There are but two ways of forming an opinion in science. One is the scientific method; the other, the scholastic. One can judge from experiment, or one can blindly accept authority. To the scientific mind, experimental proof is all important and theory is merely a convenience in description, to be junked when it no longer fits. To the academic mind, authority is everything and facts are junked when they do not fit theory laid down by authority.
Robert A. Heinlein, Lifeline (1939)
5 replies on “Another Heinlein Quote”
“If a gentleman held a door for me, I would accept the courtesy and thank him. Gentlemen enjoy offering little gallantries; a lady enjoys accepting them graciously, with a smile and a word of thanks. I mention this because, by the 1970s, there were many females who would snub a man unmercifully if he offered a gallantry, such as holding a chair for a woman, or offering to help her in or out of a car. These women (a minority but a ubiquitous, obnoxious one) treated traditional courtesy as if it were an insult. I grew to think of these females as the “Lesbian Mafia.” I don’t know that all of them were homosexual (although I’m certain about some of them) but their behavior caused me to lump them all together. If some of them were not Lesbians, then where did they find heterosexual mates? What sort of wimp would put up with this sort of rudeness in women? I am sorry to say that by 1970 there were plenty of wimps of every sort. The wimps were taking over.”
― Robert A. Heinlein, To Sail Beyond the Sunset
Excellent choice, RR. Here are two more that are apt for today’s environment. From 1987.
“But there seems to have been an actual decline in rational thinking. The United States had become a place where entertainers and professional athletes were mistaken for people of importance. They were idolized and treated as leaders; their opinions were sought on everything and they took themselves just as seriously — after all, if an athlete is paid a million or more a year, he knows he is important … so his opinions of foreign affairs and domestic policies must be important, too, even though he proves himself to be both ignorant and subliterate every time he opens his mouth. (Most of his fans were just as ignorant and unlettered; the disease was spreading.)”
― Robert A. Heinlein, To Sail Beyond the Sunset
Great story, a mind-bending concept, and his first short story to be published. It is also the first story in his first Future History series, “The Past Through Tomorrow,” a great read. As one can tell, I’m an old Heinlein fan. The first book I read by Heinlein was “Farmer in the Sky” (1950), part of his juvenile series that competed with the likes of the Hardy Boys and Tom Swift. I read it while in the book club of my boy scout troop. Some of the other favorite authors at the time were, but not limited to, Isaac Asimov, Clark, and Clifford D. Simak (Way Station, oh my!).
I have a well worn copy of “The Past Through Tomorrow” that is literally held together by duct tape. Love this story and many others would make good video stories now.
You and I have a remarkably similar reading list.
Mine has also Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, and David Gerrold.