No Substitute

Posted in Craigs Keystone articles

Bill Gates, founder of computer software giant Microsoft, extols the virtues of the written word: “People cannot become truly knowledgeable without being excellent readers. While multimedia systems can use video and sound to deliver information in compelling ways, text is still one of the best ways to convey details.

“I try to make time for reading each night. In addition to the usual newspapers and magazines, I make it a priority to read at least one newsweekly from cover to cover. If I were to read only what intrigues me I would finish the magazine the same person I was when I started. So I read it all.” (From The Guardian.)

(The King of Computer Whiz himself promotes the reading of magazines! There must be something to this reading. I remember doing exactly what Bill says he does: get a copy of Time or Newsweek magazine, and read it cover to cover each week. I read BOTH those magazines religiously cover to cover each week for about six years. I found the business and economic stuff incomprehensible, and much of the rest a bit dull at times. But I began to learn who were the leading lights, the names that appeared again and again. I became aware of the vast array of human issues being played out in every corner of the globe. I began to understand what the media meant when it referred to “left-wing” or “right-wing” or “conservative” or “liberal”, and also noticed how biased one magazine was in particular and how it took every opportunity, no matter how far it had to stretch, to say something promoting the evolutionary world-view. Just knowing those names and a wee bit of the context enables me to this day to talk to anyone about almost any topic, AND TO ASK INTELLIGENT QUESTIONS. This HAS to be the quickest, easiest and most interesting way to learn anything! None of us needs to know everything, nor do our children. But we should all learn enough about as many topics as we can in order to ask intelligent questions, probing how this topic relates to another, what its relevance is to everyday life, etc., in order that we may learn from every person with whom we come into contact. At the same time it is one of the best ways to make friends and leave a very positive impression with others: you were the one who was interested in what that other person was involved in, and actually asked questions to draw them out and actually listened intently as if you were eager to learn from them.  They will be very pleased to see you again next time.)

From Keystone Magazine
July 1997 , Vol. III No.4
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