There is nothing more true and truthful than the law of meanness. The mother-in-law will never come if you have your house cleaned, but you will definitely be visiting when you decide to relax and forget about cleaning. Charging on the camera will end at the very moment when your daughter first rolls over on her stomach. And the weather outside will be the colder the easier you get dressed. We have long been accustomed to this state of affairs, ironic "well, as usual." Some even try to outwit meanness, for example, taking an umbrella with them - so that there is no rain for sure. But few people know that the law of meanness actually exists. He has a very specific formulation, a history of occurrence, and even his own formula!
Interpretation of the law of meanness
The law of meanness was known in antiquity. Someone believes that it was discovered during the time of Achilles and its only weak spot - the heel. Someone refers to an ancient legend about the old man Podlez, who allegedly left a scroll with his wording. However, for the first time, the known effect was “recorded” nevertheless in the USA, in 1949, when engineer Edward Murphy evaluated the operation of an aircraft engine. At the moment when the propeller began to spin in the other direction (as it turned out later, it was put backwards), Murphy ironically noted that if there is any way of assembly leading to the tragedy, one of the technicians will definitely choose it. Later, at a press conference, persistent aircraft malfunctions were called "Murphy's Law." So the name and wording officially got into the media and spread throughout the world.
All over the world, the laws of meanness have several analogues. For example, the general effect, according to which a properly functioning system will certainly fail when it is demonstrated to the customer. And everyone knows the effect of a sandwich: no matter how you turn it, a sandwich will fall to the floor with the oil side down. Especially if the floor is poorly cleaned carpet. From the same series, the law of the telemaster in the USSR, when a broken television suddenly started working miraculously, was worth waiting for a specialist who was in short supply at that time. This also includes the effect of the doctor - when the symptoms of the disease suddenly disappear, when the record finally comes to the specialist … And much, much more. But if there is a law, should there be some kind of logical explanation for it?
What explains the law of meanness?
In fact, psychologists have long guessed this famous phenomenon. The fact is that it is natural for people to blame some higher forces for their failures, to seek excuses for their actions from the outside. It’s easier to shift responsibility for one’s action or inaction to someone else. We were not too lazy to carry a heavy umbrella, but the rain came from meanness. We did not spill hot sweet tea, but the law of meanness threw it onto a new laptop. Easier and not so shameful.
But there is another reason - people tend to focus on failures. For example, we need to pass a term paper. We write it in advance and hand it over a couple of days earlier, completely ignoring the electricity turned off on the eve of the deadline. And if we did not manage to do the work on time, reaching out to the extreme point, then the absence of light will become for us a tragedy caused by the very law. Although the electricity would go out both this and that way, just in the second case this event is much more tangible and more negatively colored for us. Or another example: we play a computer game, we get various bonuses that we do not focus on, however, as soon as a task for this element appears, it stops falling out. And we curse the law of meanness, not realizing that we so want to go on the tour as soon as possible, that we get hung up on the unfortunate, innocent bonus, the probability of which is the same before and after the assignment.
The third explanation lies in the formula of the law of meanness. Yes, it seems unbelievable, but it really exists and was deduced, presumably, by the same elder Podlezem! According to the formula, the result directly depends on our desire and the coefficient of bad luck and is inversely proportional to the unfortunate combination of circumstances:
Result = (Desire * Bad luck rate) / Unsuccessful combination of circumstances
Moreover, the coefficient of bad luck is determined by our mood. So what happens, the greater the desire, the higher the likelihood of an excellent result? So maybe the law of meanness has nothing to do with it at all? Just when a person wants a certain event to happen, he strives for it. And if he can only complain about the injustice of fate, he will be haunted by failure. Similar attracts like - the long-deduced and verified truth. And for some phenomena there are quite rational explanations. A sandwich drops butter down just because the butter is heavy. Disruption of demonstrations is possible from excessive excitement. And unforeseen circumstances can occur on any day, just in minutes of a rush of pain they feel sharper. So is there a law of meanness? Probably everyone should answer this question on their own. It is more convenient for someone to blame failures for the intervention of higher forces. And someone is used to relying only on himself and is trying to maintain a positive attitude, no matter what happens. It’s not in vain that the Murphy effect has practically no effect on children and optimists - they are open to the world, and therefore meanness ignores them.
