The irrational rational man

This is why I think that a totally rational man, the goal for humanity by some self-appointed messiahs, is doomed to fail.

A study by psychologists seem to indicate that people dont buy insurance to cover them in case something bad happens. They buy insurance because they think it'll actually prevent bad things from happening.

We buy insurance not just for peace of mind or to protect ourselves financially, but because we share the ancient Greeks’ instinct for appeasing the gods.

We may not slaughter animals anymore to ward off a plague, but we think buying health insurance will keep us from getting sick. Our brains may understand meteorology, but in our guts we still think that not carrying an umbrella will make it rain, a belief that was demonstrated in experiments by Jane Risen of the University of Chicago and Thomas Gilovich of Cornell.