3 ms·

What they really need is a way of reforming these things (namely the EU), instead of it being a "love it or leave it" type of affair. This is one of the big pr

What they really need is a way of reforming these things (namely the EU), instead of it being a "love it or leave it" type of affair. This is one of the big problems with human-created bureaucracies: there's no easy and effective way to reform them, so people end up either abandoning them (e.g. Brexit, various independence movements or revolutions) or they become usurped by some better competitor (e.g. IBM being pushed out of the PC business, American automakers losing to foreign competition) or they end up collapsing (e.g. DEC being split up and sold in chunks, or the Roman Empire falling apart). It seems to be a constant that larger human organizations are simply impossible to reform effectively, so we're stuck with chaos. I don't think there's a solution for this, short of genetically-engineering humans to work better together, or else we would have found it over the past couple of millennia.

sabarn01 10y ago
The roman empire Lasted 600+ years so I have trouble using it as a comparison.
- swasheck 10y ago
  they just don't make these things like they used to, do they?
- specialist 10y ago
  In name only. The Roman Empire constantly reinvented itself.
yuhong 10y ago
Sometimes they are flawed even beforehand. Notice how fast US manufacturing declined after Japan beat them. I think part of the problem in this case is arrogance.
specialist 10y ago
I anticipate that Brexit will be used to initiate overdue, broadly agreed upon reforms. Then everyone can save face and kiss and make up. Introspection driven change is hard for every organization. Sometimes you just need a tantrum or external stimulus.
- Grishnakh 10y ago
  Yes, but this is international politics here. Your idea about Brexit being the stimulus for badly-needed reforms in the EU sounds great, but I think it's just too optimistic. Instead, I think Brexit will happen, the EU won't reform, the economies of both will collapse, followed by the US's, and then China's, a massive world war will happen, and then life for the survivors will resemble scenes from "The Walking Dead".

sabarn01 10y ago

The roman empire Lasted 600+ years so I have trouble using it as a comparison.

swasheck 10y ago
they just don't make these things like they used to, do they?
specialist 10y ago
In name only. The Roman Empire constantly reinvented itself.

yuhong 10y ago

Sometimes they are flawed even beforehand. Notice how fast US manufacturing declined after Japan beat them. I think part of the problem in this case is arrogance.

specialist 10y ago

I anticipate that Brexit will be used to initiate overdue, broadly agreed upon reforms. Then everyone can save face and kiss and make up. Introspection driven change is hard for every organization. Sometimes you just need a tantrum or external stimulus.

Grishnakh 10y ago
Yes, but this is international politics here. Your idea about Brexit being the stimulus for badly-needed reforms in the EU sounds great, but I think it's just too optimistic. Instead, I think Brexit will happen, the EU won't reform, the economies of both will collapse, followed by the US's, and then China's, a massive world war will happen, and then life for the survivors will resemble scenes from "The Walking Dead".