Monday 17 March 2014

Hegel's Philosophy Of The State

Such is Hegel's doctrine of the State — a doctrine, which, if accepted, justifies every internal tyranny and every external aggression that can possibly be imagined.  The strength of his bias appears in the fact that his theory is largely inconsistent with his own metaphysic, and that the inconsistencies are such as tend to the justification of cruelty and international brigandage.  A man may be pardoned if logic compels him regretfully to reach conclusions he deplores, but not for departing from logic in order to be free to advocate crimes.
 — Bertrand Russell History Of Western Philosophy (p711)

Sunday 16 March 2014

Hegel's Philosophy Of History

Like other historical theories, it required, if it was to be made plausible, some distortion of the facts and considerable ignorance.  Hegel, like Marx and Spengler after him, possessed both these qualifications.
 — Bertrand Russell History Of Western Philosophy (p705)

Saturday 15 March 2014

Afflict The Comfortable

In all life one should comfort the afflicted, but verily, also, 
one should afflict the comfortable, and especially 
when they are comfortably, contentedly, even happily wrong.
 — John Kenneth Galbraith

Friday 14 March 2014

Chief Exploitative Officers

The salary of the chief executive of a large corporation is not a market award for achievement. 
It is frequently in the nature of a warm personal gesture by the individual to himself.
 — John Kenneth Galbraith

Saturday 1 March 2014

Spread The Word

Knowledge is like manure, only good when it is spread around.