 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
Veracity, which I regard second only to kindly feeling, consists broadly in believing according to evidence and not because a belief is comfortable or a source of pleasure. In the absence of veracity, kindly feeling will often be defeated by self-deception. It used to be common for the rich to maintain either that it is pleasant to be poor or that poverty is the result of shiftlessness. Some healthy people maintain that all illness is self-indulgence. I have heard fox- hunters argue that the fox likes being hunted.
Source: The faith of a rationalist; no supernatural reasons needed to make men kind.
In: Listener, v.37(n.957): 29 May 1947, pp.826-836.
* Pub. as a pamphlet by Haldeman-Juius(Girard, Kansas, 1947. 32 p. 22 cm.) * Repr. in: (X09)Atheism, 1972.
* Repr. in: (70)Bertrand Russell on God and Religion.
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