Synopsis
A conservative polemic against an intellectual elite that, Sowell argues, advances self-flattering policies while ignoring evidence of their failures.
Core passage idea
Paraphrase · Modern copyrighted workA self-anointed elite mistakes its good intentions for wisdom, pushing policies whose real-world results it never honestly confronts.
It indicts a style of reasoning that prizes moral self-image over outcomes, demanding policy be judged by results, not aspirations.
To avoid a bubble
Pair with James Burnham, The Machiavellians.
Reading note
Read it as deliberate polemic; the recurring 'anointed' framing is rhetorical, and the case studies carry the argument.
Best paired with
James Burnham, The Machiavellians