Barry Schwartz: Our loss of wisdom

http://www.ted.com Barry Schwartz makes a passionate call for practical wisdom as an antidote to a society gone mad with bureaucracy. He argues powerfully that rules often fail us, incentives often backfire, and practical, everyday wisdom will help rebuild our world.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Watch the Top 10 TEDTalks on TED.com, at http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/top10

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[PininfarinaIdealist]

18:35 - That's *exactly* it!! We need to teach respect and character. That will drive society in a completely different direction. All we need to do is respect ourselves and each other, no matter what the other person believes or thinks. What a great speech!

[77777aol]

P.S. I used to be a janitor. And nothing blasphemous here, if anything, quite the opposite, personal initiative is an expression of honoring the manifestation of the greater good that exists in every human being.

[Cmdrlucky8]

Eloquently said!

[zetardel]

this is one of the most important ted talks ive seen

[leconfidant]

Any new atheists out there who can explain why science provides this kind of wisdom?

[outsky20051]

You can see wisdom as moral, or you can see moral as wisdom. I prefer the later because wisdom is not only morally "right", but it is also the most efficient way to success (in the long run), and it is very fun as well.

[Yefatbastard]

Until we has a people regain our compassion for each other the downward spiral will continue.

[sowetoninja]

I agree that Obama is a hypocrite, but tell me, what politician is not? It doesn't matter if Hitler said those words, the words itself is still true and meaningful, even if the person saying it doesn't believe or practice it. This was an excellent talk, I hate that Obama is distracting everyone from this...

[canthemum]

Obama is a classic narcissist. He lies, makes up facts about his life that didn't happen, take credit for things he did not do and thinks he is above the office he holds.

He is a permanent child, damaged by his childhood abandonment. Quoting Obama is ludicrous.

[Vulpini Canis-lupus]

He did a good job but i still want to break his eyeglasses and nose !

[RoninDave]

we have put rules before our sanity and souls. Look what happened recently at a supermarket in Georgia where the police restrained poor people from taking perfectly good food that was bound to the landfill because the landowners (sun trust bank) ordered it so.

[onlinecuriouse]

I guess this is 2009, when Obama was still considered as the second coming of Jesus. Well... that didn't last.