The Illusion of Control

We humans want answers; we want to control our lives. But we often end up angry and frustrated because most questions in life have no acceptable answers and most things in life are beyond our control.

A case in point is the Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy in the United States. Among the many reasons I have heard from those refusing to take the vaccine is that they don’t know enough about its side effects, efficacy, and safety. They don’t trust the companies that produce the vaccine and the government that promotes it. They are unsure of its ingredients. So, basically it is a control issue.

The problem with this approach to life is that if you insist on using a product or service only after you find out everything about its side effects and safety, you will be paralyzed in your life track.

There is an internet meme that poignantly points out this ignorance: So… you’ve been eating hot dogs and pizza all your life, but don’t want the vaccine, because ‘you don’t know what’s in it?’

Let’s ask a few probing questions about everyday life and examine how much we know:

How do you know that the hamburger meat that was produced in another state, cooked by a stranger, and delivered to you by an unknown person at the drive-thru-window is safe to eat?

How do you know that any food item, raw or cooked, that you buy from supermarkets and restaurants is safe to consume?

How do you know that the gasoline that you pump into your car will not damage your engine?

How do you know that the medicine the pharmacist gave you is good for you?

How do you board an airplane without knowing anything about aerodynamics or the race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation of the pilot, or his or her training and experience in flying?

Do you know how any vaccine works?

How does a mere drop of a mysterious liquid injected in my arm using a tiny needle impact trillions of cells in my body and prepare them to fight invading germs?

What does mRNA technology mean?

How does the human immune system work?

Even if you take a full semester course in cell biology, infectious disease, and vaccine technology, you are still unlikely to understand how the whole thing works.

Ninety nine percent of our life is based on trust.

The secret is that the more you trust, the less terrified you become. You can increase your trust by accepting your limitations and by acknowledging your ignorance about most things in life.

As magnificent as our brain is, it is estimated that the average adult’s entire knowledge base and memory is about half a gigabyte. Compare that to the gigabyte memory of iPhones which ranges from 32GB to 512GB.

Strong feelings about issues usually don’t emerge from deep understanding. They emerge mostly from the lack of understanding, or as Bertrand Russel said,

“The opinions that are held with passion are always those for which no good ground exists.”

Since 2006, Columbia University has a course titled Ignorance which encourages students to ask questions, keep an open mind, always be willing to learn new facts, and have the courage to change their minds.

“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.”

These words of Mark Twain have always inspired me to be tentative about my strongly held views and compelled me to amend or even change my thinking based on new data and information.

As tenants of this spinning planet, we can either admit our ignorance, let go of our perceived controls and enjoy the ride (life), or hold tight, grind our teeth, and try to control life. Getting off the ride is not an option — unless you choose suicide!