I don’t know what the problem is. My aunt is a previous engineer for MCI, once managerial over 10 men; also an Army veteran. Yet she still gives away a trivial misuse of the words idea and ideal. She rarely squares them up. I’m piggybacking on having mentioned her in my previous post, Kaleidoscopes. She is a rich character and will inevitably be due her worthy time and lengthy place in my writing.

I find it funny how the littlest things trip us up. It is curious what we retain, how we remember and learn so differently.  People who sound off random literary lines or quotes in Latin always amaze me.

As a number of industries crumble under the weight of flaws exposed, it should be noted that this is a fault of our making, for having elevated a number of these people to the stature they hold. In our minds, we have an idea of how things should be, look, sound, feel, taste, etc… Thus, what we spend our money on and give our attention to perpetuates this. This is certainly about way more than one industry or a handful (till now) being complicit through silence. What we are faced with is a result of extreme narcissism. Narcissism of the self.

All aspects of our culture are a byproduct of EVERY idea we have had. What we see are the results. What we see are multiple attempts for an ideal.

This is what AI engineers are trying to circumvent: the missteps, the quirks, the moods subject to change, the general fallibility. This is what most religions try to circumvent, too, our human nature. Be better than our natural behavior. Perfect in his image.

The New Religions Obsessed with A.I.

Idea is an insight, a concept, a possibility; it can manifest into a tangible. Ideal has always come across as fantastical to me, but it is also the physical result of the idea, the full potential to the concept. The idea is to take a trip; the ideal is being at your perfect destination.

We really can’t seem to live in the moment; we are always living in the past or anticipating the future. This is the worst attribute of our mind.

“Memories and possibilities are ever more hideous than realities.” — H.P. Lovecraft

Few of us live as our ideal self, this is safe to say. It’s even harder for perfectionist.

I’m definitely not condoning what has come home to roost. Just interesting to consider all responsible parties.