5 Overrated Hacks

The universe is far from fair. Some people are vastly overrated, while others are under-appreciated. Here are some people who actually are not as brilliant as most people think. Before I start the list, I'll give you an "honorable mention":

Psy
Reason for his fame: Gangnam Style!
We know he is overrated thanks to: Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Queen, Simon & Garfunkel, do I need to continue?
YES, he is overrated! For me, he is just the Korean version of William Hung: a big joke. But he didn't make it into the list, because he is still INFINITELY better than Justin Bieber, Ke$ha, Chris Brown, and so many other who are not only "ugly" but "heaven forbids-erect Satan pubic bush-horrifying UGLY". Seeing Gangnam Style, I just shake my head in disbelieve and thinking "how come so many people love it?" Seeing Bieber et. al ... I smashed my head to the nearest wall while muttering "Why they happened to be the same species with me? Humanity is really doomed, DOOMED!"


So, let's start this list.

5) Thomas Alva Edison

Reasons for his fame: "inventing electricity"

We know he is overrated thanks to: Nikola Tesla

Now, no need for me to explain this since the Oatmeal has done it. Superbly.

4) Jose Mourinho

Reasons for his fame: Won many trophies for Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, & Real Madrid

We know he is overrated thanks to:  Robert Sutton's book "The No Asshole Rule" 

I already put quotes from "No Asshole Rule." Mourinho is a certified asshole and proud of it. He may got talents in formulating the tactics, but seriously, he is an asshole. If you doubt it, just consider this fact: after handled by Mourinho, whenever Real Madrid meets Barcelona, everyone think "Hmm, what kind of fights will occur?"

Oh yeah, in one of the match, he even had the nerve to poke Barcelona's assistant coach FROM BEHIND, then he just walk-off and gave his trademarked smug smile. So, he is not only an asshole, but a coward too.

And he has tons of fans. Of course many like him. Many love assholes, as long as it is THEIR assholes. 

If you really still want to argue that Mourinho is a good coach only on the base that he produces trophies, CONGRATULATIONS, that means you are one of the people who believe that "the end ALWAYS justify the means!" By that logic I can also argue that Joseph Stalin was also a good statesman since he made Soviet Union superpower. What? Stalin butchered millions? Naaah, most important he gave superpower status to the USSR! The prestige baby, the PRESTIGE!

3) Steve Jobs

Reasons for his fame: Apple, Pixar, Apple again

In contrast with: Michael Dell, Bill Gates, and other tech-company founders

What's the main different between  Steve Jobs and other tech- founders? 

Answer: Gates, Dell, etc. started a tech-company while Steve Jobs founded a cult. Once you got cult organization and its members instead of a company and its customers, you can expect to get tons of cash from each of them, even when you provide them overpriced-lousy product. No need to work hard, the "reality distortion field" do most of the hard work for you!

If you want to appreciate him for being a brilliant cult founder, I have no problem. If you say that he is a genius, that is only half-truth as best.

Oh yeah, Steve Jobs is also an asshole. That means, many criticisms for Mourinho are also valid for him. And Apple maps still sucks. 

2) Mark Zuckerberg

Reason for his fame: Facebook baby!

We know he is overrated thanks to: Sergey Brin

Okay, this one is very² big. Quick quiz: can you figure it out how Facebook can make money? No? Of course it is hard. Everytime Facebook tries to monetize their customers, the users screams. Some of them even sued. Face it, there is no chance Facebook can create money. The best way is actually to make it into a FOUNDATION, like wikipedia, and used donations as its main source of income.  

John T. Reed said that:
Amazon, Facebook, and Groupon are not businesses, they are buzzinesses.

So, if nobody can figure out what Facebook can sell, why the hell did Zuckerberg become so famous? Simple, because everyone uses facebook. Many assume popularity is equal with success. Not really. You can argue the opposite: popularity invite lawsuit and wackos everywhere, making life & success more difficult ... 

And, the most overrated hack in my opinion is ...

1) Douglas MacArthur

Reasons for his fame: "I shall return" promise, New Guinea campaign, Korean War

We know he is overrated thanks to:  Chester W. Nimitz, Ernest King, Dwight Eisenhower, George Marshall

Seriously, anyone who think that MacArthur is a genius doesn't have any clue about the history of the 2nd world war.  

First, are you aware that shortly after the Pearl Harbor disaster, a similar tragedy happened in the Philippines? At that time, US Army and Air Force in that area were already informed about Pearl Harbor. What happened after that? They screwed-up, badly. Many of the US commanders there hated each other, hindering cooperation and effective (re)actions. They were caught with their pants down by the Japanese planes which strafed and bombed their airfields with impunity. Who is the commander of the US forces in that area? The great Douglas MacArthur who thought that his name alone is ENOUGH to intimidate the Japanese from attacking! Our hero ladies and gentlemen!

Quick comparison: the commanders of Pearl Harbor, Stark & Kimmel, were dismissed, reprimanded, and vilified, while MacArthur was basically promoted, and hailed as hero only shortly after the screwed-up.

Second, in case you don't notice it, let me remind you he promise "I SHALL RETURN!" not "We shall return!" It was not about the Army. It was not about military logic. Heck, it was not even about America, it was about DOUGLAS MACARTHUR! He really thought that he deserved a pedestal!

Third, the Philippines debacle is not MacArthur's only fault. You have to know, there is an adage in military: "one bad supreme commander is FAR BETTER than two excellent supreme commanders." The "unity of command" is essential, since parallel chain of command decreased efficiency, increasing redundancy, etc. MacArthur actually INSISTED to be the supreme commander of Pacific war, DESPITE THE FACT that "Pacific" is the name of an ocean, NOT a continent. He felt that he was ABOVE any admiral in the navy, except admiral Leahy, who can't accept the supreme-commander post due to his health. The navy was appalled by this, they gave their finger to the bombastic MacArthur. President Roosevelt solution was: dividing the Pacific "theatre" into 2 regions. MacArthur lead the thrust from New Guinea to Philippines, while admiral Nimitz lead the navy to concquer Gilbert, Marshall, and Mariana Islands. Until the end of war, MacArthur and Nimitz was in constant quarrel about logistics, strategy, timetable, in essence: EVERYTHING! The US still won the war DESPITE this military travesty NOT because of it.

But MacArthur WAS NOT done yet. During the Korean war, he actually wanted to bomb China with nuclear warheads. President Truman refused to start World War 3, and MacArthur start whining, and whining, and whining, and whining to the public. Fed up with this, Truman sacked the egomaniac general, despite knowing the fact that the public LOVE this celebrity general. Truman's popularity plummeted, and he didn't participate in the next election, therefore depriving USA from one of its finest leader.

Now, just like the previous hacks, MacArthur achieved many things too. His leadership worked in New Guinea, and many times he could give excellent strategic inputs and decisions. But my point is, most people OVERLOOK those screwed-ups. He is far from incompetent, but he is also far from a genius. He is a mediocre strategist, but his b.s. over-hyped him so much that so many people until today thought that he was worthy a pedestal, while the main architect of Japanese defeat, Ernest King and Chester W. Nimitz, were known only to history buff like me. Appalling ...  

You may notice the similarity between those 5 hacks. They are EVERYTHING about "marketing" or should I say ... "Bullshitting the public." Predictable. The masses LOVE b.s., comforting lies is always preferable to harsh truths. So, that is one "success principle" that may work: create a personality cult with YOU as its center! So many suckers will buy it and give you money and power.