Тонкое искусство пофигизма

           Everythingaboutourexperiences,bothexternalandinternal,generatesnewassociationsandconnectionswithinourminds.Everythingfromthewordsonthispage,tothegrammaticalconceptsyouusetodecipherthem,tothedirtythoughtsyourmindwandersintowhenmywritingbecomesboringorrepetitive—eachofthesethoughts,impulses,andperceptionsiscomposedofthousandsuponthousandsofneuralconnections,firinginconjunction,alightingyourmindinablazeofknowledgeandunderstanding.

           Buttherearetwoproblems.First,thebrainisimperfect.Wemistakethingsweseeandhear.Weforgetthingsormisinterpreteventsquiteeasily.

           Second,oncewecreatemeaningforourselves,ourbrainsaredesignedtoholdontothatmeaning.Wearebiasedtowardthemeaningourmindhasmade,andwedon’twanttoletgoofit.Evenifweseeevidencethatcontradictsthemeaningwecreated,weoftenignoreitandkeeponbelievinganyway.

           ThecomedianEmoPhilipsoncesaid,“Iusedtothinkthehumanbrainwasthemostwonderfulorganinmybody.ThenIrealizedwhowastellingmethis.”Theunfortunatefactis,mostofwhatwecometo“know”andbelieveistheproductoftheinnateinaccuraciesandbiasespresentinourbrains.Manyorevenmostofourvaluesareproductsofeventsthatarenotrepresentativeoftheworldatlarge,oraretheresultofatotallymisconceivedpast.

           Theresultofallthis?Mostofourbeliefsarewrong.Or,tobemoreexact,allbeliefsarewrong—somearejustlesswrongthanothers.