Newton’s third law of motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
What Newton *didn’t* talk about is how everything is headed in its own direction with its own momentum and spin. That means that nothing has a mathematically perfect trajectory.
The inertia & spin of each element interact at the moment of “action” and they both bounce off into wildly unpredictable directions.
The result?
Surprising and unknowable.
This is the hidden secret to why things never go as planned. Why first, second, and third order effects are near-impossible for most people to predict.
And this isn’t just in the world of physics and particles.
It also applies to the world of people, relationships, governments, and global events.
I think about this truth every year when I think back to where I was when I heard about what had happened and see the wildly unpredictable directions that the world takes in reaction.
Or, if you’re a student of history & human psychology, it’s all perfectly clear.
Best thoughts,
~Jonathan