2,122 words
If civilizations change over millennia, why does the modern world believe they can change in decades? Part of the answer lies in how difficult it is to understand societies fundamentally different from one’s own. Another lies in human psychology: intelligent people struggle to understand stupidity, and compassionate people struggle to understand malice. And modern Westerners approach the Third World with intellectual handicaps—many of them newly acquired. (more…)
2,035 words
Modern people—particularly the university-educated, raised in predictable urban environments in relative comfort—live inside a powerful illusion: the belief that societies can change quickly.
We are surrounded by examples that condition us to think this way. Within a few decades, countries have gone from wretched poverty and primitive existence to rapid economic growth, and from illiteracy to seeming technical sophistication. (more…)
921 words
It is difficult for people to accept harsh realities after exposure to the truth, but at some point, one must embrace the facts of life. Early in life, I was taught by discerning adults that blacks have a different psychology from other races. Though such arguments were intriguing, I viewed them as sweeping generalizations. (more…)