True, context adds meaning to the quote.
I suppose it helps to add that my distaste stems from the usage of these quotes as blanket life-advice, without recognizing that they are situation-dependent.
I.e. I consider the quote in my original post a factor in the increase of perceived reluctance of people to ask questions, either in class or at work, for fear of seeming the fool.
A friend recently shared an image of Lincoln with the quote, "Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than speak and remove all doubt."
Correcting that idea, I replied with the following: "Speak! Reveal your foolishness, and open yourself so that others may enlighten you and you can learn. Fear the false mantle of silence-as-wisdom; better to briefly be the vocal fool than forever the silent fool."
The experience led me to thinking that it might be fun, cathartic, andor a good mental exercise/reminder to translate our culture's more irrational memes into a more presentable package.
Post your own examples if you like, and if I think of/see more I'll post here.