noblehead said:
noblehead said:
Thanks for the apology Stephen but you may want to explain to the members of the forum why you think people who don't read books are ''ignorant''..... :?
Still waiting for a reply Stephen.
Books are knowledge. Knowledge is the antidote to ignorance. In a world of libraries, second hand books, free e-books, and audiobooks there really is no excuse for not "reading". There is certainly no excuse for openly critising a book that you have never read, especially if you somehow perceive the contents as controversial. With that type of thinking there would be no Origin of Species, no Wealth of Nations, no Das Kapital...
This is not an uncommon point of view. No educated person would advocate not reading:
"Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation.”
― Walter Cronkite
“A library is like an island in the middle of a vast sea of ignorance, particularly if the library is very tall and the surrounding area has been flooded.”
― Daniel Handler
“You are not entitled to your opinion. You are entitled to your
informed opinion. No one is entitled to be ignorant.”
― Harlan Ellison
“Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.”
― Benjamin Franklin
“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.”
― Derek Bok
“...Writings can be stolen, or changed, or used for evil purposes. But isn't the risk worth taking? The more people who share knowledge, the greater safeguard for it. Isn't there more danger in ignorance than knowledge?”
― Lloyd Alexander
“Fear always springs from ignorance.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Science replaces private prejudice with public, verifiable evidence.”
― Richard Dawkins
“To tell you the truth, I used to consider it a disgrace to be found ignorant by other people. But now, I find that I am not ashamed of knowing less than others, and I'm less inclined to force myself to read books. In short, I have grown old and decrepit.”
― Natsume Sōseki
“Ignorance is a knowledge illiteracy.”
― Toba Beta
“I look around and see that many — not all, but many — problems we've got could be solved if our culture simply fostered the habit of reading. Reading books of science, philosophy, history. Reading literature of quality, the sort that touches us because of a more profound reason, such as, for instance, because it's got something to say beyond all the futilities and trifles of life, even while depicting the ordinary in life, at the same time that it says it with style, in a unique, admirable manner. An original one.
Yes, I look around and see that many problems could be solved if we had the habit of reading. But I am not even sure whether there is someone reading these words.”
― Camilo Gomes Jr