Bertrand Russell Quote On The Paradox of Fools And Wise Men

Posted on December 28, 2011 in Quotes

The crippling wisdom and reflection of the world in one brilliant Bertrand Russell quote: “The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wise people so full of doubts.”

Enjoy this Bertrand Russell quote? Check out this fascinating video of Bertrand Russell explaining why he’s not a Christian.

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http://www.www.com.com nitsua

This almost exact quote is from a Yeats poem. Russell must have taken it from that…
Milo Balls

Not quite “The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.” That’s Yeats, The Second Coming. You might be thinking of the Joni Mitchell song based on the poem, Slouching Towards Bethlehem. “The best lack conviction given some time to think and the worst are full of passion
without mercy.” Which is closer, but neither are an exact match
Nosen

You sure?
jeff

this is because the only certainty is UNcertainty
http://dbakeca.com Dbakeca

The only two things that are omnipresent in the universe are hydrogen and fools.
- ljohnson
  
  and hydrogen will run out some day
- Anonymous
  
  how about the Nuts in California?
Morgan Parksinon

It’s a cognitive bias called the Dunning Kruger effect. Well worth a read..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
julie

exactly, i thought of the quote from the yeats poem (“the second coming”). it’s one of my favorites.

“the best lack all conviction, while the worst
are full of passionate intensity.”
ted

Ok the actual Russel quote that I believe this is paraphrasing is:
“The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt”
This one is actually sourced on wikiquote

This isn’t too bad of a misquote, but still, don’t believe any unsourced quotes you read on the internet. The worst offenders tend to be misattributed to Einstein. Honestly he had better things to do then write snarky one liners.
http://www.ZenOracleGuides.com Zen Mermaid

I think the quote is very accurate as to describing the nature of doubt.
http://www.tiecoon.com Ties and Neckties on Sale

Wise man say: I saved a bunch of money on my ties from Tiecoon.
Anonymous

I respectfully disagree , only the weak willed are full of doubts. The wise and strong never doubt themselves.
- Jeremy X. Halpern
  
  have you SEEN a Republican lately?
Abdul

I respectfully disagree , only the weak willed are full of doubts. The wise and strong never doubt themselves.
- ashwani lamba
  
  the statement was made philosophically not scientifically.
- Fyrehed
  
  Really? Every three- to four-year-old I’ve ever met was completely certain of themselves all the time, not a shred of doubt in their squishy, weak-willed little heads that complement their fragile bodies so well. Most this country’s so-called leaders behave as toddlers, always claiming to never have a shred of doubt and consistently being proved wrong by statistics, history, and basic math and critical reasoning. ‘Doubt’ is really just evidence of caution. A bold idiot will jump off the face of a 30 foot cliff into unfamiliar waters without a flinch while a wise outdoorsman would likely cautiously check things out first and assess the situation before committing to an action, especially a dangerous one. Mavericks do not equal wise prophets. They’re not even good storytellers (too much grunting and spitting).
- Jeremy X. Halpern
  
  no, the curse of being an intellectual is that you are required to doubt yourself and allow others to disagree with you. Idiots have no such limitations…
ashwani lamba

so every time i’m certain, i’m goofed up…haha…!!!!!
- Max
  
  I appreciate the humor, but I hope you get the point he was making. Look at the US Congress, so sure of themselves to make the decisions that they do, while plenty of wise citizens aren’t even sure who to vote for. Just an example, please don’t take it the wrong way.
http://www.marriagefamilyalive.blogspot.com Laiyemo David

i love this site, keep it up .
thisandthat

im sorry but i don’t fully agree with that…..it is always good to consider all options but I’m damm certain i can achieve anything i put my mind too and so far im the youngest regional manager in my industry in the UK ever and the only way i got there was hard work and absolute faith in my abilities and techniques!
- Me
  
  It’s nice you are so successful, but this quote has nothing to do with you.
- http://www.facebook.com/george.peters.750 George Peters
  
  With a bit of arrogance.
http://prato.xincontriadulti.it/ XincontriAdulti Prato

Great idea for a post.Thank you!
lolita

charles bukowski had a similar quote to this: “The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts while the stupid ones are full of confidence.”
- http://squathole.wordpress.com/ Squathole
  
  I have read everything available that Bukowski wrote, and I don’t recall this line. That’s not to declare it’s a misquote, but a request, if you can provide it, for the source. Thanks.
  - Shoes
    
    I’d agree here too. This quote is more of a balanced philosopher’s wit and understanding and not the musings of a highly charged drunkard.
    - Bhthegreat37
      
      Hey now, he may have been a drunkard, but Charles Bukowski was an amazing poet with an incredible mind. Don’t tell me you’ve never paraphrased what someone else said without sourcing the original. We’ve all don’t it, but we’re not all as important as Bukowski and we don’t have to worry about getting quoted.
      - Scat
        
        Being a drunkard, though not socially commendable, is not in itself a reason to think less of an individual’s work. Alcoholism does seem to be more common among brilliant minds.
        http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-scientific-fundamentalist/201010/why-intelligent-people-drink-more-alcohol
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Few things are so true.

Bertrand Russel was almost always right.
Dirt

Russell seems pretty sure that this is the “whole problem with the world.” Maybe he should remind himself of what he preaches.
- Russell Crowe
  
  refrain yourself from calumnious remarks
  - tugger
    
    damn dirt, you went an p’d off russell crowe. bad move.
adel elhamdi

In this words we have 3 parts talking about the(fools,fanatics and wise people) i think we could’t say that becaouse there are different between the fools and fanatics ,but i agree with the last part which talking about the wise people.

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