And all that horsepower of thought led Bertrand Russell to support the nuclear disarmament movement, a singlular mid 20th centry delusion.

It is not only thought that matters, but specifically the kind of thought that allows one to entertain the proposition: "I might be wrong about this."

William Langewiesche, in his book Fly By Wire:

"Intelligence is not a prerequisite for safe flying, but an acceptance of human fallibility is, and the two are generally linked. Ziegler mentioned it on the banks of the Garonne. He has seen such variations over the years. He said that the mark of the great pilots he has known is that they admitted in advance to their capacity for error, and they addressed their mistakes vigorously after making them. He said, 'Vous savez, monsieur. L’Erreur est humaine.' Actually the Latin original, in full, goes 'Errare humanum est, sed perseverare diabolicum.' To err is human, but to persist is diabolical. Maybe it should be posted in polling stations. Certainly it should be posted in cockpits."

The phenomenon of *confirmation bias*...basically, selectively seeking data to confirm the beliefs one already holds...is well-known to accident investigators. It certainly plays a major role in the maintenance of political and philosophical belief structures, probably including Russell's support for nuclear disarmament.

It's a good quote.

It makes me think of people who have got to have some noise going all the time - TVs on in every room, radios, and so on. Can't have any quiet, because you might find yourself accidentally having thoughts, and who knows what that might lead to.

david-"to err is human, to persist is diabolical" pretty much sums up the gun control movement (as does confirmation bias). nice.