Friday, October 25, 2013

iMess

I've been amused by the way politicians posture as providers of technical services, promising Government 2.0 and whatever, trying to make their promises sound as shiny as an iPhone, promising "smart" this and "e" that.

This was part of the promise of ObamaCare. Virgina Postrel says it well:

"So why didn’t the administration realize that integrating a bunch of incompatible government databases into a seamless system with an interface just about anyone could understand was a really, really hard problem? Why was even the president seemingly taken by surprise when the system didn’t work like it might in the movies? We have become seduced by computer glamour."

Of course, not everyone was surprised. But I think she's right about the glamour angle. People get hypnotized by the technology, and think it can do anything. Nontechnical people get hornswoggled by fast talking technology gurus, too. I suspect that's what happened here.

Management wonders why
it all went from Win to Lose.

Someone promised blue sky
but only delivered the blues.

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