The author is often amusing as well as illuminating. Genghis Khan was a vicious warlord, but his domestic policies “would today open him up to accusations of being a politically correct, latte-drinking virtue signaller”. The Mongols practised ethnic and religious tolerance, which is one reason why they were so effective. They promoted skilled fighters, engineers and administrators of all backgrounds. Of the 150,000-strong horde that invaded Europe in 1241, only around a third were ethnic Mongols.
作者寫的故事經(jīng)常妙趣橫生，而且發(fā)人深省。成吉思汗是一位殘酷的軍閥式領(lǐng)袖，但是他實(shí)行的國(guó)內(nèi)政策“在今天會(huì)使他被指責(zé)為政治正確、喝著拿鐵的美德信號(hào)員”。蒙古人實(shí)行種族和宗教的寬容，這也是他們有效率的原因之一。他們提拔了很多嫻熟的戰(zhàn)士、工程師和管理人員，且不問出身。1241年入侵歐洲的15萬大軍中，只有大約三分之一是蒙古族。
Habsburg soldiers were surprised to find that one captured officer was a middle-aged literate Englishman, who had fled persecution for heresy at home and sought refuge among the more openminded Mongols. All regions have had rulers who tried to preserve stability by shutting out foreign influence. The key to thwarting them has often been for the ruled to vote with their feet. Early modern Europe was no more advanced than China, but power was more dispersed, so thinkers who offended one prince could simply move. Hobbes wrote “Leviathan” while in exile in Paris; Locke and Descartes went to Amsterdam. Their books could always be printed somewhere, and so were impossible to suppress.
哈布斯堡的士兵們驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)，有一名被俘軍官是滿腹學(xué)識(shí)的英國(guó)中年男子，他為躲避英國(guó)對(duì)宗教異端的迫害，而逃亡至更加開明的蒙古以尋求庇護(hù)。世界各地都會(huì)有統(tǒng)治者通過排斥外國(guó)勢(shì)力來維護(hù)穩(wěn)定。阻撓這些統(tǒng)治者的關(guān)鍵在于被統(tǒng)治者們要表示異議。早期的現(xiàn)代歐洲的先進(jìn)程度比不上中國(guó)，但權(quán)力更加分散，因此得罪了一位王子的思想家可以輕易地活動(dòng)。霍布斯在巴黎流亡期間寫下了《利維坦》；洛克和笛卡爾則去了阿姆斯特丹。總有一些地方能夠印刷他們創(chuàng)作的書，所以當(dāng)時(shí)的歐洲無法打壓他們。
Backlashes against openness are inevitable because they are rooted in human nature, Mr Norberg contends. Human brains evolved over millennia in which disruptive change often meant death; mutually beneficial exchanges with strangers were rare. If the past 300,000 years of history were compressed into a single day, it would not be until the final minute that steady material progress, fuelled by disruptive innovation, took off. Small wonder people’s instincts are so conservative. When threatened, they seek shelter within their tribe, which is why demagogues try to scare them. Fear wins elections.
諾伯格認(rèn)為，人們對(duì)開放的抵制無可避免，因?yàn)榈种聘灿谌诵浴Ｈ祟惔竽X經(jīng)過了幾千年的進(jìn)化，破壞性的變化往往意味著死亡。陌生人之間很少會(huì)進(jìn)行互惠互利的交流。如果將30萬年的歷史壓縮在一天內(nèi)，直到最后一刻，在顛覆性創(chuàng)新的推動(dòng)下，穩(wěn)步的物質(zhì)進(jìn)步才得以實(shí)現(xiàn)。難怪人的本能如此保守。人類會(huì)在威脅時(shí)尋求族群的庇護(hù)，這也是煽風(fēng)點(diǎn)火的政客們?cè)噲D恐嚇?biāo)麄兊脑颉Ｍㄟ^恐懼使自己贏得選舉。
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