An intelligence test measures how facile you are with words, mathematics, and, to some extent, concepts.
It probably is a good measure of how well you have done in school and is a good predictor of your capability to continue your education. It may be a good indicator of your capability to perform well in certain, highly technical careers.
But intelligence is no indicator of how well you will do in living your life. It is far from an indicator of the type of person you will become.
Every corrupt dictator has thousands of highly intelligent people working behind the scenes, facilitating the regime. Someone has to design the gas chambers. Someone has to use the language to obfuscate the true purpose of the plans.
Without the wisdom to choose a proper purpose and a proper course, intelligence is foolish and can be dangerous. To be wise is to understand when, where, and how to use intelligence. Intelligent people are common...wise people are rare.
Without the courage to stand up for a proper purpose, intelligence is wasted. Without compassion, persistence, and drive, intelligence alone will not often win others to your side.
Ego and arrogance often go with high intelligence. Everyone has seen instances of extremely intelligent people making amazingly foolish decisions. Business, banking, and political scandals constantly occur, in spite of the intelligence of the people involved.
They weren't stupid (well, at least not all of them). They were just arrogant enough to think that they could get away with it, or they were too weak to stand up for what was right, or they just didn't care how many people got hurt, as long as they got theirs. Intelligence does not trump character flaws.
Actually, intelligence can be dangerous when applied towards improper, short-sighted, or selfish goals.
Don't get me wrong. We should all do as well in school as we can. We should all strive to do well enough on tests to pursue our education and careers as far as our minds will take us.
I just want you to put intelligence in perspective. How smart you are is not as important as the character you have.
The smarter you are, the more you should listen to others and learn from their perspective.
The smarter you are, the more you should consider the uses to which you are putting your talents, and the causes for which you are working.
The smarter you are, the more you should realize that you don't (and can't) have all the answers.
Intelligence is not what life is about. Intelligence is a tool you can use to help you discover what life is about. Just as a hammer can be used to build a house, or to crack a skull, intelligence is no better than the purpose to which it is put to use.
Beware the intelligent mind being put to a nefarious purpose.
Friday, August 5, 2011
A Lesson From Larry
Many years ago, Larry and two women worked for a large corporation. They were all married to their respective spouses, but they remained workplace friends. Over the years, they changed employers and careers, and contact became infrequent.
One woman became divorced, and I was the lucky one who latched on to and married her.
The second woman also divorced, and Larry's wife passed on. Years later, Larry and the second woman reconnected, dated, and became engaged.
A few years ago, I met Larry for the first time at the first ever, semi-annual dinner and catch-up session arranged by the women, and we continued to meet throughout the years.
I liked Larry a lot. He was experienced, intelligent, and successful in the business world. He had run his own consulting service, and had been CEO of a small business. I found him serious and sometimes funny.
We all discussed business, a little politics, families, and any other issues that came up. He was the only CEO I've ever known that was more interested in the opinions of the others at the table than in his own. I know, it's hard to believe. The man was a saint.
And then he died, quickly and unexpectedly. At his funeral, there was no mention of his business success or that he was CEO of a profitable company.
Instead, his brother recounted their days together and how they never had a cross word for each other. His long-time friend recounted their pranks together and Larry's irreverent sense of humor.
The sister of his fiancee recounted a driving trip throughout New England, where Larry drove the two sisters and their mother. Never once did he complain or rush them as the three women stopped and shopped at every store along the road. That's when I realized that Larry was a way better man than I. I think I already told you the man was a saint.
And there were pictures of him dressed up silly with the kids, or at family occasions or ceremonies. The things that make a life memorable. The laughter, the kindnesses, the love.
I once went to a funeral where no one in the family had any good thing to say about the deceased. It was the saddest funeral I've ever attended.
I liked and respected Larry, but I really regret that I didn't get the chance to know him long enough and well enough to love and cherish him as his family and long-time friends did. To watch the celebration of Larry's life was to watch the reward for a good man's life, well lived.
We all miss you, Larry. You've set the mark for us all.
One woman became divorced, and I was the lucky one who latched on to and married her.
The second woman also divorced, and Larry's wife passed on. Years later, Larry and the second woman reconnected, dated, and became engaged.
A few years ago, I met Larry for the first time at the first ever, semi-annual dinner and catch-up session arranged by the women, and we continued to meet throughout the years.
I liked Larry a lot. He was experienced, intelligent, and successful in the business world. He had run his own consulting service, and had been CEO of a small business. I found him serious and sometimes funny.
We all discussed business, a little politics, families, and any other issues that came up. He was the only CEO I've ever known that was more interested in the opinions of the others at the table than in his own. I know, it's hard to believe. The man was a saint.
And then he died, quickly and unexpectedly. At his funeral, there was no mention of his business success or that he was CEO of a profitable company.
Instead, his brother recounted their days together and how they never had a cross word for each other. His long-time friend recounted their pranks together and Larry's irreverent sense of humor.
The sister of his fiancee recounted a driving trip throughout New England, where Larry drove the two sisters and their mother. Never once did he complain or rush them as the three women stopped and shopped at every store along the road. That's when I realized that Larry was a way better man than I. I think I already told you the man was a saint.
And there were pictures of him dressed up silly with the kids, or at family occasions or ceremonies. The things that make a life memorable. The laughter, the kindnesses, the love.
I once went to a funeral where no one in the family had any good thing to say about the deceased. It was the saddest funeral I've ever attended.
I liked and respected Larry, but I really regret that I didn't get the chance to know him long enough and well enough to love and cherish him as his family and long-time friends did. To watch the celebration of Larry's life was to watch the reward for a good man's life, well lived.
We all miss you, Larry. You've set the mark for us all.
Monday, August 1, 2011
I Am
Theologians, scholars, lawyers and politicians, armed with words, do battle with foes and dragons, like human gnats flitting about God's shoulders. In their wake, truth, justice, honor lie trampled beneath their vain, lofty dreams and schemes.
Descartes was wrong when he observed "I think, therefore I am". It should be "I am, and I have the ability to think".
I am. I exist. I have the right to choose my own path, as long as I don't force others to choose my path. I have the ability to think, to plan, to decide how I wish to live my life, as long as I accept the consequences of my decisions. The quality of my thinking determines the quality of my life.
I accept that as part of being human we are all capable of great heroism and honor and we are also all vulnerable to weakness, vanity, and greed. We are all flawed, and if we grant too much power to individuals, our flaws lead to corruption or worse.
Recently, in Norway, someone convinced himself that it was OK to bomb and shoot innocent Norwegians in order to convince them of the greater good of keeping Muslims out of Europe.
And then there are the radical Muslims who feel it's OK to kill innocent civilians (including Muslims) to reach the greater good of political power and a Caliphate.
Then there were the Crusades, aimed at killing Muslims for the greater good of promoting Christianity.
And there were Statists. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, the National Socialists, the Communists, all for the greater good of the worker, and responsible for the deaths of millions.
How about kings and dictators? How many have died under the banner of divine right of kings or dictators?
Over the history of the world, how many times have these governments worked out well for Mankind? Why would anyone think they will get it right the next time? The only function they perform well is as a mechanism to transfer power to the very few to control the lives of the many.
Only once in the history of Man, has a government been designed to limit the power of government to abuse the individual. How can a thinking person not see the genius of the founders? How can a thinking person not see the track record of the other types of governments, regardless of good intentions they pay lip service to?
A government that promises to do everything for you WILL reach the point of taking everything from you, but will NEVER get to the point of doing everything for you. There is never enough to deliver what politicians will promise, in their search for power and control.
Kings, dictators, Theocracies, Socialism, Communism all fail eventually because there are no perfect people to staff their governments. If only the people living under these governments did not suffer so terribly, waiting for the government to fall would not be a problem...and, even when it falls, it may be replaced by an equally repugnant government.
Only a limited central government can curb the appetite of its despots and bureaucracies, and prevent them from feeding on its citizens.
Growing up in the United States has been a rare, rare privilege in a world that has historically been been a venue of repression, fear, violence and destruction on a scale that most Americans can not even imagine. Even today, the worst of our problems are far better than those that are faced by millions in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Never give up your freedom for a false security...the utopia promised by despots and "isms" is meaningless and empty, serving only to deliver you into dependance on them. What they give is far less than what they take.
Descartes was wrong when he observed "I think, therefore I am". It should be "I am, and I have the ability to think".
I am. I exist. I have the right to choose my own path, as long as I don't force others to choose my path. I have the ability to think, to plan, to decide how I wish to live my life, as long as I accept the consequences of my decisions. The quality of my thinking determines the quality of my life.
I accept that as part of being human we are all capable of great heroism and honor and we are also all vulnerable to weakness, vanity, and greed. We are all flawed, and if we grant too much power to individuals, our flaws lead to corruption or worse.
Recently, in Norway, someone convinced himself that it was OK to bomb and shoot innocent Norwegians in order to convince them of the greater good of keeping Muslims out of Europe.
And then there are the radical Muslims who feel it's OK to kill innocent civilians (including Muslims) to reach the greater good of political power and a Caliphate.
Then there were the Crusades, aimed at killing Muslims for the greater good of promoting Christianity.
And there were Statists. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, the National Socialists, the Communists, all for the greater good of the worker, and responsible for the deaths of millions.
How about kings and dictators? How many have died under the banner of divine right of kings or dictators?
Over the history of the world, how many times have these governments worked out well for Mankind? Why would anyone think they will get it right the next time? The only function they perform well is as a mechanism to transfer power to the very few to control the lives of the many.
Only once in the history of Man, has a government been designed to limit the power of government to abuse the individual. How can a thinking person not see the genius of the founders? How can a thinking person not see the track record of the other types of governments, regardless of good intentions they pay lip service to?
A government that promises to do everything for you WILL reach the point of taking everything from you, but will NEVER get to the point of doing everything for you. There is never enough to deliver what politicians will promise, in their search for power and control.
Kings, dictators, Theocracies, Socialism, Communism all fail eventually because there are no perfect people to staff their governments. If only the people living under these governments did not suffer so terribly, waiting for the government to fall would not be a problem...and, even when it falls, it may be replaced by an equally repugnant government.
Only a limited central government can curb the appetite of its despots and bureaucracies, and prevent them from feeding on its citizens.
Growing up in the United States has been a rare, rare privilege in a world that has historically been been a venue of repression, fear, violence and destruction on a scale that most Americans can not even imagine. Even today, the worst of our problems are far better than those that are faced by millions in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Never give up your freedom for a false security...the utopia promised by despots and "isms" is meaningless and empty, serving only to deliver you into dependance on them. What they give is far less than what they take.
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