James Stockdale was the most senior American serviceman to be captured during the Vietnam war. Over seven years of captivity, Stockdale suffered repeated torture and beatings at the hands of the Vietcong.
Stockdale described the state of mind that sustained him through his long and brutal mistreatment. He explained how he never lost hope of release or rescue in the long run, but responded with resignation, even fatalism, to daily events he knew he could not influence. Collins called this combination of belief and pragmatism the Stockdale paradox. Those who died in captivity, Stockdale observed, were frequently the optimists, the people who said “we’ll be out by Christmas”. Their will was undermined by the repeated dashing of their hopes.
Roy Jenkins, the late British politician, expressed Stockdale’s position in graphic terms: “Clutching at straws is only dangerous if, when they fail to offer support, the wishful thinker abandons resistance and sinks with them.”
There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics
Mark Twain
The web page The Premature Death of Rockstars argues that rock stars have a shorter lifespan than the general population. He indicates that the average age at death of rock stars is 36.9 and the general population is 75.8. What is wrong with this use of these statistics?
There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of DEATH.
Proverbs 14:12
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Here's the book for the never-optimist:
ReplyDelete"Bright-sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America"
http://www.amazon.com/Bright-sided-Relentless-Promotion-Positive-Undermined/dp/0805087494/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256591793&sr=8-2