Shared by JohnH

HatTip to Dave Lull.

For Taleb, viewing human decision-making in high-risk environments, the central problem is not the risk but the human evaluating the risk. We masquerade opinion as fact – we hide our frailty as decision-makers behind pride and arrogance. We employ bad methods because our standing in the world depends upon creating epistemic methods and frameworks of knowledge that advantage us (and disadvantage others). This makes Taleb angry, because people with power and influence – experts, practitioners, and pundits – do more than anyone to perpetuate encourage fraudulent and dishonest beliefs about fractal risk that harm millions of innocent people.

Use footnotes for very important remarks, endnotes for unnecessary ones (and parentheses to tease and confuse the reader).

Use footnotes for very important remarks, endnotes for unnecessary ones (and parentheses to tease and confuse the reader).

To progress and flourish, modern society should treat ruined entrepreneurs the same way we have been treating dead soldiers.

There is no such thing as a failed entrepreneur. There is no such thing as a successful commentator.