“It is no exaggeration to say that the history of western populism – spiritual and political – began with Paul.” He is “the cultured despiser of culture”, “a learned fanatic of the highest order”, who “held up as spiritual models innocent children, uneducated workmen, and lambs with vacant eyes, forever enshrining reverse snobbery as a Christian virtue”.
Ignorance and Bliss: On Wanting Not to Know by Mark Lilla review – the enduring power of stupidity
A New York scholar’s study of our long history of acclaiming the fool and ignoring the facts is timely and terrifically witty
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