of the businessman.
Man generally is entangled in insoluble problems; history is consequently a tragedy in which we are all involved, whose keynote is anxiety and frustration, not progress and fulfilment.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the human condition, suggesting that we often face complex problems that lead to anxiety rather than fulfillment.
Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. highlights the inherent struggles of humanity, where individuals are caught in dilemmas that seem unsolvable. The quote suggests that instead of witnessing progress and achieving satisfaction, people are more frequently confronted with anxiety and frustration. This perspective offers a somber view of history, portraying it not as a tale of triumph but as a continuous struggle against overwhelming challenges.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used during a discussion about historical events and their impact on society.
More from Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.
All quotes βThere is no more dangerous thing for a democracy than a foreign policy based on presidential preventive war.
Science and technology revolutionize our lives, but memory, tradition and myth frame our response.
The genius of impeachment lay in the fact that it could punish the man without punishing the office.
Clarity in language depends on clarity in thought.
In view of the tide of religiosity engulfing a once secular republic it is refreshing to be reminded by Freethinkers that free thought and skepticism are robustly in the American tradition. After all the Founding Fathers began by omitting God from the American Constitution.
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To have recourse to the veracity of the supreme Being, in order to prove the veracity of our senses, is surely making a very unexpected circuit.
This very moment I may, if I desire, become the friend of God.
We are all brothers and we are all suffering the same fate. The same smoke floats over all our heads. Help one another. It is the only way to survive. (pg. 39)
If the human intellect functions, it is actually in order to solve the problems which the man's inner destiny sets it.
Intolerance is a species of violence and therefore against our creed.
In summary, Intelligence Intensification is desirable, because there is not a single problem confronting humanity that is not either caused or considerably worsened by the prevailing stupidity (insensitivity) of the species: badly wired robots bumping into and maiming and killing each other.