# Help with quote on intelligence.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 22, 2004, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636 "2004-06-22T15:09:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636/1 "2004-06-22T15:09:42Z")

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There is a quote about intelligence and how every man is happy with his share. Anybody know the quote and who said it?

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**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636/2 "2004-06-23T13:24:46Z")

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bump

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**Author:** ![hammos1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ba8739/32.png) [@hammos1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammos1)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636/3 "2004-06-23T13:59:43Z")

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“Mankind have a great aversion to intellectual labor; but even supposing knowledge to be easily attainable, more people would be content to be ignorant than would take even a little trouble to acquire it”  
Samuel Johnson

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**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636/4 "2004-06-23T18:17:28Z")

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There is an old Yiddish proverb that - very loosely translated - says that if all the people in the world were to throw their troubles into a pot and then pull out an equal share, they would all want their original troubles back.

Mathematically suspect, but psychologically sound.

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**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-with-quote-on-intelligence/251636/5 "2004-06-23T18:39:58Z")

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I think the quote I was referring to might have been Hobbes. Or Shaw.