49. Imperfect, Flawed, Arbitrary

Rule making begets rule making. We first make a rule only to later discover an exception. We then modify the existing rule or make another rule to cover the exception. But then we discover an exception to the new rule and the whole process repeats.

What we end up with is a frustrating and unmanageably complex set of rules. We find ourselves with laws that require professional guidance to follow, sports with rules that are impossible to adjudicate, and philosophical distinctions that are incomprehensible to non-specialists.

The problem begins with seeing the original rule as sacrosanct. A rule that is established and employed is taken to be final — subject to tweaking but not complete replacement. Instead of positing an alternative or getting rid of it entirely, we tend to want to keep that first rule, believing it can be fixed. We also tend to think that perfect rules are possible, provided we make the right changes.

But perfection, while perhaps not strictly impossible, is at the very least unrealistic. By recognizing our rules as imperfect, flawed, and arbitrary, we learn not to expect more from them than they can provide. We thereby avoid the trap of thinking that a few small changes will lead us to perfection, which keeps us from becoming obsessed with the rules we are currently using.

When we remember our rules are conventions we have mutually agreed to impose, we see them as contingent and thus also changeable and eliminable. Our current rules are then nothing more than temporary infrastructure that will be demolished and rebuilt as new and better approaches are discovered in the future.