The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy

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The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy

4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 · rating details · 629 ratings · 63 reviews

Sowell presents a devastating critique of the mind-set behind the failed social policies of the past thirty years. Sowell sees what has happened during that time not as a series of isolated mistakes but as a logical consequence of a tainted vision whose defects have led to crises in education, crime, and family dynamics, and to other social pathologies. In this book, he de...more

Paperback, 320 pages

Published June 28th 1996 by Basic Books (first published 1954)

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Apr 19, 2009 Paul rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: culture-wars, politics, sociology

A must read. As apropos for today as when it was written in the 90's. If you tire of the lightweight stuff from the talking heads like a Hannity, a Rush, or an O'Reilly, then read Sowell's Vision of the Anointed. Watch Sowell fillet mostly leftist-type thought chapter after chapter, page after page, even paragraph after paragraph. Sowell brings to bear so many of his skills as a sociologist and economist that the reader cannot possibly master all of Sowell's arguments after just one read. So, no...more

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Jul 22, 2012 Skylar Burris rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: economics, politics

This is a superb book if you want to know precisely how statistics are manipulated, ignored, or misinterpreted in order to support social/political visions that are impervious to empirical evidence. It's wonderful for debunking a plethora of doomsday economic and social myths, and it provides a thorough outline of the type of specious arguments used to avoid addressing specific objections to specific policies and programs. Any student of economics, politics, or sociology should read this book an...more This is a superb book if you want to know precisely how statistics are manipulated, ignored, or misinterpreted in order to support social/political visions that are impervious to empirical evidence. It's wonderful for debunking a plethora of doomsday economic and social myths, and it provides a thorough outline of the type of specious arguments used to avoid addressing specific objections to specific policies and programs. Any student of economics, politics, or sociology should read this book and heed its call to intellectual honesty by committing to examining policies on the basis of their actual outcomes as indicated by empirical evidence rather than evaluating them according to their philosophical conformity with a pre-existing set of assumptions.

The book contrasts the two primary visions held by people: "the vision of the anointed" and "the tragic vision" and how these visions affect policy approaches. To the anointed, there are solutions, but, to the tragic, there are only trade-offs. "To those with the vision of the anointed, the question is: What will remove particular negative features in the existing situation to create a solution? Those with the tragic vision ask: What must be sacrificed to achieve this particular improvement?" For the anointed, "costless" solutions abound, requiring only their discernment to discover and their informed third-party decision making to implement. The vision of the anointed does "not…incorporate constraints as the central feature and ever-present ingredient in its thinking, while the tragic vision does." To those with the tragic vision, says Sowell, "the central question is 'Who is to choose? And by what process, and with what consequences for being wrong?'" Sowell bemoans how easy it is "to be wrong - - and to persist in being wrong - - when the costs of being wrong are paid by others."

Sowell has a bone to pick with "anointed" politicians: "political attempts to 'solve' various 'problems' ignores the costs created by each 'solution' and how that exacerbates other problems. Much of political rhetoric is concerned with presenting issues as isolated problems to be solved - - not as trade-offs within an overall system constrained by inherent limitations of resources and knowledge."

I've been reading Thomas Sowell for awhile, and I know he has long been disturbed by the way "anointed" politicians and bureaucrats enact policies in the United States: "To a remarkable extent…empirical evidence is neither sought beforehand nor consulted after a policy has been instituted. Facts may be marshaled for a position already taken, but that is very different from systematically testing opposing theories by evidence." Having worked as an economist for the government, he knows what it is like to be asked to ignore or gloss over data that doesn't support a particular policy. Having systematically studied the actual affects of policies throughout the world, he knows how little politicians care if the evidence does not support the theory. His frustration is palpable, and he makes me feel it in this book, just as he did (in a different way) in his autobiography. As always, he can be a little slow plodding at times, but I never leave his books without learning something new and being greatly impressed by his quest for empirical reality.

Naturally, those who do not share the "vision of the anointed" will ask: Why cling to a vision without regard for reality? Why promote policies regardless of whether or not they actually achieve the end you claim to wish to achieve? Because, Sowell says, the vision offers "a special state of grace for those who believe in it. Those who accept this vision are deemed to be…morally on a higher plane. Put differently, those who disagree with the prevailing vision are not merely in error, but in sin." Confront the vision with empirical evidence, and your evidence is not labeled a bad argument; rather, you are labeled a bad person. The evidence itself is not engaged: your character is engaged (and questioned). This is why words like "compassion" and "concern" are so often used by the anointed; such words imply that opponents of the prevailing vision are unconcerned and callous. To admit that opponents might be equally caring is an impossibility, for it "would mean that opposing arguments on social policy were arguments about methods, probabilities and empirical evidence—with compassion, caring, and the like being common features on both sides, thus canceling out and disappearing from the debate."

It would be nice indeed if words like compassion, concern, and patriotism could dissolve from the U.S. political debate, if we could acknowledge that both sides care about both our nation and about the suffering masses of the world, and if debates on policy could therefore be directed toward the actual costs, actual benefits, and actual long-term affects of actual policies on actual people. It would be nice, but I don't see it happening anytime soon - - on either side.(less)

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May 18, 2013 JP rated it 4 of 5 stars

Are we completely unaware of the initiative a select few have claimed to push policies based not on logic or evidence, but their own assumptions and desires for what is best for others? Sowell tackles this question, showing how elitists have overrun individual decision making and trampled basic rights. Once a stance is successfully positioned as the moral high ground, it becomes accepted such that even "thinking people" take the underlying assumptions as a given, without testing validity, even i...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Jim Gallen rated it 5 of 5 stars

When considering public policy issues, we often think only of the elements of that specific problem. In “the Vision of the Anointed” economist Thomas Sowell guides us to look at the visions behind the specific solutions advanced. Sowell examines the difference between the vision of the anointed, those who feel that they know better than others and must provide solutions to save the common people from themselves, and the tragic vision of the benighted public that recognizes that there are no solu...more

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Apr 05, 2009 Ryan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

For some of the Libertarian opinions I have come to hold, I have been called “at least partially evil” on one occasion and told to “have a heart” on too many occasions to count – and both of these comments from some of the people who know me best. And that is to say nothing of the times my arguments have been called "simplistic" and yet no reason is ever given for why they are actually wrong. This form of attack is one which Sowell writes about to some length and in that, and numerous other resp...more For some of the Libertarian opinions I have come to hold, I have been called “at least partially evil” on one occasion and told to “have a heart” on too many occasions to count – and both of these comments from some of the people who know me best. And that is to say nothing of the times my arguments have been called "simplistic" and yet no reason is ever given for why they are actually wrong. This form of attack is one which Sowell writes about to some length and in that, and numerous other respects his book resonated with me. The Vision of the Anointed is Sowell’s counter attack directed towards powerful elites whose "vision" can most easily be summed up as "we know better than you, due to our superior intellect, morality or both and we intend to use our political power to re-engineer society for you (all in your own best interest of course)."

Sowell's critique of this vision is directed almost entirely towards the political left. While an attack aimed primarily towards “liberals” is often justified, I think it could have very easily been applied to any big government vision be it liberal or conservative (especially given the hubris and big government conservatism surrounding George W. Bush's tenure. In fairness to Sowell however, his book was published in '95). The fact that Sowell's book didn't do this made the message less persuasive than it could have been. Yet at times, the message is quite persuasive. For example, Sowell contrasts those with the vision of the anointed with those of a "tragic" vision of the world. (The anointed being those who see the world in terms of "problems" and "solutions" while those with the tragic vision see the world as a balance of trade offs, each with their own set of problems.) When politicians say things like, "We know how to solve the problem of poverty/drug abuse/poor educational outcomes" they are making implicit assumptions that these problems are a fault of "society" and therefore they can impose a so called "solution" by re-engineering society. Those with a tragic vision see these problems as being either an inherent part of the human condition or often times even a direct result of the very "solutions" put in place to alleviate the problem in the first place. It is not a simple matter of imposing a solution because the very act of such an imposition has its own set of problems (think of the war on drugs - something I might add which is both a liberal and conservative obsession). Sowell writes:

The hallmark of the vision of the anointed is that what the anointed consider lacking for the kind of social progress they envision is will and power, not knowledge. But to those with the tragic vision, what is dangerous are will and power without knowledge - and for many expansive purposes, knowledge is inherently insufficient....

Although followers of this tradition [the anointed:] often advocate more egalitarian economic and social results, they necessarily seek to achieve thoseresults through highly unequal influence and power, and–especially in the twentieth century–through an increased concentration of power in the central government, which is thereby enabled to redistribute economic resources more equally. While those with the vision of the anointed emphasize the knowledge and resources available to promote the various policy programs they favor, those with the tragic vision of the human condition emphasize that these resources are taken from other uses ("there is no free lunch") and that the knowledge and wisdom required to run ambitious social programs far exceed what any human being has ever possessed, as the unintended negative consequences of such programs repeatedly demonstrate.

This is one idea which the book explores in much more depth and is quite compelling. At other times however, Sowell paints "the anointed" with such a broad brush or the examples he uses are not explored in enough depth to fully buy into all that he writes. In a book that explores the negative effects of a small class of elite individuals (politicians) making expansive decisions to re-engineer society, Sowell does a poor job to clearly define the boundaries between where individual liberty ends and appropriate state action begins. For example, based on the overall writing, Sowell would seem to be in favor of the death penalty, state restrictions on abortion, and certain individual rights to privacy (most notably where public health is–arguably–at stake). And yet in a careful reading of the book, one realizes that Sowell rarely expresses direct opinions on these issues but mostly critiques the way in which the "anointed" apply inconsistent logic in how the issues are dealt with.

On the whole the book had many strong areas and will likely give a reader a new look on the world at large. At times however it oversteps its bounds and is in murky water if it is trying to describe a comprehensive alternative to the vision of the anointed. I particularly liked the chapter "Courting Disaster" on judicial activism vs. judicial restraint and how with increasing judicial activism we seem to be slipping away from the ideal of "a government of laws and not of men" and the senseless debate that surrounds the "intentions" of the framers of the constitution vs. what they clearly articulated given the legal language of the time. (And he points out that a built in framework exists to chaning what we no longer agree with is in place but that framework does not involve the arbitrary decisions of individual judges.) In his conclusion, Sowell has a very brief but enticing section on the role of journalism and the media and some of the inherent problems within. Speaking as somone who majored in journalism in college, I found his ideas to mirror many of my own and I would have liked him to explore the subject further.

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Feb 26, 2012 Dale rated it 4 of 5 stars

Good, but needed more detail

Thomas Sowell, a noted conservative thinker and a genuinely interesting person (I've heard him as a guest on a local radio station several times) writes an effective book against the actions of those whom he calls 'The Annointed.' The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy is effective, but not a great work.

Who are The Annointed?

He uses the term in a sarcastic way here to illuminate those 'Teflon prophets' (he uses that term because s...more

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Apr 21, 2010 David Robins rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So very true; enumerates so many of the distractions I have run up against talking with liberals. They close their eyes to reality and logic and argue with blind emotion, trying to frame rational people as unfeeling even as they rob them to fund their wasteful and destructive programs.

"The perennial desire to make particular things 'affordable' through public policy or to have government provide an ever-expanding list of 'basic needs' suggests that the economic realities conveyed by prices are s...more

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Nov 08, 2012 Sandy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have read Sowell before- his book Race and Culture and some of his editorials. If the book hadn't been copyrighted in 1995, I would have thought he was targeting the 2012 liberals. But I read this leading up to the election, so that might explain a lot of my response to the book. I want to believe we can correct our flaws in society and help our fellow man by pulling together, especially in the United States where we have solved so many problems of mankind. But his explanation of trade offs an...more

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Dec 13, 2010 Jeremy rated it 4 of 5 stars

A truly devastating critique of the liberal mindset.

Quotes:

In reality, the entire population of the world today could be housed in the state of Texas, in single-story, single-family houses - four people to a house - and with a typical yard around each home.

Everyone is a “progressive” by his own lights. That the anointed believe that this label differentiates themselves from other people is one of a number of symptoms of their naive narcissism.

Rights from government interference - “Congress shall...more A truly devastating critique of the liberal mindset.

Quotes:

In reality, the entire population of the world today could be housed in the state of Texas, in single-story, single-family houses - four people to a house - and with a typical yard around each home.

Everyone is a “progressive” by his own lights. That the anointed believe that this label differentiates themselves from other people is one of a number of symptoms of their naive narcissism.

Rights from government interference - “Congress shall make no law,” as the Constitution says regarding religion, free speech, etc. - may be free, but rights to anything mean that someone else has been yoked to your service involuntarily, with no corresponding responsibility on your part to provide for yourself, to compensate others, or even to behave decently or responsibly.

For society as a whole, nothing is a right - not even bare subsistence, which has to be produced by human toil. Particular segments of society can of course be insulated from the necessities impinging on society as a whole, by having someone else carry their share of work, either temporarily or permanently. But, however much those others recede into the background in the verbal picture painted by words like “rights,” the whole process is one of differential privilege.

Among the many other questions raised by the nebulous concept of “greed” is why it is a term applied almost exclusively to those who want to earn more money or to keep what they have already earned - never to those wanting to take other people’s money in taxes or to those wishing to live on the largesse dispensed from such taxation.

To say that a shoe shine boy earns “too little” or a surgeon “too much” is to say that third parties should have the right to preempt the decisions of those who elected to spend their money on shoe shines or surgery.

...both poverty and dependency were declining for years prior to the Johnson administration’s “war on poverty.” Black income was rising, not only absolutely but relative to rising white income.

Those who wrote the American constitution were of course familiar with such terms as “due process,” “freedom of speech,” etc., from English common law and indicated no intention of giving them different meanings from what those terms already had.

[According to the anointed]: Opposition to the vision of the anointed is due not to a different reading of complex and inconclusive evidence, but exists because opponents are lacking, either intellectually or morally, or both.

The perennial desire to make particular things “affordable” through public policy or to have government provide an ever-expanding list of “basic needs” suggests that the economic realities conveyed by prices are seen as mere arbitrary social conventions, rather than expressions of inherent constraints and inescapable costs.(less)

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Nov 05, 2010 Anthony rated it 4 of 5 stars

My only real criticism of this book is that it is very similar to other things Sowell has written. Although written over ten years ago many of his arguments are similar to the ones in Intellectuals and Society (I would say that if you read one you may not necessarily need to read the other, however if you're like me and like hearing how the self-righteous get it wrong time and again it's a fun read).
That being said I was reading this I was thinking to myself, wow, what would happen if one of the...more

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Mar 22, 2011 Keith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, social-commentary, political-science

I have always wondered why so many social policies, all of which seem like good and even noble ideas at the time, turn out so badly. Sowell presents one view and a caustic one it is. Essentially, his thesis is that policy makers have far too often replaced rational analysis of outcomes with wishful and willful assertions that run counter to the facts of the case. The anointed live in a rarefied world in which reality plays little role and the opinions of the non-anointed even less:

"The presumed...more

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May 06, 2013 Justin Lonas rated it 5 of 5 stars

Sowell at his prescient and ascerbic finest. He fires a volley of logic and research across the bow of the ship of self-righteous elitism in effort to warn them of the approaching icebergs. He synthesizes and builds on some of the ideas developed in his other works (notably A Conflict of Visions), and the result is an elegant and digestible summary of Sowell's thought.

He picks apart the insulated, echo-chamber ideas of the social/political elites--the anointed (since they have named themselves t...more

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Jul 14, 2011 E.W. rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

There is much that one could like here. The basic framework that Sowell lays down about the way many policies are drafted is clear and accurate. The problem, however, is that he seems to believe that only "The Anointed" (i.e. liberals) use this method to create policy. As I was listening, I kept thinking, "Wow, this seems like a playbook for George W. Bush's administration," but Sowell repeatedly lionizes Reagan and believes that the "Benighted" (i.e. conservatives) can do no wrong.

This might h...more

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Feb 15, 2012 Cassandra Silva rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics

Ok I admit it I am a liberal and I read one of Sowells books, so sue me. I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about and to be honest I was fairly pleasantly surprised. I am generally one of these that believes in the "root cause" of social problems as he puts it, perhaps I even have some of this anointed mindset "gasp". I like to think we can change people by changing behavior and circumstances, but I think he made a good number of points about when we should say enough is enough, does tha...more

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Jul 09, 2010 Jeff Raymond rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-nonfiction, all-time-favorites, read-politics-current-events

At its root, this book is about how there are some beliefs that are simply accepted and repeated without question, and how policies are derived from them, regardless as to whether they're necessary or work.

While political discourse has really soured as of late and bad faith runs abound, I still hold onto this idea that people who can disagree can still converse and disagree and understand each other. Even with the disaster that was Political Season 2008, I still believe it. I still believe it b...more

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Jun 13, 2011 Donna rated it 5 of 5 stars

Sowell's complex writing style in Vision required that I take significant time and thought in reading it, but it was well worth the time and effort. I would advise anyone planning to read this book to be ready to think while you read (novel idea, these days.) Sowell presents logically his case for both the history and status of the "anointed" and "benighted" in America (or in any western civilization, I'd argue.)

This book may change your way of thinking. It will certainly make you think, and co...more

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Nov 20, 2008 Jarrod Jenkins rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

A typical liberal flaw is explored here. Social policy must be based on actual results instead of merely good intentions. Soaring rhetoric without substance backing it often does more harm than good. The main reason, Sowell argues, that Liberals get away with their bad ideas is because the people who impose those ideas rarely pay for the costs associated with their failures. If a fashionable Liberal idea such as sex education or bilingual education programs creates more pregnant children or more...more

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Aug 18, 2008 Nicholas rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: economics, politics

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Sowell just shits all over the "Vision of the Anointed."

Basic idea was this. The 'Anointed' are those liberal intellectuals who think that they know more than everyone else. The polarize and moralize the enemy to fix the 'crises' of our time. They don't though because the market is a summary of all knowledge held in society. These guys prey on those who think that the problems of our time are because of the dispositions of those in power and not as a set of trade offs between a set of evils. The...more

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Aug 24, 2007 Brian rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: The Self-Appointed "Wise-Owls" on the Left. And all others too.

I am really not sure what else Thomas Sowell has written. I know he has other books, but after reading this one almost 11 years ago I don't feel I need to read any others. Not that I don't think they will be any good. It's mostly because this one is so damn good that I don't think he can top it.

Even 11 years later I still remember much. He touches on the very essence of why liberalism and Liberals are so dangerous. The very title insinuates it: "The Annointed."

There is an "annointed" class and...more

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Jul 15, 2009 Kevin Turner rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: any one interested in social work, economics and caring for the poor.

Sowell systematically dismantles the policies and notions of possibly well intentioned government programs. He states what these programs were supposed to accomplish and looks back to see how well the programs worked. As we know almost all were a dismal failure. This is a must read to understand the social and economic issues of our day.

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Jan 23, 2012 Dave rated it 5 of 5 stars

I really liked this book. It takes a critical look at social policies that all too often are considered to be undeniably true even in light of their past failures. The talking heads do their best to convince society that their opinion and "vision" of the world is the only correct one. They push their agenda by treating all of those with differing opinions as though they are the un-washed and un-educated. Whereas those who buy into their vision are among the anointed and the chosen.

These talking...more

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Apr 11, 2011 Bob Matter is currently reading it

I picked this up at a thrift store the other day on the reputation of the author's name. As I often do, I thought I would read just a few pages at the beginning, put it on my TBR shelf, and come back to it later. But alas, it is so engaging I am compelled to continue reading it.

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Nov 19, 2012 Larry Mulcahy Mulcahy rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book totally rocks. A major theme is how liberal beliefs are impervious to evidence. I'm seeing a different side of Thomas Sowell... this is much more confrontational than stuff by him I've read previously... it's like Ann Coulter with footnotes.

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Nov 04, 2009 W. Bradford Littlejohn rated it 2 of 5 stars

Recommended to W. Bradford by: Douglas Wilson

Deeply flawed argumentation, as conservatives have all the same problems when it comes to how they treat the opposition as liberals do.
His philosophy is Stoic and pagan; troubling that so many Christians buy into it so deeply.

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Oct 23, 2010 Jonathan B rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics

An interesting look at liberal and, to a lesser extent, neo-conservative ideology. He provides some sound responses to faulty statistics and arguments. However, I'm a bit skeptical about his psychologizing and parts of what he calls the tragic viewpoint.

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May 22, 2012 Michael Connolly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed, political-science

The subtitle of this book is awesome. It implies that liberals, progressives and socialists are motivated by ego, not by compassion for the poor. For liberals, self-respect depends primarily on their political philosophy. They see themselves as a moral elite, surrounded by ignoramuses. They will resist any evidence that their methods for helping the poor do more harm than good, because to accept the truth will have the consequence of loss of self-respect. This is an argument for basing ones self...more

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Oct 01, 2011 Bebe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Audiobook - This book is definitely in the category of "continued" education. The view from the right, it has a lot of interesting information about changes to the legal system, some good some not.

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Jan 21, 2009 Brendan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Damning thesis of the "liberal" agenda! Another well articulated argument adduced with several classic examples from America's greatest living philosopher.

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Nov 14, 2012 Fred rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the clearest, sanest expression of liberal political thought you will ever read. If you are a Beckbot, a Rush clone, a Hanniday zombie it will be too deep and clear to impress you, though, as there isn't any lying, ranting, or flag waving. Sowell is extremely understandable and deep on the subject. I've read this book and re-read it over the months, checked out sources, and tried to think through his arguments. This is essential if you want to understand today's politics and how Democrat...more

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Dec 26, 2012 Bryan Bentley rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: social-policy

Sowell, in my view, is one of our most brilliant contemporaries and a national treasure.
Not that easy of a read but well worth it.

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About Thomas Sowell

Thomas Sowell is an American economist, social commentator, and author of dozens of books. He often writes from an economically laissez-faire perspective. He is currently a senior fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. In 1990, he won the Francis Boyer Award, presented by the American Enterprise Institute. In 2002 he was awarded the National Humanities Medal for prolific scholars...more Thomas Sowell is an American economist, social commentator, and author of dozens of books. He often writes from an economically laissez-faire perspective. He is currently a senior fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. In 1990, he won the Francis Boyer Award, presented by the American Enterprise Institute. In 2002 he was awarded the National Humanities Medal for prolific scholarship melding history, economics, and political science.

Sowell was born in North Carolina, where, he recounted in his autobiography, A Personal Odyssey, his encounters with Caucasians were so limited he didn't believe that "yellow" was a hair color. He moved to Harlem, New York City with his mother's sister (whom he believed was his mother); his father had died before he was born. Sowell went to Stuyvesant High School, but dropped out at 17 because of financial difficulties and a deteriorating home environment. He worked at various jobs to support himself, including in a machine shop and as a delivery man for Western Union. He applied to enter the Civil Service and was eventually accepted, moving to Washington DC. He was drafted in 1951, during the Korean War, and assigned to the US Marine Corps. Due to prior experience in photography, he worked in a photography unit.

After his discharge, Sowell passed the GED examination and enrolled at Howard University. He transfered to Harvard University, where he graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. He received a Master of Arts in Economics from Columbia University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Economics from the University of Chicago. Sowell initially chose Columbia University because he wanted to study under George Stigler. After arriving at Columbia and learning that Stigler had moved to Chicago, he followed him there.

Sowell has taught Economics at Howard University, Cornell University, Brandeis University, and UCLA. Since 1980 he has been a Senior Fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, where he holds a fellowship named after Rose and Milton Friedman.

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Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One

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Quotes from The Vision of the Anoi...

“What sense would it make to classify a man as handicapped because he is in a wheelchair today, if he is expected to be walking again in a month, and competing in track meets before the year is out? Yet Americans are generally given 'class' labels on the basis of their transient location in the income stream. If most Americans do not stay in the same broad income bracket for even a decade, their repeatedly changing 'class' makes class itself a nebulous concept. Yet the intelligentsia are habituated, if not addicted, to seeing the world in class terms.” — 20 people liked it

“The staunchest conservatives advocate a range of changes which differ in specifics, rather than in number or magnitude, from the changes advocated by those considered liberal…change, as such, is simply not a controversial issue. Yet a common practice among the anointed is to declare themselves emphatically, piously, and defiantly in favor of 'change.' Thus those who oppose their particular changes are depicted as being against change in general. It is as if opponents of the equation 2+2=7 were depicted as being against mathematics. Such a tactic might, however, be more politically effective than trying to defend the equation on its own merits. ” — 7 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3044.The_Vision_of_the_Anointed?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349114523l/3044.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3044.The_Vision_of_the_Anointed?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy by Thomas Sowell[/url]

The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy

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