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- Dec 30, 2010
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Recently we have seen how top civil servants make stupid mistakes and say the stupid most things in public. Given these are supposedly the best talents in the land, at least best as public money can buy, how did this come about? One is reminded of the briefing RAND Corporation's Daniel Ellsberg gave to the then newly minted head of the National Security Council, Henry Kissinger:
"You've been a consultant for a long time, and you've dealt a great deal with top secret information. But you are about to receive a whole new slew of special clearances, maybe fifteen or twenty, that are higher than top secret...
First, you'll feel exhilarated by some of the new information... you will forget there was ever a time that you didn't have it, and you'll be aware of the fact that you have it now and most others don't... and that all these other people are fools.
Over a longer period of time... you'll eventually become aware of the limitations of this information... In the meantime, it will become difficult for you to learn from anybody who doesn't have these clearances. Because you'll be thinking as you listen to him, "What would this man be telling me if he knew what I know?" And that mental exercise is so torturous that... you'll give it up and just stop listening...
- http://singaporedesk.blogspot.sg/2012/06/blinded-by-groupthink.html
"You've been a consultant for a long time, and you've dealt a great deal with top secret information. But you are about to receive a whole new slew of special clearances, maybe fifteen or twenty, that are higher than top secret...
First, you'll feel exhilarated by some of the new information... you will forget there was ever a time that you didn't have it, and you'll be aware of the fact that you have it now and most others don't... and that all these other people are fools.
Over a longer period of time... you'll eventually become aware of the limitations of this information... In the meantime, it will become difficult for you to learn from anybody who doesn't have these clearances. Because you'll be thinking as you listen to him, "What would this man be telling me if he knew what I know?" And that mental exercise is so torturous that... you'll give it up and just stop listening...
- http://singaporedesk.blogspot.sg/2012/06/blinded-by-groupthink.html
