"If one destroyed in museums and libraries, if one hurled down on the flagstones before the churches all the works and all the monuments of art that religions have inspired, what would remain of the great dreams of humanity? To give to men that portion of hope and illusion without which they cannot live, such is the reason for the existence of gods, heroes, and poets. During fifty years science appeared to undertake this task. But science has been compromised in hearts hungering after the ideal, because it does not dare to be lavish enough of promises, because it cannot lie."
Gustave Le Bon quoting Daniel Lesueur (Jeanne Lapauze) in -
The Crowd; study of the popular mind (1895)
In which case, science must be made to lie in the interests of ruling elites. Ruling elites have no use for science as a secure knowledge culture which cannot lie, especially as the cold blue light of reason could be turned on their lies.
In which case, science must be made to lie in the interests of ruling elites. Ruling elites have no use for science as a secure knowledge culture which cannot lie, especially as the cold blue light of reason could be turned on their lies.
Science wasn’t lavish enough of promises and has become less lavish in recent decades, but its great fault is the same as it was in Le Bon's day - as a knowledge culture it cannot lie. The favoured approach to fixing this fault has long been familiar to us.
2 comments:
It may be that science cannot lie but, by God, it turned out that The Science did little else.
dearieme - yes 'The Science' is virtually a mendacity warning.
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