Yes, I have, and that ethos very much suits Mill's personal life being a high IQ genius raised on a nobleman's education. In today's Internet era, that ability to explore knowledge is now available to everyone.
However, I don't really agree with the universal applicability of his political theory advanced in "On LIberty" (no surprise there, I hope). In times of peace and general prosperity, such a liberal approach to governance would not be too problematic. This is not because the liberal approach itself is superior, but because there is enough economic surplus to prevent any contradiction between social classes from becoming fatally antagonistic. Such periods are known as "Golden Ages". The problem is that the liberal approach has minimal ability to focus on long-term plans, because the mechanism for deciding new laws relies on the respect of the self-interest of all (or at the very least, the self-interest of everyone who has a political voice), forcing a compromise (at best) between various classes and coalitions or at worst (which is what is happening now) a way to disguise the oligarchy of the bourgeoisie. But even in the best case scenario, since no individual has a complete set of knowledge and deference to experts does not work (because the experts themselves cannot be trusted to be apolitical or bribe-proof, the imperial mandarins weren't and the modern mandarins of the academy are not either), the resulting politics will mostly reflect short-term and parochial concerns. Often, the compromise between various concerns creates a decision more irrational and unworkable than sticking to any extreme. As thus, such societies remain vulnerable to long-term systemic crises or the political manipulation by dynastic clans capable of enacting such long-term schemes. This is why I believe in a planned society (both economy and culture). The state, as the voice and safeguard of the people, has every right to enact decisions necessary for the long-term interest of society, even if it restricts the freedoms of a minority (or sometimes even the majority).
