I don't really like the article's emphasis on the appearance of being intellectually honest, rather than intellectual honesty itself, but the latter is more or

I don't really like the article's emphasis on the appearance of being intellectually honest, rather than intellectual honesty itself, but the latter is more or less an inward version of the outward former. And there's certainly no reason why a brilliant asshole can't be intellectually dishonest. One can be right without being intellectually honest, just as one can be wrong while being intellectually honest. One can also be brilliant without being right, and one can be brilliant in a particular domain, but not in others. But as a general rule of thumb, intellectual honesty is the best policy.