Posted by rpcman on April 14, 1998 at 15:32:42:
I'm currently reading an excellent book by Nobel Prize winning Richard P. Feynman. In it he states,
"Looking back at the worst times, it always seems that they were times in which there were people who believed with absolute faith and absolute dogmatism in something. And they were so serious in this matter that they insisted that the rest of the world agree with them. And then they would do things that were directly inconsistent with their own beliefs in order to maintain that what they said was true."
For former Mormons reading this, it obviously leaps out as something all too familiar. We were taught to be honest, etc. but then we are almost forced to do the direct opposite in order to protect the dogma. You see this to a lesser degree in various fields and aspects of life.
Anyway, this is a great book for anyone interested in the ideas expressed on the site. Feynman discusses the importance of admitting ignorance and uncertainty with regard to beliefs--even those based on evidence. It is through this process that individuals (and societies) change for the better and progress.