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Ignorance Quotes

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Ignorance Quotes

“Every intervention of man in the environment around him incurs some risk as to both favorable and unfavorable consequences. Every intervention is taken in the face of partial ignorance as to what its effects will be and involves uncertainty as to the ultimate outcome.”

Men Faces Taken Environment Risk Effects Ignorance Consequence Ultimate Environmental Uncertainty Outcomes Intervention

Book:Geography, Resources and Environment, Volume 1: Selected Writings of Gilbert F. White

Source: Geography, Resources and Environment, Volume 1: Selected Writings of Gilbert F. White

“Persecution always says, 'I know the consequences of your opinion better than you know them yourselves.' But the language of toleration was always amicable, liberal, and just: it confessed its doubts, and acknowledged its ignorance ... Persecution had always reasoned from cause to effect, from opinion to action, [that such an opinion would invariably lead to but one action], which proved generally erroneous; while toleration led us invariably to form just conclusions, by judging from actions and not from opinions.”

Knows Action Form Language Causes Opinion Doubt Effects Ignorance Judging Consequence Conclusion Persecution Better Than You Toleration

Author:Charles James Fox

“If we define a miracle as an effect of which the cause is unknown to us, then we make our ignorance the source of miracles! And the universe itself would be a standing miracle. A miracle might be perhaps defined more exactly as an effect which is not the consequence or effect of any known laws of nature.”

Ifs Might Would Be Law Universe Causes Known Effects Ignorance Source Consequence Standing Miracle Defined Laws Of Nature

Author:Charles Babbage

“Human rights are an aspect of natural law, a consequence of the way the universe works, as solid and as real as photons or the concept of pi. The idea of self- ownership is the equivalent of Pythagoras' theorem, of evolution by natural selection, of general relativity, and of quantum theory. Before humankind discovered any of these, it suffered, to varying degrees, in misery and ignorance.”

“When it happeneth that a man signifieth unto us two contradictory opinions whereof the one is clearly and directly signified, andthe other either drawn from that by consequence, or not known to be contradictory to it; then (when he is not present to explicate himself better) we are to take the former of his opinions; for that is clearly signified to be his, and directly, whereas the other might proceed from error in the deduction, or ignorance of the repugnancy.”

Men Two Might Language Known Opinion Ignorance Consequence Errors Former Interpretation Contradictory Deductions Hermeneutics

Book:The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic: Part I, Human Nature, Part II, De Corpore Politico ; with Three Lives

Source: The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic: Part I, Human Nature, Part II, De Corpore Politico ; with Three Lives

“But they that hold God to be [an incorporeal substance]do absolutely make God to be nothing at all. But how? Were they atheists? No. For though by ignorance of the consequence they said that which was equivalent to atheism, yet in their hearts they thought God a substanceSo that this atheism by consequence is a very easy thing to be fallen into, even by the most godly men of the church.”

Men Heart Said Easy Church Atheism Ignorance Consequence Atheist Substance Fallen They Said Godly Easy Things Godly Man

Author:Thomas Hobbes

“Political conflict rests to a very large extent on a universal ignorance of consequences, as the people who are benefited by any particular act or policy are rarely those who struggled for it, and the people who are injured are rarely those who opposed it.”

People Political Policy Ignorance Particular Conflict Consequence Universal Injured

Author:Kenneth E. Boulding

“I believe order is better than chaos, creation better than destruction. I prefer gentleness to violence, forgiveness to vendetta. On the whole I think that knowledge is preferable to ignorance, and I am sure that human sympathy is more valuable than ideology. I believe that in spite of the recent triumphs of science, men haven't changed much in the last two thousand years; and in consequence we must try to learn from history.”

“For me, 9/11 was a game changer. It altered my perception of the security threat we faced. I took the position that Britain should be shoulder to shoulder with the U.S. It was a big decision; I didn't take it lightly, or in ignorance of its consequences. It's a big commitment for a country to give, but I believed it was the right thing to do.”

Giving Should Country Bigs Games Decision Security Position Ignorance Perception Commitment Consequence Threat Shoulders Things To Do Right Thing Britain Altered Big Decisions Game Changers

Author:Tony Blair

“The consequences of whiteness are particularly lethal right now. And the ignorance about it, especially on the part of white people themselves, makes them unavoidably complicit in a system that has to be unmasked, unveiled, undressed in order to be reformed or destroyed.”

People Order White Ignorance Right Now Consequence Destroyed Whiteness

Author:Michael Eric Dyson

“In Buddhist teaching, ignorance is considered the fundamental cause of violence - ignorance... about the separation of self and other... about the consequences of our actions.”

Self Action Causes Violence Teaching Ignorance Consequence Fundamentals Separation Buddhist Our Actions Consequences Of Our Actions

Author:Sharon Salzberg

“Actions have consequences. Ignorance about the nature of those actions does not free a person from responsibility for the consequences. (28)”

Persons Doe Action Responsibility Ignorance Consequence Actions Have Consequences

Author:Stephen Dobyns