Thomas Sowell on the two visions.

[asher553]

In short, ideological fault lines divide those who have different conceptions of the meaning of knowledge, and who consequently see knowledge as concentrated or dispersed. ...

Systemic processes are trial-and-error processes, with repeated or continuous - and consequential - feedback from those involved in these processes. ...

At the heart of the social vision prevalent among contemporary intellectuals is the belief that there are "problems" created by existing institutions and that "solutions" to these problems can be excogitated by intellectuals. This vision is both a vision of society and a vision of the role of intellectuals within society. In short, intellectuals have seen themselves not simply as an elite - in the passive sense in which large landowners, rentiers, or holders of various sinecures might qualify as elites - but as an *anointed* elite, people with a mission to lead others in one way or another toward better lives.

... [The] constrained vision is thus a tragic vision - not in the sense of believing that life must always be sad and gloomy, for much happiness and fulfillment are possible within a constrained world, but tragic in inherent limitations that cannot be overcome merely by changing institutions or by compassion, commitment, or other virtues which those with the vision of the anointed advocate or attribute to themselves.

The conflict between these two visions goes back for centuries. Those with the tragic vision and those with the vision of the anointed do not simply happen to differ on a range of policy issues. They *necessarily* differ ...

To those with the tragic vision, however, it is prosperity, peace, and such justice as we have achieved, which require not only explanation but constant efforts, trade-offs, and sacrifices, just to maintain them at their existing levels, much less promote their advancement over time. ...

The two visions differ fundamentally, not only in how they see the world, but also in how those who believe in these visions see themselves. If you happen to believe in free markets, judicial restraint, traditional values and other features of the tragic vision, then you are just someone who believes in free market, judicial restraint, and traditional values. There is no personal exaltation inherent in those beliefs. But to be for "social justice" and "saving the environment," or to be "anti-war" is more than just a set of hypotheses about empirical facts. This vision puts you on a higher moral plane as someone concerned and compassionate, and someone who wants to preserve the beauty of nature and save the planet from being polluted by others less caring.

In short, one vision makes you somebody special and the other vision does not.

- Thomas Sowell, 'Intellectuals and Society'

Comments

[ndrosen]

I remember when Dr. Sowell paid a visit to Amherst College, where I was a student (1981-1985), to give a lecture. The talk was to have been on something else, but he chose to speak on “A Conflict of Visions,” which I enjoyed hearing. Later, I read the book.