” Blame it on, Caine. It’s nobody’s fault, but we need somebody to blame.” So goes a line in one of my favorite songs. Let it be a cautionary tale to all – it’s human nature to go hunting for someone to scorch, roast, and generally ruin when things head south.
This need to make someone “pay” is the reason why modern society loves doing things by committee; too many targets. Have a big enough committee, and while they all scurry about after the brown stuff hits the fan, the hypnotic effect of that many ant’s scurrying distracts you from your righteous revenge.
How do I know so much about this? Well, having worked for multiple federal, state, and municipal agencies, as well as large corporations, I have done my time as a scurrying ant.
The problem with keeping your head down in a committee is that if everyone does that all the time, it becomes too easy to live with mediocrity. The best committees I’ve worked on had leadership. And leadership willing to take the blow of criticism if things don’t universally please. Let’s face it, nothing universally pleases.
Our world is too complex for many issues to be solved by just a small group of big thinkers. Climate change is not going to get solved in one capital. Instead, solutions will come from large groups of stakeholders – committees.
But here is the bottom line. Either it gets done, or the critics will be voicing unhappiness with final breaths.
The trouble with committees is all they do is sit on the butts and talk all day. Nothing ever actually gets done! You made the point perfectly too, well done.