Vicious Traps

There are times in nature when two plus two equals ten – when two little things combine to form one huge thing.

A little cool air from the north is no big deal. A little warm breeze from the south is pleasant. But when they mix together over Missouri you get a tornado.

Two calm water currents are not a problem. But if opposing currents meet, you get a deadly whirlpool.

Bleach and ammonia are common household products. Mix them together and you get lethal chloramine gas.

In each case it’s easy to underestimate risk – or at least be surprised at what happens – because the initial ingredients seem harmless. The idea that two innocent small things can combine to form one big dangerous thing isn’t intuitive.

This same thing happens with personality traits.

Years ago someone told me that bubbles happen when confidence (a good trait), optimism (a good trait), trust (generally good) mix to form greed and delusion. The reason bubbles are so common is that the inputs are mostly innocent, even if the output is lunacy and destruction.

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