Discerning Judgment Quotes

I much prefer the sharpest criticism of a single intelligent man to the thoughtless approval of the masses.

Avoid independent thinking! How is such independent thinking manifest? A common way is by questioning the council that is provided by God’s visible organization

We try to exert a Ted Williams kind of discipline. In his book The Science of Hitting, Ted explains that he carved the strike zone into 77 cells, each the size of a baseball. Swinging only at balls in his "best" cell, he knew, would allow him to bat .400; reaching for balls in his "worst" spot, the low outside corner of the strike zone, would reduce him to .230. In other words, waiting for the fat pitch would mean a trip to the Hall of Fame; swinging indiscriminately would mean a ticket to the minors.

I've never been a guy who has said 'OK' about stuff. That's not me. That's not my personality. If I think something's wrong, I express that.

If they who understand the utmost refinement of any art will enjoy the perfection of it in a manner superior to other men, will they not amply pay for that advantage in feeling more than other men the imperfection of it, which in the natural course of things must so much oftener fall in their way?

One of the most important things one can do in life is to brutally question every single thing you are taught.

One of the marks of an educated man today is to know what not to read--what not to see or what not to listen to.

Good taste is synonymous with success in all fields of life. It's not a question of money, but of a trained eye.

Give every man thine ear, but few thy voice; Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment.

Thinking is different from perceiving and is held to be in part imagination, in part judgment

I am skeptical in principle, gullible in practice.

True consistency, that of the prudent and wise, is to act in conformity with circumstances, and not to act always the same way under a change of circumstances.

A man who is half an idiot, but who keeps a sharp lookout and acts prudently all his life, often enjoys the pleasure of triumphing over men of more imagination than he

Man once surrendering his reason, has no remaining guard against absurdities the most monstrous, and like a ship without rudder, is the sport of every wind. With such persons, gullibility, which they call faith, takes the helm from the hand of reason, and the mind becomes a wreck.

Taste is only to be educated by contemplation, not of the tolerably good but of the truly excellent. I therefore show you only the best works; and when you are grounded in these, you will have a standard for the rest, which you will know how to value, without overrating them.

I never, ever, saw the evil Steve Jobs. He was always the most well-mannered and respectful guy I knew. And we got to be pretty good friends. He didn't suffer fools gladly. I guess he didn't think I was a fool.

The secret of all good writing is sound judgment.

Taste is only to be educated by contemplation, not of the tolerably good but of the truly excellent.

I was brought up to question authority, and thank God for that.

If thou canst see sharp, look and judge wisely, says the philosopher.

A quick and sound judgment, good common sense, kind feeling, and an instinctive perception of character, in these are the elements of what is called tact, which has so much to do with acceptability and success in life.

I never approved either the errors of his book, or the trivial truths he so vigorously laid down. I have, however, stoutly taken his side when absurd men have condemned him for these same truths.

Mothers know the difference between a broth and a consommé. And the difference between damask and chintz. And the difference between vinyl and Naugahyde. And the difference between a house and a home. And the difference between a romantic and a stalker. And the difference between a rock and a hard place.

Wise kings generally have wise counselors; and he must be a wise man himself who is capable of distinguishing one.

Penetration has an air of divination; it pleases our vanity more than any other quality of the mind.