The Stampede of Folly

Barbara Tuchman, one of the most celebrated American historians of the 1900s, showed in The March of Folly that governments—from ancient Greece to our times—implement policies that seriously damage their own interests. What is more, they do this in spite of available alternatives.

Unfortunately, most people believe that today’s governments act or will act rationally, or at the least not act in a way that harms their own interests. History says that that is a naive belief. Even more unfortunately, the folly of governments strikes the citizens as severely as the fools in control.

The first Christians, who I like to refer to as raw Christians, recognized the foolishness and irrationality of the Roman rulers and turned their backs on the empire. They took responsibility for their own well-being. They grew in rational concern for each other and for the people around them as the empire crumbled – pursuing foolish policies.

Sometimes the most foolish policy of all is the one that does nothing.

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“Waiting for rich rulers to take care of your poor life?
Why not try convincing the owl to become a vegetarian while you’re waiting?”
Dartwill Aquila

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