| Discussion-- Being called ineffectual is hardly something to be proud of. Basically, it is the same as telling someone that they are not making a difference. Another way of conveying this message is asking them the question, "What is your purpose?" Ouch. It doesn't get much harsher than that.
Ineffectual is not only used to describe people, however. It can be used to refer to anything that is failing to achieve proficiency in its purpose. For example, if you are taking cold medicine to relieve your sniffles and your cold keeps getting worse, you have unfortunately selected ineffectual medicine with which to treat your illness.
We all like to think that we have some effect in our lives. It is a desperate situation if you feel like your existence is not in some way affecting those around you. I believe that it is impossible not to make a difference in the world around you. Everything affects everything else, even the most seemingly insignificant actions or events. Your sneeze may distract the person next to you, causing him to drop his bowling ball on his foot, resulting in a scream of pain, which sends his wife rushing to the phone to call an ambulance, which then rushes to the bowling alley but gets in an accident on the way there, which causes a traffic jam, which keeps the postal jeep from delivering an important letter on time, which causes a person to miss a doctor's appointment, which then leads to that person being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance on a later date, and that person finds out that the woman of his dreams happens to be an ambulance driver. And all you know is that you need a tissue.
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