Skip to main content

Let us Reimagine

BEWARE the sentiment “reimagine”.  Lately, we’ve all heard so many politicians, frustrated with outcomes in some venue lament, “Let us reimagine …”  This very statement has basic implications. Foremost, it indicates an open call to make a big change, a fundamental change. It betrays little or no knowledge of what to do, nor ideas of what change of direction to take.  It demonstrates confusion and naivety.  .  It signals lofty and open-minded aspirations, but it betrays ignorance, as in a problem never before considered.

When at the “reimagine” stage, you are not even to the “concept” stage, let alone the design, testing, and validating stages. You are at no-where’s-ville. 

Here are a few examples heard on various news reports.  Note how helpful they are.

·        Smartphones cause compulsions. Compulsions cause confusion. Confusion causes anxiety. We should reimagine cell phones.

·        Our bridges are badly in disrepair, beyond recompense. We should reimagine bridges.

·        The border crisis seems beyond repair. We should reimagine our immigration policy.

·        The police forces are out of control.  We should reimagine policing.


With any search engine query, “Let us reimagine” and you will be delivered hundreds of instances of institutions, agencies, and persons using this dream-scape mantra toward improving life for citizens.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lies, Deceit, and the National Agenda

The world you grew up in is no more.  The world of reasonable honesty and reasonable lies has been replaced by abject dishonesty and blatant lies. Lies.  Yes. People have always told them.  You have told them; so have I.   We need lies; they are a foundational structure of social living.  They both deceive and protect.  Children tell them to their parents to avoid consequences, like punishment.  Adults tell them to their bosses, to enhance their position and/or avoid consequences of poor performance.  Our bosses tell them to their boards to suggest business is good, the project is on target, or the detractors are wrong.  The boards tell them to shareholders to protect their own credibility and most importantly, stock values.   Our politicians tell lies to their constituents, though sometimes innocently with them not actually knowing much more than they've been told.  They enhance their positio...

Behavioral Science and Problem-Solving

I.                                       I.                 Introduction.                Concerning our general behavior, it’s high about time we all had some understanding of how we operate on ourselves, and it is just as important how we are operated on by others. This is the wheelhouse of behavioral sciences. It is a vast subject. It touches our lives constantly. It’s influence is pervasive and can be so subtle we never notice it. Behavioral sciences profoundly affect our ability and success at problem-solving, from the elementary level to highly complex wicked problems. This is discussed in Section IV. We begin with the basics of behavioral sciences, Section II, and then through the lens of multiple categories and examples, Section III. II.     ...

UNCERTAINTY IS CERTAIN

  Uncertainty is Certain G. Donald Allen 12/12/2024 1.       Introduction . This short essay is about uncertainty in people from both secular and nonsecular viewpoints. One point that will emerge is that randomly based uncertainty can be a driver for religious structure. Many groups facing uncertainty about their future are deeply religious or rely on faith as a source of comfort, resilience, and guidance. The intersection of uncertainty and religiosity often stems from the human need to find meaning, hope, and stability in the face of unpredictable or challenging circumstances. We first take up the connections of uncertainty to religion for the first real profession, farming, noting that hunting has many similar uncertainties. Below are groups that commonly lean on religious beliefs amidst uncertainty.   This short essay is a follow-up to a previous piece on certainty (https://used-ideas.blogspot.com/2024/12/certainty-is-also-emotion.html). U...