The stupid are all around us: they are in every place, in every class, ready to cause damage to others and naturally (they are stupid, are they not?) to themselves. The stupid form the most dangerous category of human beings. Woe betide those who underestimate them. The historian Carlo M. Cipolla wrote this essay in a constructive effort to detect, know, and thus possibly neutralize one of the most powerful, dark forces which hinder the growth of human welfare and happiness. And if it then proves impossible to save ourselves from stupidity, at least we can take vengeance by laughing at it.
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--This text refers to the
Kindle Edition
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This review is from: The basic laws of human stupidity
A quick search will reveal many sources for this "book" on line. Cippola was a much loved Professor at Berkeley and wanted his work to be available to all. Unfortunately, his heirs don't accept the free idea.Do your search.
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For the first time ever, the original version of this bestseller,
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This review is from: The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity (Italian Edition) (Kindle Edition)
The publishing history of this text, originally intended as a private, not-for-sale book, coincides with the history of the relationship between its author, Carlo M. Cipolla, the world-renowned economic historian, and his publisher, il Mulino.
This history begins in 1973, when Cipolla, who was about to bring out his first essay with the Bologna publishing house, "An Economic History of Pre-Industrial Europe", asked il Mulino to print a short essay in English concerning pepper and spices, which he intended to give friends as a Christmas gift. This uncirculated text featured an improbable imprint: The Mad Millers. In August 1976 Cipolla requested that another brief, English-language text be printed: "The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity". Il Mulino produced approximately a hundred copies that Cipolla distributed among his friends. For years the author refused to translate and publish them in Italian, in the belief that doing so would betray the Swiftian humour of the English text. Word of mouth gradually increased the pressure on Cipolla, who finally relented and in 1987 allowed il Mulino to translate the two works, which were published together in 1988 under the title "Allegro ma non troppo". This small book was a remarkable success and became the publisher's all-time bestseller, with over 350 thousand copies sold in Italy. It has been published and constantly reprinted throughout the world, in languages including French, German, Spanish, Galician, Catalan, Greek, Turkish, Portuguese, Hungarian, Czech, Romanian, and even Japanese and Korean. And yet (in a twist of fate that its author surely would have appreciated) no English-language publisher has ever shown any interest in printing the book in the language in which it was originally written. At long last, for the first time ever, il Mulino presents to the world's English readers the original version of "The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity". Thirtyfive years have passed since Cipolla gave this book to his friends. Strangely enough, only now can we finally read this established bestseller. Il Mulino Press Office
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