Quotes
Much of the social history of the Western world, over the past three decades, has been a history of replacing what worked with what sounded good. - Thomas Sowell
La verità effettuale (Italian) - the effective truth (effectual truth) - Niccolò Machiavelli in The Prince. It describes the reality of how things are and how actions actually turn out, rather than how they "should" be according to idealistic or moral standards. It emphasizes the practical outcome and consequences of actions and words, aligning with a focus on observable results over intentions. Key Aspects of "la verità effettuale":
- Focus on Reality: It is about understanding the actual political landscape and the real circumstances people face.
- Emphasis on Results: The truth of words and actions lies in their outcomes, not just their intentions or appearance.
- Contrast with Idealism: It stands in opposition to classical or humanistic ideals, suggesting that political reality requires looking beyond illusions to what is real. Machiavelli used the phrase only once, but it is considered a foundational concept in modern political thought, marking a shift from idealistic notions to a pragmatic understanding of politics.
Newspaper reporting. Early in life I had noticed that no event is ever correctly reported in a newspaper. During the Spanish civil war, I saw newspaper reports which did not bear any relation to the facts, not even the relationship which is implied in an ordinary lie. I saw great battles reported where there had been no fighting, and complete silence where hundreds of men had been killed. I saw troops who had fought bravely denounced as cowards and traitors, and others who had never seen a shot fired hailed as the heroes of imaginary victories, and I saw newspapers in London retailing these lies and eager intellectuals building emotional superstructures over events that had never happened. I saw, in fact, history being written not in terms of what happened but of what ought to have happened according to various 'party lines. - George Orwell
