George Soros appears in conversation with Google CEO Eric Schmidt discussing his new book "The Age of Fallibility: Consequence of the War on Terror" as part of the Authors@Google Series.
Amazing that this interview took place 4 years ago!
In 2003, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker wrote in the foreword of Soros' book The Alchemy of Finance:
George Soros has made his mark as an enormously successful speculator, wise enough to largely withdraw when still way ahead of the game. The bulk of his enormous winnings is now devoted to encouraging transitional and emerging nations to become 'open societies,' open not only in the sense of freedom of commerce but—more important—tolerant of new ideas and different modes of thinking and behavior.
From the Publisher: The Age of Fallibility Published: 06/25/2007
The legendary financier and founder of the Open Society Institute offers crucial insight into the real meaning of freedom, and how societies can best promote it.
After reflecting on his support of a losing Democrat for president, George Soros steps back to revisit his views on why George Bush's policies around the world fall short in the arenas most important to Soros: democracy, human rights and open society. As a survivor of the Holocaust and a life-long proponent of free expression, Soros understands the meaning of freedom. And yet his differences with George Bush, another proponent of freedom, are profound.
In this powerful essay Soros spells out his views and how they differ from the president's. He reflects on why the Democrats may have lost the high ground on these values issues and how they might reclaim it. As he has in his recent books, On Globalization and The Bubble of American Supremacy, Soros uses facts, anecdotes, personal experience and philosophy to illuminate a major topic in a way that both enlightens and inspires.
Even more amazing...that George Soros published this book ten years ago!
Chapter One: Thinking and Reality Published: November 2000
The concept of open society is based on the recognition that our understanding of the world is inherently imperfect. Those who claim to be in possession of the ultimate truth are making a false claim, and they can enforce it only by imposing their views on those who differ. The result of such intimidation is a closed society, in which freedom of thought and expression is suppressed. By contrast, if we recognize our fallibility, we can gain a better understanding of reality without ever attaining perfect knowledge. Acting on that understanding, we can create a society that is open to never-ending improvement. Open society falls short of perfection, but it has the great merit of assuring freedom of thought and speech and giving ample scope to experimentation and creativity.
To explain the concept of open society, I must begin with the relationship between thinking and reality, particularly as it relates to social affairs. I need to show what it is that renders our understanding inherently imperfect. Knowledge is not beyond our reach, but when it comes to situations in which we are active participants we cannot base our decisions on knowledge alone. Knowledge relates to facts, but the events to which our decisions relate are not facts. They lie in the future and they are contingent on our decisions in the present. Even after they have occurred, they are different from the facts that form the subject matter of natural science because they will have been influenced by what we think. What we think is part of what we have to think about; that is the source of our difficulties.
For me, an Open Society requires an Open Mind. As Americans I believe that we are so selfish...ME INCLUDED! We get so wrapped up in the drama of our own personal lives...cause face it...it's so much easier to just turn off the news and watch the newest reality TV show. My current favorite is the Biggest Loser...and how pathetic is that? Here in American we suffer from obesity while children and families all over the world are starving! We stay wrapped up in our consumer obsessed cocoons...designed by the best...so that we can stand united ;) God forbid that we should be anything different...many times for fear of being labeled Un-American!
So today I'm opening up and telling you what I'm standing up for and what I believe right now...so please...be open to a different opinion ;)
I'm standing up for ending the so called, War on Terror, because I'm tired of seeing our young men and women in the Armed Forces coming home wounded, or even worse...not coming home at all! This is not new to my followers because I've been a big proponent of NURU...see my sidebar.
I'm standing for a change in the current Administration to stop enabling the corrupt, Corporations in America with laws that continue to serve the corporations with tax breaks and high profits at the expense of the American Working Forces. How many more oil spills do we have to have before we find alternative fuel sources? Justice for All...check out the end results in the Exxon Valdez litigation fiasco.
I'm stand for Higher Education being the right of every American and not just for the chosen few. I stand for flat taxes for all and social medicine that is not controlled by the Pharmaceutical and Insurance Corporations. As a child, and as an adult, I have had the priviledge of living in several foreign countries (Africa, Taiwan, Panama and Italy ;) and I have seen different forms of government where social medicine, flat taxes and higher education are all working. I would love it if we could learn and adapt our current policies in regards to these very important matters.
How about you...What are you open to today?
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