I said,
>Julie responds to an earlier note from me on the aging into dysfunction of
>systems.
>I pointed out that the aging system is probably still doing what it was
>designed to do . . .
and Marion responded,
. . .with, perhaps, a subtle difference: That when the system was
first created, those involved had their attention focused on the system's
relationship to the problem. With the passage of time, the "problem"
element receded in importance; the "system" element grew in importance.
== end quotes ==
I read a book in the 60's entitled 'Systems Principles' or something like
that. One of the systems rules was the Used Car Principle. This principle
says that like cars, as systems age they become dysfunctional and need
repair. For a while we repair the system, recognizing that the reparied
system is not as good as the new one was. However, we continue to repair
it until the 'costs' of repair become too excessive, and then, like the
car, we finally ditch it and buy a new one.
--Rol Fessenden LL Bean, Inc. 76234.3636@compuserve.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>