‘Ignorance Is Power’
“[A]gnosis,
[from] the neoclassical Greek word for ignorance or ‘not knowing,’ and
ontology, the branch of metaphysics which deals with the nature of being.
Agnotology is the study of willful acts to spread confusion and deceit, usually
to sell a product or win favour.
“I was exploring how powerful industries could promote ignorance to sell their wares. Ignorance is power . . . and agnotology is about the deliberate creation of ignorance.”
—Robert Proctor, Stanford science historian who coined
the term agnotology, “the deliberate propagation of ignorance,” in Georgina
Kenyon, “The
man who studies the spread of ignorance,” BBC, Jan. 6, 2016.
PeezPix by Ted Pease
Dark Days
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“Words are sacred. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.” —Tom Stoppard
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