Fandango’s Provocative Question (29 January 2020)

Hahaha. I’m chuckling again because Fandango has credited me with giving him the idea to repost his old questions while he is busy. He can just call me intelligent, or he can say I’m wise, I really don’t mind which 😆.

Anyhow, you got it, it is time for Fandango’s Provocative Question once again. This week, he asks:

What do you think is more useful: intelligence or wisdom, and why do you feel that way?

I got to admit, my first reaction was huh?, because aren’t intelligence and wisdom the same thing? But the beauty of the internet is that there’s a second (and third, and fourth,…) opinion for everything. So, here’s what dictionary.com had to say:

Intelligence

• capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding, and similar forms of mental activity; aptitude in grasping truths, relationships, facts, meanings, etc.
• manifestation of a high mental capacity: He writes with intelligence and wit.
• the faculty of understanding.
• knowledge of an event, circumstance, etc., received or imparted; news; information.
• the gathering or distribution of information, especially secret information.
• Government. information about an enemy or a potential enemy.
  • the evaluated conclusions drawn from such information.
  • an organization or agency engaged in gathering such information: military intelligence; naval intelligence.

Wisdom

• the quality or state of being wise; knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.
• scholarly knowledge or learning: the wisdom of the schools.
• wise sayings or teachings; precepts.
• a wise act or saying.

That got me thinking. What exactly is intelligence:

• Pearl Harbour
• Bay of Pigs
• Tet Offensive
• Iranian Revolution (1979)
• The Berlin Wall going up
• The Berlin Wall coming down
• The Soviet Union collapsing
• 9/11
• WMD
• 7/7
• a plethora of subsequent terror attacks

God, give me wisdom every time!