The Age of Amathia

What are we supposed to do in a mad world? How should we respond? do we accept biased media, or do we follow the AI-generated news feeds? How do we make sense of it all?

I suggest we call this period of history, "the Age of Amathia". Amathia, from the Ancient Greek ἀμαθία, translates to "intelligent stupidity" or "willful ignorance."

It refers to a specific type of ignorance that is not merely a lack of knowledge but rather an unwillingness to learn or an active choice to remain ignorant despite having the capacity to know better.

Unlike simple ignorance, which may stem from a lack of exposure or understanding, amathia involves a conscious decision to ignore evidence or refuse to learn. It's a deliberate misapplication or refusal to use intelligence for wisdom.

Socrates saw this as the most dangerous ignorance because it's the blindness of not knowing that one does not know!

Take a look and you will find amathia all around. It's a weed, and it's choking human flourishing. We need to counter amathia with wisdom. But how?

That's where The Wisdom Practice comes in: https://www.peterjwebb.com/programs