Only a great fool would call the new political science diabolic: it has no attributes peculiar to fallen angels. It is not even Machiavellian, for Machiavelli's teaching was graceful, subtle, and colorful. Nor is it Neronian. Nevertheless one may say of it that it fiddles while Rome burns. It is excused by two facts: it does not know that it fiddles, and it does not know that Rome burns.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Critics blame a new political science for ignoring crises, but it is ignorant of both the fiddling and the burning.
- In plain terms
- This political science is blamed for ignoring crises but doesn't know the crisis or its own neglect.
- What can you take from it?
- Ignorance excuses inaction during crises.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Does ignorance excuse negligence?
- How do we judge leaders during crises?
Another view
It assumes ignorance excuses failure to address real problems.
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