Comments on: Sisyphism

By: Jim Stroup

Jim Stroup — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 06:00:11 +0000

Hello Lee,

“Discontinuous ‘continuous improvement’” – that’s good. It suggests grounding the efforts at improvement not in themselves, but in regular assessments of their effectiveness.

Thanks for your visit, Lee, and your always thought-provoking comments!

By: Lee Thayer

Lee Thayer — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:09:30 +0000

Good question, Jim – as usual. I think, too, of the age-old “Doing the same thing over and over again, but hoping for a better result.” In early Chinese culture, as you probably know, this was considered a form of insanity. Only DISCONTINUOUS “continuous improvement” avoids the fatal flaw in that!

By: Jim Stroup

Jim Stroup — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 13:10:04 +0000

Hi Steve,

I wish I could claim authorship of that insight, but it belongs to Frederic Bastiat, whose ability to structure insights so strikingly, together with his contemporary relevance, is truly amazing.

I hope we hear from you regarding your thoughts on this over the weekend!

By: Steve Roesler

Steve Roesler — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 12:25:02 +0000

Hello, Jim,

You grabbed me with “Protectionism, on the other hand, locates wealth not in the result, but in the effort…”

That had not dawned on me before and I think it’s a powerful point that brings to light the illusion of activity masquerading for results behind an excuse of nationalism.

That will keep me thinking this weekend.