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Quote by Barbara Tuchman

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The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam

This book delves into a series of historical events, from the fall of Troy to the Vietnam War, to illustrate the consequences of folly in leadership. It examines the roots of these mistakes and their impact on societies and nations. more

Author

Barbara Tuchman
Barbara Tuchman

Barbara Tuchman was an American historian renowned for her in-depth research and vivid narrative style. Her works covered historical events from the Roman Empire to the 20th century, with 'Guns, Germs, and Steel' and 'The Guns of August' being particularly notable. more

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“In America, where the electoral process is drowning in commercial techniques of fund-raising and image-making, we may have completed a circle back to a selection process as unconcerned with qualifications as that which made Darius King of Persia. ... he whose horse was the first to neigh at sunrise should be King.”

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Author:Barbara Tuchman
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“Wooden-headedness, the source of self-deception, is a factor that plays a remarkably large role in government. It consists in assessing a situation in terms of preconceived fixed notions while ignoring or rejecting any contrary signs. It is acting according to wish while not allowing oneself to be deflected by the facts.”

ThinkingSelfPlayFactsGovernmentWishTermActingSituationRolesSourceNotionOneselfContraryFactorsDeceptionFixedAllowingSelf DeceptionWishful ThinkingRejectingAssessing
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“Policy is formed by preconceptions, by long implanted biases. When information is relayed to policy-makers, they respond in terms of what is already inside their heads and consequently make policy less to fit the facts than to fit the notions and intentions formed out of the mental baggage that has accumulated in their minds since childhood.”

MindLongFactsGovernmentTermChildhoodInformationPolicyFitIntentionNotionMakersBaggagePreconceptionsPolicy Makers
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