Assault on reason

《Assault on reason》由会员上传分享，免费在线阅读，更多相关内容在学术论文-天天文库。

1、TheAssaultonReason–ChapterOne:ThePoliticsofFearAlGoreFearisthemostpowerfulenemyofreason.Bothfearandreasonareessentialtohumansurvival,buttherelationshipbetweenthemisunbalanced.Reasonmaysometimesdissipatefear,butfearfrequentlyshutsdownreason.AsEdmundBurkewroteinEngl

2、andtwentyyearsbeforetheAmericanRevolution,“Nopassionsoeffectuallyrobsthemindofallitspowersofactingandreasoningasfear.”OurFoundershadahealthyrespectforthethreatfearposestoreason.Theyknewthat,undertherightcircumstances,fearcantriggerthetemptationtosurrenderfreedomtoa

3、demagoguepromisingstrengthandsecurityinreturn.Theyworriedthatwhenfeardisplacesreason,theresultisoftenirrationalhatredanddivision.AsJusticeLouisD.Brandeislaterwrote:“Menfearedwitchesandburntwomen.”Understandingthisunequalrelationshipbetweenfearandreasonwascrucialto

4、thedesignofAmericanself-government.OurFoundersrejecteddirectdemocracybecauseofconcernsthatfearmightoverwhelmreflectivethought.Buttheycountedheavilyontheabilityofa“well-informedcitizenry”toreasontogetherinwaysthatwouldminimizethedestructiveimpactofillusory,exaggerat

5、ed,orexcessivefears.“Whenamanseriouslyreflectsontheprecariousnessofhumanaffairs,hewillbecomeconvincedthatitisinfinitelywiserandsafertoformaconstitutionofourowninacooldeliberatemanner,whilewehaveitinourpower,”wroteThomasPaineinhislegendarypamphletCommonSense,specifical

6、lywarningthattheFoundersshouldnottaketheriskofwaitinguntilsomefearseizedthepublicimagination,inwhicheventtheirreasoningprocesseswouldbehampered.Nationssucceedorfailanddefinetheiressentialcharacterbythewaytheychallengetheunknownandcopewithfear.Andmuchdependsonthequa

7、lityoftheirleadership.Ifleadersexploitpublicfearstoherdpeopleindirectionstheymightnototherwisechoose,thenfearitselfcanquicklybecomeaself-perpetuatingandfreewheelingforcethatdrainsnationalwillandweakensnationalcharacter,divertingattentionfromrealthreatsdeservingofh

8、ealthyandappropriatefearandsowingconfusionabouttheessentialchoicesthateverynationmustconstantlymakeaboutitsfuture.Leadershipmeansinspiringustomanagethro