Wildebeest's Theorem

1. "If you don't follow the crowd, you will not survive, as you will perish," says the wildebeest, who invests in The Crowd, the one and only.
2. "To succeed, don't follow the crowd," proclaims the Investment Guru, whose wisdom lumpsum, high-net-worth, individuals swear by [Read more].
3. "When we, all, stop following the crowd, we still will," muses the wilderbeest.
4. Fair point, though, is that, typically, not all will not follow. Wildebeest will acknowledge that, for sure.
5. Moral of the story, then? Never follow and never not follow the crowd on an impulse -- injudiciously; which is something else that's more important than Bill Bartman's trying to say here with his four rules, and in particular with his notion of the "instrument rated" pilot.

The Machiavellian Bind

The stupidity of the Machiavellian retort, which the petit tyrant resorts to without a thought, that the end justifies the means, is that it is he who shouts the loudest -- he who, practically amock, runs back to us (whom he has wronged without shame) -- when the bigger tyrant tramples upon his own rights and strikes at the heart of his ambitions. It is he, moreover, who, short of memory and sanctimonious, proposes to lead the fight against the bigger tyrant. The bigger stupidity is that we tend to oblige him -- because we have pegged our own dwindling hopes on his selfish plans, sold and bought as our Will.

Wisdom takes priority over justice. Without wisdom, justice stands on shaky grounds -- and will not thrive. Without wisdom, you cannot do the right thing consistently.