Friday, September 19, 2008
Less is More
Less is More
by Sheilanagig
Alexander Pope was wise in this saying; yet Einstein was equally wise: "Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage - to move in the opposite direction."
It does not take a great mind to create complexity from simple circumstance: but it does take a great insight to reduce complexity to its simplest truth. This is essentially what Einstein did, as well as Stephen Hawkes. They were able to find the common demoninator in a plethora of complex explanations and express them as simple truths.
No method of thinking could be more apropo to today's complex geopolitical/economic situtation than this. Those with vested interests in this or that seek to befuddle issues with rhetorical spin which excite the irrational fears and impulses of the masses. When an issue is made more complex, it creates the need for further analysis, and confusion, such that if issues be infinitely complicated, an analysis to find the essential factors of the issue, may be postponed into the future indefinitely.
I am by no means suggesting that our simplest conclusions based on lack of information are the most valid. However after studying of an issue, when the thinker is bound to a commitment to 'intellectual integrity', gleaning the fundamental currents creating the maelstrom is an act of great courage. This is especially so in a world filled with professional experts bloated by their non-secular vernacular and egos, which exclude any conclusions of common sense. Let all experts examine their egos before analysing their topics.
It is in this spirit that I make the following observation. If you wish to know the nature of a employee's character, do not ask his colleagues or his boss. Instead, ask the janitor. For the true character of an individual is known, not by how he treats those from whom he has something to gain; but, by how he treats those from whom he has nothing to gain. How a self important member of an organisation treats those who have NO power is infinitely more revealing than all the awards, salaries and credentials which his society may award for performance.
This is also true in societies and governments. How political power deals with the most helpless and disagreeable among its' populace is the true measure of its intentions and integrity. The measure of the integrity of power is not in its greatness, but in its humility and compassion to those who have nothing to offer. It is with this yardstick, I choose to analyse the rhetoric of the USA, Russia, the EU, China, Africa and South America.
The essential tell tale clue of core character and true intention, is not how friends are dealt with; but how the insignificant and offensive are treated.
I will close with what I am sure must be one of Einstein's favorite quotes (as well as mine):
A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?
by Sheilanagig
Alexander Pope was wise in this saying; yet Einstein was equally wise: "Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage - to move in the opposite direction."
It does not take a great mind to create complexity from simple circumstance: but it does take a great insight to reduce complexity to its simplest truth. This is essentially what Einstein did, as well as Stephen Hawkes. They were able to find the common demoninator in a plethora of complex explanations and express them as simple truths.
No method of thinking could be more apropo to today's complex geopolitical/economic situtation than this. Those with vested interests in this or that seek to befuddle issues with rhetorical spin which excite the irrational fears and impulses of the masses. When an issue is made more complex, it creates the need for further analysis, and confusion, such that if issues be infinitely complicated, an analysis to find the essential factors of the issue, may be postponed into the future indefinitely.
I am by no means suggesting that our simplest conclusions based on lack of information are the most valid. However after studying of an issue, when the thinker is bound to a commitment to 'intellectual integrity', gleaning the fundamental currents creating the maelstrom is an act of great courage. This is especially so in a world filled with professional experts bloated by their non-secular vernacular and egos, which exclude any conclusions of common sense. Let all experts examine their egos before analysing their topics.
It is in this spirit that I make the following observation. If you wish to know the nature of a employee's character, do not ask his colleagues or his boss. Instead, ask the janitor. For the true character of an individual is known, not by how he treats those from whom he has something to gain; but, by how he treats those from whom he has nothing to gain. How a self important member of an organisation treats those who have NO power is infinitely more revealing than all the awards, salaries and credentials which his society may award for performance.
This is also true in societies and governments. How political power deals with the most helpless and disagreeable among its' populace is the true measure of its intentions and integrity. The measure of the integrity of power is not in its greatness, but in its humility and compassion to those who have nothing to offer. It is with this yardstick, I choose to analyse the rhetoric of the USA, Russia, the EU, China, Africa and South America.
The essential tell tale clue of core character and true intention, is not how friends are dealt with; but how the insignificant and offensive are treated.
I will close with what I am sure must be one of Einstein's favorite quotes (as well as mine):
A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?
