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Thomas Sowell Quotes

Biography: Thomas Sowell is known for his work as an economist, social theorist, ... more Biography: Thomas Sowell is known for his work as an economist, social theorist, and author. He is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and has written extensively on economic theories, social policies, and political ideology. Sowell's research often challenges contemporary socio-economic policies and offers alternative viewpoints grounded in free-market economics. less

"The very fact that the left seems to have no alternative to their failed policies—other than the notion that, since people were not persuaded by their arguments, those arguments must be repeated in a louder voice—suggests a cognitive dissonance that defies logic"

Tags: Politics, Persuasion, Ideology, Cognitive dissonance, Political discourse

"The problem isn’t that Johnny can’t read. The problem isn’t even that Johnny can’t think. The problem is that Johnny doesn’t know what thinking is; he confuses it with feeling"

Tags: Self-awareness, Education, Critical thinking, Emotional intelligence, Learning process

"Intellectuals may like to imagine themselves as people who speak truth to power, but too often they are people who speak lies to gain power"

Tags: Truth, Ambition, Ethics, Power, Honesty

"The real minimum wage is zero"

Tags: Economy, Economic theory, Employment, Income inequality, Unemployment

"The welfare state is not really about the welfare of the masses. It is about the egos of the elites"

Tags: Economic inequality, Public policy, Government policy, Masses, Political critique

"Knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly, or it vanishes"

Tags: Mindset, Growth, Learning, Knowledge, Education

"When people get used to preferential treatment, equal treatment seems like discrimination"

Tags: Perception, Equality, Social justice, Fairness, Bias

"Freedom has cost too much blood and agony to be relinquished at the cheap price of rhetoric"

Tags: Freedom, Independence, Sacrifice, Struggle, Liberty

"Policies are judged by their consequences, but crusades are judged by how good they make the crusaders feel"

Tags: Ethics, Responsibility, Impact, Judgment, Consequences

"It is hard to imagine a more stupid or more dangerous way of making decisions than by putting those decisions in the hands of people who pay no price for being wrong"

Tags: Leadership, Responsibility, Decision making, Accountability, Consequences

"The most basic question is not what is best, but who shall decide what is best"

Tags: Philosophy, Leadership, Ethics, Responsibility, Power

"You will never understand bureaucracies until you understand that for bureaucrats procedure is everything and outcomes are nothing"

Tags: Decision making, Efficiency, Government, Organizational behavior, Bureaucracy

"One of the painful signs of years of dumbed-down education is how many people are unable to make a coherent argument. They can vent their emotions, question other people’s motives, make bold assertions, repeat slogans—anything except reason"

Tags: Education, Critical thinking, Analytical thinking, Intellectual decline, Logical fallacies

"People who have time on their hands will inevitably waste the time of people who have work to do"

Tags: Responsibility, Focus, Productivity, Time management, Efficiency

"Racism is not dead, but it is on life support kept alive by politicians, race hustlers, and people who get a sense of superiority by denouncing others as racists"

Tags: Politics, Social commentary, Social issues, Racism, Discrimination