The choice from the opposites of Pablo Escobar: an axiom or requires proof?

Have you heard the statement of Pablo Escobar, which is often called the "axiom of Escobar"? It is not so important who he is, but his words very clearly reflect the problem of choosing between the two alternatives we do not like.

Who is Pablo Escobar?

Most often, theorems or axioms belong to the mind and activities of mathematicians or physicists, but the situation with the Escobar theorem is somewhat different. Pablo Emilio Escobar is a drug baron from Colombia who was shot dead in 1993. During his lifetime, due to his profession, he expressed himself mostly obscene and did not make discoveries in mathematics or physics. Meanwhile, his authorship belongs to a fairly well-known phrase, which illustrates the non-alternative choice. Translated into Russian and censored, it reads: "If you choose from two opposites in a non-alternative situation, both options will be nonsense." This axiom became known quite accidentally, after publication on the portal "Lurkmor". Now this resource is buried, but the "theorem" has scattered over the Web and has become quite well-known.

Is this a theorem or an axiom? The theorem needs to be confirmed, while the axiom is a postulate, a truth that does not require proof. The statement of Pablo Escobar does not really need arguments "for", so it's more correct to call it "axiomatic."

Synonyms for the statement of Escobar

The axiom of the drug lord is not the first in history to display the situation quite clearly, when two inconvenient options arise before us as a choice. Remember the saying "of two evils choose the lesser", a meaning that is close to the words of Escobar. The axiom in this case is this: if you do not like both options, but there is no alternative, calculate, when choosing which one you will lose less.

Between Scylla and Charybdis

Another synonymous expression refers to the winged expressions of Greek mythology and sounds like "between Scylla and Charybdis." When Odysseus was on a voyage, he had to pass a dangerous place on the ship, located between two rocks. In one rock, called Charybdis, was a cave, the abode of a terrible monster. And on the mountain Scylla lived an evil sea goddess. Pass the rocks, just to avoid them was impossible, and therefore Odysseus decided to swim past Scylla. As Odysseus had calculated, the monster would have killed a maximum of half the team, while the sea goddess would have killed the whole team and Odyssey himself. So having acted, the famous seafarer saved most of the team.

Also in the Russian language there are statements "from the fire to the fire", "between the hammer and the anvil," which mean all the same thing - in the case of two non-alternative possibilities, you still have to choose something, but we will not be happy with this choice.

The choice in modern realities

How does Escobar's theorem look in real life? We are constantly confronted with situations where it is necessary to choose between alternatives completely bleak. Imagine that you need your work because of the salary that you keep your family. At the same time, your boss tells you that you will have to stay for a month until late, otherwise he will fire you. You understand that if you are fired, finding a suitable job will be very difficult. And what to choose? You work for your loved ones, but you will have to give them up for a while to earn money for living. If you choose relatives, it is not a fact that you will soon find money for their maintenance. And you do not like either option, but you will choose the lesser of evils.

The choice is always

Escobar's theorem presupposes the existence of only two variants, each of which we do not like. But meanwhile reality presupposes, as a rule, much more opportunities. Faced an uncontested situation? Look at it from a different angle, maybe you did not take all opportunities into account. Very often we "zashtoryvayemsya" and close from the choice, which lies in a different plane. In order not to become a victim of Pablo Escobar's theorem, the axiom is the following - allow yourself to look at the problem with different eyes. Give yourself time, become an indifferent, indifferent observer, ask for advice from relatives or relatives. Along with the "two evils" there is another saying - "there is always a choice." And believe that the case lies not only in "Scylla and Charybdis," there is an opportunity to turn back or choose a completely different path. Mr. Escobar's axiom is a controversial statement. Very rarely life gives us only two options for the development of events.