Should a person be remembered for their greatest accomplishment, or their greatest mistake?
Can it be both? When I'm gone, you have my permission to see my greatest mistake as a warning, and you are invited to see my greatest accomplishment as an inspiration.
Well stated. So long as the interpretation of your mistake is not overwrought by judgment.
@JoyfulHeart pretty much just sealed this thread lol
I would offer that it depends on the caliber of the mistake whether it could be overlooked for the accomplishment.
Sometimes the greatest mistake might be what lead to the greatest accomplishment.
"People" (as in, society at large) will remember what they're taught. What people are taught are generally those things which occurred that had a major impact on said society. Thus, a "mistake" by a nuclear physicist at a power plant will probably be more memorable than that one spelling bee you won in third grade.
I think the most important thing is to take inventory of your opportunities, and whether you succeed OR fail, always do your best.
"should' might be a little different that what typically happens.... we're naturally wired to remember negative experiences more (overall) for survival and have to actively practice to highlight positive experiences/connections from what I've read/heard.
Wouldn't it depend on what it was? How it helped or hurt others? And to what degree?
I am pleasantly surprised by the outpouring of intellect and objectivity coming from our group. You guys are making me excited to part of the crowd. Lol.
I only wish we could all get together and share a few glasses of wine and discuss such intimate and philosophical aspects of the world around us without attacking one another.
Something I have found impossible to do whether it be with friends, family or coworkers.
Thank you all for re-instilling my faith in humanity.
We can celebrate the accomplishments of people and we know they are flawed. We don’t overlook their failings but can separate the two. Founding fathers were great men whom accomplished a lot of good Two examples 1) The founding fathers, some of whom owned slaves we celebrate what they did in the founding of our country and the constitution and laws they wrote 2) Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, he is celebrated for his civil rights battles and getting equality for all people in the US, but as was discovered in recent years was a serial womanizer who treated women terribly and laughed as he watched a woman get raped by his friend. It sucks when we find out things about those we admire and praise, but people are flawed.
2) Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, he is celebrated for his civil rights battles and getting equality for all people in the US, but as was discovered in recent years was a several womanizer who treated women terribly and laughed as he watched a woman get raped by his friend.
In other words we celebrate an individual who would be banned from Cuddle Comfort. Greatness and perspective make for strange bedfellows.
I don't remember people for either of those two reasons. Mostly I remember people for what we shared together. That could be something very minor or short-lasting but for some reason I retain the memory more than other more major or longer lasting things. I tend to dwell on different people for different periods of time. As an introvert I am very much wrapped up in my own thoughts.
My greatest accomplishment was I invented the greatest mistake. Patent pending.
"2) Reverend Martin Luther King Jr... laughed as he watched a woman get raped by his friend."
Ummm, except no? Youre really just going to take the fbi's word on that, no questions asked? The very same organization that tried to destroy him and was found in a civil suit to have helped organize his assassination?? Are you serious right now?? How about you provide some receipts on that? "Oh yeah we recorded, but we cant show you". -FBI Kay. And those whom commented after this person just... let that slide. Cool.
@samfiddle Because we do not know one way or the other. The tapes remain sealed at the National Archives. That is why the word allegedly is used when they talk about it. The assertion was publicized in all the major News organizations a few years ago and wasn’t disproved either.
Let’s face it, Hoover was after everyone who wasn’t Hoover, but the FBI has also been right many times.
@FunCartel We also dont know that Dr. King wasnt a time travelling space alien. It has been neither proven nor disproven.
It is WILD to think the FBI, who famously hated Dr. King and his radical leftist ideals, would have any credibility when they refuse to release evidence they suppose they have. Full stop. That is just pure propaganda.
To the original question:
I don't know from should, but it seems to me that every person will be remembered for whatever's most memorable—never mind if the accomplishment or mistake was or wasn't the greatest one they ever made, or even an accomplishment or mistake at all. Look at Ea-nasir.
The accusations against MLK Jr. haven't been supported by evidence, and their source isn't exactly unbiased, so quoting the accusations as though they were facts is definitely a mistake.
That said, who would've expected Mother Teresa to believe that poor people suffering was a good thing? People can surprise you.
I second it being both. Though if it had to come down to one*, I'd say their greatest 'mistake'. There are people out there who have done horrible/horrendous things. Depending on how horrible they've been, I might not care much about* giving them recognition for their greatest achievement. Though the logical side of me also thinks facts don't care about my feelings, so we are back to square one: both?
We also dont know that Dr. King wasnt a time travelling space alien. It has been neither proven nor disproven.
@samfiddle That is a straw man argument because no one has made the assertion he is an alien and claiming to have proof of it. In addition, the story came out because the FBI transferred hundreds of thousands of documents to the National Archives and some of the information was leaked. Transferring documents is not hiding and other departments of the government do the same thing. Storing documents of historical significance is what the National Archives does. There was information on Kennedy and Nixon and people going back to the 30s as well that are sealed. Where there is smoke there is at least a lit cigarette when the country’s most prominent newspapers and media outlets report said smoke, meaning it may not have been a rape but it could have been something inappropriate. We do not know.
You can choose not to believe it but you may be wrong or you may be right. But to instantly dismiss it as propaganda and attack people for not questioning it does not make you right no matter how hard you stamp your foot. What it says is you don’t believe the assertion based on a hunch. Doesn’t mean anyone has to be on board with your belief. I suspect there was some hanky-panky going on the taped that was distorted into being a rape because Hoover had an axe to grind and ruled the Bureau with an iron fist. But I could definitely be wrong. But I am not going to make accusations of others about it here based on what I think may or may not have happened.
Finally, the documents are sealed because a Federal judge in 1977 ordered all FBI documents of a certain nature sealed for 50 years. This was originally in court over records regarding the Kennedy assassination. MLK and others (I.e. Nixon) also fell under this umbrella so it wasn’t a massive cover-up. It became National policy via the courts.
Another thing is also history. I believe we should strive to keep people's history as accurate and factual as possible. Say yeah, they (random example that probably didn't happen) were evil for kicking a helpless kitten they had ample power over. Though they also made a breakthrough* in medicine. And that is part of the history of the countries they are a part of. Nobody is perfect. People make mistakes and some act like dirt bags to put it mildly. Though I think if we choose to ignore the good, we are erasing part of the history of a country, ethnicity, race, etc. So I also try to look at the bigger picture.
Whitewashing our heroes is not history. It is myth-making. Everyone is flawed. Even the greatest people in history. I do not get those who would deny the perceived “bad” in the person just because they worship the good they did. The bad is what makes them interesting—not the myth-making that tries to preserve an impossible idealization of the person. There is evidence that has arisen that Mother Theresa may not have been as altruistic as previously claimed and may have even profited here and there but my god—look at all the people she touched despite her flaws. I think in some ways she is far more interesting now because she has been humanized.
Great responses here, though some are missing the point altogether.
Still, there are no easy answers.
Didn’t know there was a point. You asked an either-or question.
The points can be found in the responses. The analysis of the question, of humanity, of ourselves.
I’m not in the habit of posting pointless commentary.
But your original post was not a point. Just a question. Just pointing that out.
I give you the original post that started the thread. This is what people read and respond to mainly. Not much of a point there. So you are in the habit of posting pointless stand alone questions.
Seems like this was an attempt to stimulate a deep meaningful discussion with a somewhat shallow meaningless question. Just my thought, no offense intended.
@Btown I concur
If you have nothing to add but cynicism please move on. I am enjoying the more enlightened responses from the intended members.