5 ms·

Words of Margaret Mead comes to mind, once again; "Never ever depend on governments or institutions to solve any major problems. All social change comes from t

Words of Margaret Mead comes to mind, once again; "Never ever depend on governments or institutions to solve any major problems. All social change comes from the passion of individuals."

arethuza 8y ago
Sometimes though those passionate people can make it into government and genuinely make a difference e.g. Aneurin Bevan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan
- alexpotato 8y ago
  Colin Powell has a great quote that lines up with this (paraphrased): "I see lots of great people in the middle ranks of the military who have great ideas that challenge the status quo. The problem is that they express too early and that limits their career. They should instead play the game, climb the ladder and then implement those ideas once they've reached a higher position." I think about that every time I see an entrenched idea or process that isn't working. It helps me fight the urge to address it immediately and aids in making me more patient to get to the point where I can actually change things.
  - maxxxxx 8y ago
    Only a few people have the capacity to do this. It also didn't work out for Powell since at the end of his career he became a tool to spread false propaganda for the Iraq war. Maybe he should have stood up earlier.
  - anigbrowl 8y ago
    That's a great point, but I'd like to second the other poster's point that individuals can fall victim to institutional capture as much as the institutions themselves. Perhaps Colin Powell would have made an outstanding secretary of Defense but his tenure as secretary of State made poor use of all that military ladder-climbing experience, and in my view few benefits accrued to either the military or the diplomatic spheres.
    - alexpotato 8y ago
      There was a quote from a documentary where they claimed that they picked Powell to deliver the theory about WMD specifically because his approval ratings were so high. Apparently, Powell didn't want to do it and Dick Cheney (or maybe Rumsfeld) said to him "Why? Worried you will look bad? Given your approval rating you can afford to lose a couple points."

Words of Margaret Mead comes to mind, once again; "Never ever depend on governments or institutions to solve any major problems. All social change comes from the passion of individuals."

arethuza 8y ago

Sometimes though those passionate people can make it into government and genuinely make a difference e.g. Aneurin Bevan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan

alexpotato 8y ago
Colin Powell has a great quote that lines up with this (paraphrased): "I see lots of great people in the middle ranks of the military who have great ideas that challenge the status quo. The problem is that they express too early and that limits their career. They should instead play the game, climb the ladder and then implement those ideas once they've reached a higher position." I think about that every time I see an entrenched idea or process that isn't working. It helps me fight the urge to address it immediately and aids in making me more patient to get to the point where I can actually change things.
- maxxxxx 8y ago
  Only a few people have the capacity to do this. It also didn't work out for Powell since at the end of his career he became a tool to spread false propaganda for the Iraq war. Maybe he should have stood up earlier.
- anigbrowl 8y ago
  That's a great point, but I'd like to second the other poster's point that individuals can fall victim to institutional capture as much as the institutions themselves. Perhaps Colin Powell would have made an outstanding secretary of Defense but his tenure as secretary of State made poor use of all that military ladder-climbing experience, and in my view few benefits accrued to either the military or the diplomatic spheres.
  - alexpotato 8y ago
    There was a quote from a documentary where they claimed that they picked Powell to deliver the theory about WMD specifically because his approval ratings were so high. Apparently, Powell didn't want to do it and Dick Cheney (or maybe Rumsfeld) said to him "Why? Worried you will look bad? Given your approval rating you can afford to lose a couple points."