Note: I wrote this over five years ago, but never posted it. I'm not sure why. But after reading it again, I realized it still pertains to the problems of "group think" and institutional behavior in the U.S.
Straight lines, like the walls that hold up our houses make
us feel safe and secure. Right angles
and symmetry are pleasing to the eye as well.
Most prefer a balanced checkbook and an efficient engine that does what
it’s supposed to. But, there’s a time
when linearity and large institutions can also bring a nation down. This thought came to mind recently while, of
all things, watching a show on PT boats on the History Channel - that during
WWII, when there was a draft and more of the general public served in the armed
forces there was a mixture of all types of people – inner city, rural, coastal,
Southern, Midwesterners – a giant diverse slice of what makes this country
great. There was also innovation. By crafting a smaller, wooden, maneuverable
ship, we were able to change our tactics, go into more intricate places, and
deliver unexpected attacks. The boat
itself attracted a kind of maverick that might have brought a certain spirit to
the US military.
In the age now of specificity, departments and polarization,
these types of mixtures might be missing from large institutions like the
pentagon. Has anyone stopped to think
that large institutions, though solid and patriotic, might not be attracting a
wide enough array of personality types?
What if the problem with, for example, fighting the insurgency in Iraq
was really a matter of bringing different, innovative, non-linear and creative
types into the Pentagon. Instead of
acting like a behemoth, a slow moving empire that wins by force alone, we could
act like the insurgents that we are fighting.
Of course, the policy that created the war might have been crafted
differently too, had more people been involved in the decision-making process
itself. Now, we find ourselves searching
for creative answers to an old, rigid and unimaginative policy. This rigidity keeps the "creative class" on the outside, unable or uninvited to lend a hand.
Note: some portions were edited before posting here.
