4 ms·

Well, it _was_ brilliant, but the alleged perp got caught. Good luck now.

• anonytrary 7y ago
  By this logic, everything is brilliant until it's not. That's not a good way to define "brilliant". Actions that eventually net undesirable consequences are stupid, not brilliant. E.g. Being a petty armed bank robber isn't brilliant until you get caught.
  • JadeNB 7y ago
    > Actions that eventually net undesirable consequences are stupid, not brilliant. I think it depends on how predictable the consequences are (it may be brilliant, or at least smart, to act in a way that offers a small possibility of an undesireable consequence in return for a large possibility of a highly desireable one), and on how long the time horizon is (it may be brilliant, or at least smart, to act in a way that offers certain undesireable consequences much later in return for certain desireable consequences for a long time before that). To overstate the objection, all actions eventually result in death, which is presumably undesireable.
    • jaclaz 7y ago
      Carlo M.Cipolla to the rescue, The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M._Cipolla https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M._Cipolla https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M._Cipolla#/media/File:Cipolla-matrix.png https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M._Cipolla#/media/File:C...
    • anonytrary 7y ago
      > small possibility of an undesireable consequence in return for a large possibility of a highly desireable one Exactly, so the expectation value is net desirable. I wouldn't consider that stupid.