Ask virtually anyone and they will tell you that they would be glad if policy was decided on what would bring the “best” outcome. Now, obviously, the desired outcome is open to discussion, but with a relatively uncontroversial goal, people will ordinarily say that they don’t care much about ideology but about getting the best results. Spin-doctors call this “evidence-based policymaking”. And yet, and yet, so much policy is clearly counter-productive.
Why is this? Well it’s because so many people are actually unwilling to countenance any change whatsoever. People are blind to any kind of alternative way of doing something, believing that it is the current way or no way. Take education, for example. A lot of people (myself included) like the idea that a good education should be available, for free, to everyone. The result they want to see is people from any background able to make the best of their talents and abilities and to lead as productive a life as they can. Can’t argue with that, really, can you!? Most people will also tell you that the current state education system doesn’t work particularly well: in some areas there are no good schools at all; in other areas the good schools have catchment areas which are too expensive to move into; in other areas the schools are all good. In other words how good your children’s education is depends mostly on where you live. But suggest to those same people that you have a better way of arranging universal education and they balk at it.
Ask people if there is an alternative to the BBC and they will say “but what about all those lovely documentaries and wildlife programmes that I like?” without even listening to what the alternative might be. Ask people if there might be a more efficient way of running the NHS and they will say “the American system is shit”.
We have become blinkered, institutionalised.
Many people think that a centralised state approach is the only possible solution to everything. Talk about welfare reform and people shout “you would have the poor living in the gutter!” as if the only alternative to the welfare state in its exact present form is a Pygmalion-style slavery-or-starvation world. Talk about the drugs laws and people will say “you want junkies sprawled on every pavement!”.
Even intelligent people tell you that there are no alternatives. It defies logic. It drives me nuts. What happened to the spirit of innovation, of social reform, of using our brains? Sometimes I wonder whether we, as a society, haven’t got rather too comfortable for our own good. I am reminded of the War of the Worlds, where the clever-clogs invaders have designed such a sophisticated disease-free environment that they are brought down by the Earth’s microbes. So many people have become used to not bothering to think about things that I wonder what effect a slight change of circumstances might have on some people.
PS After the discussion on the previous thread, I am becoming more convinced that I should bite the bullet and throw the TV out. Who wants to move in to my box-free zone?
Something which you have tried, and which is ok if imperfect, will always be more tempting than a completely untried option which might be perfect, but which might be appalling.
But you are right nevertheless.
You are right, but experience shows us that change can be appealing and possible. Britain 2009 seems unwilling to even think about alternatives, let alone actually implement them.
You’re just being a cynic. But you knew that. The thing is, I don’t think it’s wrong to argue the merits of the current system any more than it’s wrong to look for ways to improve upon it.
I’m also a firm believer in the ‘it it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ rule. Change is good, but only where change is needed.
I am not putting my points across very well today. I am not suggesting anyone should not argue the merits. My point is that despite hundreds of demerits people won’t even countenance that there might be a discussion to be had!
We’ve just had over 11 years of almost continuous revolution; the fact that something was being done the same way as it had always been done was evidence of “forces of conservatism” that had to be purged. All that has yielded, well, errmm, …. shall we just say that “Things can only get better” was, with hindsight, a poor choice of campaign song. So it’s not surprising that people are cynical about change.
But by God, there is a lot of changing that needs doing – especially after all the change we’ve seen since 1997.
“But by God, there is a lot of changing that needs doing – especially after all the change we’ve seen since 1997″
Oh, that made me smile.
You should be on Twitter. You’re a natural.
Henry Kissinger- “The absence of alternatives clears the mind marvelously”
It was quote of the day on google yesterday! I found it disturbing. Particularly as someone who marvels ‘most every day how we have evolved to, say, play hockey, or pay BBC license fees, from our atavistic state. (Why hockey? Why anything? None of it seems normal!)
I lend full morale support to throwing your TV out, which I envisage as a defenestration process.
Ooh Calfy thanks for a bit of intellectual uplift. You are right, so many of us accept what we are used to. I hate it.
Re defenestration: unfortunately the current TV set belongs to the current flatmate so I can’t really chuck it out. Also, not sure the people in the ground-floor flat would approve either……!
It’s quite easy to do without a TV (I do). But you’d have to go to someone’s house to watch University Challenge every week.
Monday 8pm is held a sacred time wherever one may be.
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