--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bad enough to damage a world out of…" description: "\"“Bad enough to damage a world out of ignorance. But to do it willfully, in spite of knowing the truth . . . that’s a breed of selfishness I just can’t ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c3/david-mack-18239_ignorance_bad-enough-to-damage-a-world-out-of-igno_2467419.jpg" --- # Bad enough to damage a world out of ignorance. But to do… ![“Bad enough to damage a world out of ignorance. But to do it willfully, in spite of knowing the truth . . . that’s a breed of selfishness I just can’t understand.” quote by David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c3/david-mack-18239_ignorance_bad-enough-to-damage-a-world-out-of-igno_2467419.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c3/david-mack-18239_ignorance_bad-enough-to-damage-a-world-out-of-igno_2467419.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c3/david-mack-18239_ignorance_bad-enough-to-damage-a-world-out-of-igno_2467419.jpg) > ““Bad enough to damage a world out of ignorance. But to do it willfully, in spite of knowing the truth . . . that’s a breed of selfishness I just can’t understand.”” [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Willful ignorance harms the world more than accidental mistakes, revealing a deep selfishness that is incomprehensible. **In simple terms:** Willful ignorance is destructive and selfish. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge willful ignorance. Themes ethics selfishness knowledge responsibility Mood concerned critical Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - politics - environment - education - leadership Key Concepts moral philosophy human behavior Questions to Reflect On - How does knowledge become a burden? - What drives people to ignore truth? A Different Perspective Selfishness may stem from fear or self‑preservation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Knowing the truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowing-the-truth/) [Selfishness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selfishness/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [“Wake up first. Wake up, and then you can double back and perhaps be of some use to others if you still have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-mckenna/wake-up-first-wake-up-and-then-you-can-double-back-and-perhaps-be-of/) [Jed McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-mckenna/) > [Mankind has the genius to bring all the world together and the ignorance to fight upon arrival.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-fesler/mankind-has-the-genius-to-bring-all-the-world-together-and-the/) [Wes Fesler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-fesler/) > [Prejudice and self-sufficiency naturally proceed from inexperience of the world, and ignorance of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/prejudice-and-self-sufficiency-naturally-proceed-from-inexperience-of/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Whats preventing peace around the world is ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leticia-carvalho/whats-preventing-peace-around-the-world-is-ignorance/) Leticia Carvalho > [“The source of all the problems in the world is ignorance - the limited view point or narrow mindedness or the conditioned state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-vazhakunnathu/the-source-of-all-the-problems-in-the-world-is-ignorance-the-limited/) [Thomas Vazhakunnathu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-vazhakunnathu/) > [“I suppose it was a dream that lasted really about fifty years. By the time universal education had begun to work properly, say 1925,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-faulks/i-suppose-it-was-a-dream-that-lasted-really-about-fifty-years-by-the/) [Sebastian Faulks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-faulks/) > [“The cosmos stands amazed at just how dumb Planet Dumb is. With an uncanny talent for error, humanity has at every crossroads taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranty-mcranterson/the-cosmos-stands-amazed-at-just-how-dumb-planet-dumb-is-with-an/) Ranty McRanterson > [The only sin in the world is ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-sin-in-the-world-is-ignorance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Never forget that intelligence rules the world and ignorance carries the burden. Therefore, remove yourself as far as possible from ignorance and seek as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-garvey/never-forget-that-intelligence-rules-the-world-and-ignorance-carries/) [Marcus Garvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-garvey/) > [Everywhere in the world there are ignorance and prejudice, but the greatest complex of these, with the most extensive prestige and the most intimate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/everywhere-in-the-world-there-are-ignorance-and-prejudice-but-the/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [Doomed to total failure in a deaf world of ignorance and indifference, he inexorably kept on cutting out his diamonds, his dazzling diamonds, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-stravinsky/doomed-to-total-failure-in-a-deaf-world-of-ignorance-and-indifference/) [Igor Stravinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-stravinsky/) > [Intelligence rules the world, ignorance carries the burden...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-garvey/intelligence-rules-the-world-ignorance-carries-the-burden/) [Marcus Garvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-garvey/) > [At my back I hear the word-"homosexual"-and it seems to split my world in two… It is ignorance, our ignorance of one another, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cheever/at-my-back-i-hear-the-word-homosexual-and-it-seems-to-split-my-world/) [John Cheever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cheever/) > [Tho' there be no such Thing as Chance in the World; our Ignorance of the real Ccause of any Event has the same Influence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/tho-there-be-no-such-thing-as-chance-in-the-world-our-ignorance-of/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [“But “knowing the truth” does not come with redemption as a guarantee, nor does a feeling of redemption guarantee an end to a cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/but-knowing-the-truth-does-not-come-with-redemption-as-a-guarantee/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) ## More by David Mack > [“Apart from live performance, vinyl analog recordings were Georgiou’s favorite way to enjoy music. Rich, warm, and so eerily present—that was the enduring appeal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/apart-from-live-performance-vinyl-analog-recordings-were-georgiou-s/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Spock split his attention between Burnham and the path ahead. “I doubt either of us would be welcomed among Vulcan crews. As quick as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/spock-split-his-attention-between-burnham-and-the-path-ahead-i-doubt/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Engineering, this is ops! Status report!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/engineering-this-is-ops-status-report/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Don’t tell me,” Burnham cut in. “It’s fascinating .” Spock said nothing in response, but he could not help but appear mildly put out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/don-t-tell-me-burnham-cut-in-it-s-fascinating-spock-said-nothing-in/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“You seem . . . I don’t know. Older? No—calmer than you did before.” She tilted her head as she continued to study him and collect her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/you-seem-i-don-t-know-older-no-calmer-than-you-did-before-she-tilted/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“How do you want to play it, Captain? Slow and steady, or shock and awe?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/how-do-you-want-to-play-it-captain-slow-and-steady-or-shock-and-awe/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“She reminded him of the small team of Starfleet officers who had rescued him from certain death on his homeworld many years earlier. They,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/she-reminded-him-of-the-small-team-of-starfleet-officers-who-had/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“She tapped her wrist, an ancient Terran gesture meant to signal impatience, one of the few things she remembered from early childhood on Earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/she-tapped-her-wrist-an-ancient-terran-gesture-meant-to-signal/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Fire at will! And for the love of the Great Bird of the Galaxy, hit something!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/fire-at-will-and-for-the-love-of-the-great-bird-of-the-galaxy-hit/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“But until today, I’d thought I was Sarek’s greatest disappointment.” “Unlikely,” Spock said. “I am quite certain he has reserved that distinction for me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/but-until-today-i-d-thought-i-was-sarek-s-greatest-disappointment/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“I’m surrounded by modernity, yet the ways of business remain unchanged since the age of barter and battery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/i-m-surrounded-by-modernity-yet-the-ways-of-business-remain-unchanged/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Politics is merely war by other means. -an old Andorian saying”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/politics-is-merely-war-by-other-means-an-old-andorian-saying/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“full disclosure, Mister Spock. Who is the Shenzhou’s XO to you?” “Her name is Michael Burnham,” Spock said. “She is . . . a friend of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/full-disclosure-mister-spock-who-is-the-shenzhou-s-xo-to-you-her-name/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“the only things he had ever given her that she hadn’t discarded in their divorce, both retained in the name of sentimentality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/the-only-things-he-had-ever-given-her-that-she-hadn-t-discarded-in/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) > [“Pick up your feet, Mister Saru,” Burnham said as she and Gant headed to the turbolift. “Time, tide, and transporters wait for no one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mack/pick-up-your-feet-mister-saru-burnham-said-as-she-and-gant-headed-to/) [David Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) [Explore all 35 David Mack quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mack/) ## More Ignorance quotes > [My folks tried to make a preacher of me and missed by a narrow margin… I would have made a good one if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/my-folks-tried-to-make-a-preacher-of-me-and-missed-by-a-narrow-margin/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ignorance is not bliss — it is oblivion. Determined ignorance is the hastiest kind of oblivion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-wylie/ignorance-is-not-bliss-it-is-oblivion-determined-ignorance-is-the/) [Philip Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-wylie/) > [... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. People who believe themselves ignorant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/informed-ignorance-provides-the-natural-state-of-mind-for-research/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“If knowledge does not liberate the self from the self, then ignorance is better than such knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hakim-sanai/if-knowledge-does-not-liberate-the-self-from-the-self-then-ignorance/) [Hakim Sanai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hakim-sanai/) > [You are senile old fool, and because of your impudence, I cannot fathom how you still live!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-are-senile-old-fool-and-because-of-your-impudence-i-cannot-fathom/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Surely, God could have caused birds to fly with their bones made of solid gold, with their veins full of quicksilver, with their flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/surely-god-could-have-caused-birds-to-fly-with-their-bones-made-of/) [Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/) > [“Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/knowledge-will-forever-govern-ignorance-and-a-people-who-mean-to-be/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [“Don’t turn your face away. Once you’ve seen, you can no longer act like you don’t know. Open your eyes to the truth. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vashti-quiroz-vega/don-t-turn-your-face-away-once-you-ve-seen-you-can-no-longer-act-like/) Vashti Quiroz-Vega > [Nothing is worse than active ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/nothing-is-worse-than-active-ignorance/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [The only victories which leave no regret are those which are gained over ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/the-only-victories-which-leave-no-regret-are-those-which-are-gained/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [“Those who embrace prejudice doom themselves to live in ignorance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-p-lintz-sr/those-who-embrace-prejudice-doom-themselves-to-live-in-ignorance/) John P Lintz Sr > [“You are a lawmaker in your own right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/you-are-a-lawmaker-in-your-own-right/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance, or denial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/sanity-can-take-one-of-only-two-forms-that-of-ignorance-or-denial/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) [Browse all 5,657 Ignorance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Bad enough to damage a world out of ignorance. 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