1,339 books
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5,885 voters
Simon deVeer
http://www.simonsaystraining.com
the odds are overwhelming that you will die as a result of one of the chronic diseases of aging that I call the Four Horsemen: heart disease, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, or type 2 diabetes and related metabolic dysfunction. To
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“Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than malice. One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion in that it leaves behind in human beings at least a sense of unease. Against stupidity we are defenseless. Neither protests nor the use of force accomplish anything here; reasons fall on deaf ears; facts that contradict one’s prejudgment simply need not be believed – in such moments the stupid person even becomes critical – and when facts are irrefutable they are just pushed aside as inconsequential, as incidental. In all this the stupid person, in contrast to the malicious one, is utterly self satisfied and, being easily irritated, becomes dangerous by going on the attack. For that reason, greater caution is called for when dealing with a stupid person than with a malicious one. Never again will we try to persuade the stupid person with reasons, for it is senseless and dangerous.”
― Letters and Papers from Prison
― Letters and Papers from Prison
“My friend,” he whispered, “I cannot tell you how to live differently because, if I did, you would still be living another’s design.”
― When Nietzsche Wept
― When Nietzsche Wept
“Your task is to accept yourself—not to find ways to gain my acceptance.”
― When Nietzsche Wept
― When Nietzsche Wept
“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction (i.e., the reality of experience) and the distinction between true and false (i.e., the standards of thought) no longer exist.”
― The Origins of Totalitarianism
― The Origins of Totalitarianism
“It seems that nothing is more difficult for the average man to bear than the feeling of not being identified with a larger group.”
― Escape from Freedom
― Escape from Freedom
Simon’s 2025 Year in Books
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