Allow Me To Fill 12.07 Of Your Day
A few more significant posts got in the way of the usual trenchant analysis of last week’s question of the week and the setting of the new one.
Please accept my abject apologies.
I asked which cuisine you preferred. Amazingly, Italian won. People like Lasagna and Tiramisu. Who saw that one coming?
Anyway, I realised about halfway through last week that I had meant to post a different question, one whose answer might at least be vaguely interesting.
At some point in the future I’m going to do a post about legacy, or how you are remembered when you’re gone (not necessarily dead; perhaps just retired). This was inspired by an episode of The West Wing where Toby worked out how to reform social services, but the only way he could implement his plan is if Jed was unable to take credit for it. So they debated it for a few hours, while I thought it was one of the most pathetic things I had ever seen.
But hang on…
Legacy is actually important. In the case of Jed Bartlett, or Tony Blair, success or failure can make a difference to how their political stance is perceived in future. The Welfare State leaves everyone with no money? People may not be so keen on it in the next election. Increased taxation creates a demotivated workforce? No votes for that anytime time soon.
And in non-political circles, does an attempt at trailblazing creativity lead to good financial consequences? Does boring, route one football’s results justify its tedium? Is it a good idea to give a film director final cut? The lasting impressions of these decisions can be the difference between whether they’re allowed to happen again, or not.
So, legacy can matter, but the West Wing Question remains: would you prefer a big success that you can never take credit for, or a small success that everyone knows about?
And for reading through that load of old toss, here’s how to waste the next 12 minutes seven seconds of your life:
(Yes, I know this has been around for a while, but is that really going to stop you watching it again? And besides, youngsters read this blog, and they might not have seen it.)