The beauty of uncertainty
Saturday, 8 May 2010
Mahmudur Rahman
Whatever the records speak of former US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld he will probably be known as the man who enjoyed creating intellectual mayhem through his choice of words. He was twice Defence Secretary, once at the age of 43 and the second time at the age of 73. And in the 30 years in between he just got better at his forte.
One description of his approach was to suggest that "He never faces his subjects head on but weaves away, letting inversions and repetitions confuse and beguile". His words were more like "fractured rhythms of the plainspoken vernacular". To most his words were seen as gaffes. To a few, these had their inner meanings. Perhaps one of his most famous statements that have since been the butt of jokes courtesy the internet was just before the Iraq War when he deftly ducked a question on whether the US would indeed go to war. In response he said:
"Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we don't know we don't know."
In hind sight and after much meaningless destruction and many senseless deaths, there is a tendency to suggest that perhaps "the ones we don't know we don't know" really should have been delved into further. There lies the beauty of uncertainty. It brings with it more possibilities than problems and does bring certain romanticism to the equation.
In the days of lesser technology when one had to wait for the radio to know about the weather there was some fun and a lot to talk about later. Our state run broadcast media still does enjoy telling us of a "60% chance of rain". The very act of waiting for a letter to provide details of some good or bad news was by itself an experience rewarding for the senses and sinews. Somehow, the email and sms deprives us of the experience in that it cannot quite be savoured somewhat like the taste buds savour a delicacy. But perhaps the real beauty of uncertainty of not knowing the unknown is that it stimulated the mind in a way that nothing else truly can. That is when the magnificence of the mind is truly manifest through the twists and turns of thought processes.
The politician, the businessman and the intelligence sleuth may well disagree. But then how often has prior information really helped a cause. Or maybe, their insight is to be hidden away in the darker realms of the "known unknowns" never to be revealed to those blissfully living in the world of "unknown knowns".
As for the Rumsfeldian gaffe, a proverb that prevailed upon an impressionable boy many years ago may provide a little clarity. The origins of the proverb never really could be discovered beyond the fact that it was oriental.
"He who knows and knows he knows, he is a wise man, seek him. He knows and knows not he knows he is asleep, wake him. He who knows not and knows he knows not, he is a child, teach him. He who knows not and knows not he knows not, he is a fool, shun him". (The writer is a former Head of Corporate & Regulatory Affairs of British American Tobacco Bangladesh, former Chief Executive Officer or CEO of Bangladesh Cricket Board and specializes in corporate affairs, communications and corporate social responsibility. He may be reached at e-mail: mahmudurrahman@gmail.com)
Whatever the records speak of former US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld he will probably be known as the man who enjoyed creating intellectual mayhem through his choice of words. He was twice Defence Secretary, once at the age of 43 and the second time at the age of 73. And in the 30 years in between he just got better at his forte.
One description of his approach was to suggest that "He never faces his subjects head on but weaves away, letting inversions and repetitions confuse and beguile". His words were more like "fractured rhythms of the plainspoken vernacular". To most his words were seen as gaffes. To a few, these had their inner meanings. Perhaps one of his most famous statements that have since been the butt of jokes courtesy the internet was just before the Iraq War when he deftly ducked a question on whether the US would indeed go to war. In response he said:
"Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we don't know we don't know."
In hind sight and after much meaningless destruction and many senseless deaths, there is a tendency to suggest that perhaps "the ones we don't know we don't know" really should have been delved into further. There lies the beauty of uncertainty. It brings with it more possibilities than problems and does bring certain romanticism to the equation.
In the days of lesser technology when one had to wait for the radio to know about the weather there was some fun and a lot to talk about later. Our state run broadcast media still does enjoy telling us of a "60% chance of rain". The very act of waiting for a letter to provide details of some good or bad news was by itself an experience rewarding for the senses and sinews. Somehow, the email and sms deprives us of the experience in that it cannot quite be savoured somewhat like the taste buds savour a delicacy. But perhaps the real beauty of uncertainty of not knowing the unknown is that it stimulated the mind in a way that nothing else truly can. That is when the magnificence of the mind is truly manifest through the twists and turns of thought processes.
The politician, the businessman and the intelligence sleuth may well disagree. But then how often has prior information really helped a cause. Or maybe, their insight is to be hidden away in the darker realms of the "known unknowns" never to be revealed to those blissfully living in the world of "unknown knowns".
As for the Rumsfeldian gaffe, a proverb that prevailed upon an impressionable boy many years ago may provide a little clarity. The origins of the proverb never really could be discovered beyond the fact that it was oriental.
"He who knows and knows he knows, he is a wise man, seek him. He knows and knows not he knows he is asleep, wake him. He who knows not and knows he knows not, he is a child, teach him. He who knows not and knows not he knows not, he is a fool, shun him". (The writer is a former Head of Corporate & Regulatory Affairs of British American Tobacco Bangladesh, former Chief Executive Officer or CEO of Bangladesh Cricket Board and specializes in corporate affairs, communications and corporate social responsibility. He may be reached at e-mail: mahmudurrahman@gmail.com)