30) Consistency

   “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,…”---a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Self-Reliance”.  It’s a great quote, look it up.  It goes on to say that if you say one thing one day and the opposite the next, you will be misunderstood, but what is so bad about that?  Great men are always misunderstood.

   We are certainly living with the extreme examples of those willing to speak and act inconsistently these days.  Maybe it is a new paradigm.  Out with the old, in with the new.

On a physics level, the physical laws are obeyed, consistent.  That’s why computers and cell-phones work.  Of course on the tinier level, there are quantum effects, but even those can be predicted within probabilistic parameters.   Chemistry the same.  But biology, harder to predict because the consistency we see depends on our understanding of all the underlying mechanisms---more variables.

And when you get into brains, there are increasing levels of complexity which get harder to understand.  When is a cat going to stop walking and scratch itself?  Moods.  Subconscious urges, internal and external reasons---all culminating in the thought processes of a politician worried about getting reelected in the next primary.

It depends on the person, how much consistency is exhibited and how much consistency is needed from others.

I personally think consistency is important.  I guess that makes me old-school.  In my attempt to be consistent, I rarely make promises because I don’t know the future.  I know what I am likely to do, but…  On the other hand, there are the simple promises, like “I will meet you in Union Square at noon.”  If I say it, I will try to be a little early in order to not keep you waiting.  But “I promise never to lie again.”  That I won’t say because I don’t know the future and the situation could warrant a lie.

The problem with lying is that you have to remember the lie the next time you speak about the subject.  It is much simpler to only speak the truth, one story.  That is, if you are concerned with “foolish consistency”.

“Truth”.  That implies consistency, consistency with what actually happened.

If you don’t care about consistency, then the truth doesn’t matter either.  So what if someone catches you in a lie.  Who cares?  That allows you to encourage another liar just because they make you feel good.

That’s where we come to “trust”.  How can we trust someone who lies?  Trust is what civilization is built on.  Without trust within a culture, that civilization dies.  Then we are back to tribes, and let’s hope you can trust the chieftain.

Therefore, holding people accountable is important.  It seems like consistency takes energy, sometimes getting the courage to speak up when confronted with a lie.  A lazy person will just let it go.  But at what cost?

It is interesting that the new paradigm, not caring about the truth, leads me to the realization that the true conservatives are those who are fighting to maintain the old paradigm, trying to maintain consistency.  “Liberal/Conservative”---so confusing.

Nature favors lower energy states---does not like extremes.  All of physics involve laws attempting to balance out high and low energy states.  Earth weather is about trying to get the heat of the tropics balanced with the cold of the polar regions.

Could we say that consistency is a lower energy state?  Is it easier to tell the truth?  I think it is.  It is easier if the truth is told because there is agreement with other viewers of the situation---no need to make things up, which does take creative energy---no need for arguments which build tension.  Peace is when the highs and lows are balanced.

So if someone is inconsistent in their words or actions, there must be a good reason, trying to balance something out.  What “something”?  That is the question we should ask when confronted with inconsistency.  If we could figure out what someone else needs, perhaps we can aid in balancing the energy of the universe, bringing peace.