Yuval Noah Harari: the myth of freedom (The Guardian)

Yuval Noah Harari · 14 Sept 2018

The piece opens with

Liberalism's great advantage is that it is flexible and undogmatic and sustains criticism better than any other order

Their wordsLiberalism’s great advantage over other ideologies is that it is flexible and undogmatic. It can sustain criticism better than any other social order.

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Yuval Noah Harari did not write this page.

Every claim below was made in this piece, quoted word for word and numbered in the order the piece makes them, so you can read it there rather than take our word for it. The sentence above each quote is our reading of the claim, not their wording. Each quote was checked against a stored copy of the page at build time; where the two differ, the quote is the fact.

Our reading
Liberalism's great advantage is that it is flexible and undogmatic and sustains criticism better than any other order

Their wordsLiberalism’s great advantage over other ideologies is that it is flexible and undogmatic. It can sustain criticism better than any other social order.
Our reading
Free will is not a scientific reality but a myth inherited from Christian theology

Their wordsUnfortunately, “free will” isn’t a scientific reality. It is a myth inherited from Christian theology.
Our reading
Belief in free will has become dangerous, since believers will be the easiest people to manipulate

Their wordsBut now the belief in “free will” suddenly becomes dangerous. If governments and corporations succeed in hacking the human animal, the easiest people to manipulate will be those who believe in free will.
Our reading
Knowing your own weaknesses matters especially, because they are the main tools of those who try to hack you

Their wordsIt is particularly important to get to know your weaknesses. They are the main tools of those who try to hack you.
Our reading
Liberal democracy should be defended as more benign than its alternatives and as least limiting of debate about the future

Their wordsWe should defend liberal democracy, not only because it has proved to be a more benign form of government than any of its alternatives, but also because it places the fewest limitations on debating the future of humanity.

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