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snafu principle
(foldoc) | SNAFU principle
/sna'foo prin'si-pl/ [WWII Army acronym for "Situation Normal:
All Fucked Up"] "True communication is possible only between
equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for
telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the
truth." - a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked
by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up
so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU
principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers
from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating
back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly:
In the beginning was the plan,
and then the specification;
And the plan was without form,
and the specification was void.
And darkness
was on the faces of the implementors thereof;
And they spake unto their leader,
saying:
"It is a crock of shit,
and smells as of a sewer."
And the leader took pity on them,
and spoke to the project leader:
"It is a crock of excrement,
and none may abide the odor thereof."
And the project leader
spake unto his section head, saying:
"It is a container of excrement,
and it is very strong, such that none may abide it."
The section head then hurried to his department manager,
and informed him thus:
"It is a vessel of fertilizer,
and none may abide its strength."
The department manager carried these words
to his general manager,
and spoke unto him
saying:
"It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants,
and it is very strong."
And so it was that the general manager rejoiced
and delivered the good news unto the Vice President.
"It promoteth growth,
and it is very powerful."
The Vice President rushed to the President's side,
and joyously exclaimed:
"This powerful new software product
will promote the growth of the company!"
And the President looked upon the product,
and saw that it was very good.
After the subsequent disaster, the suits protect themselves
by saying "I was misinformed!", and the implementors are
demoted or fired.
[Jargon File]
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snafu principle
(jargon) | SNAFU principle
/sna'foo prin´si·pl/, n.
[from a WWII Army acronym for ‘Situation Normal, All Fucked Up’] “True
communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more
consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for
telling the truth.:” — a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by
hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and
systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive
disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version
of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon
perfectly:
In the beginning was the plan,
and then the specification;
And the plan was without form,
and the specification was void.
And darkness
was on the faces of the implementors thereof;
And they spake unto their leader,
saying:
“It is a crock of shit,
and smells as of a sewer.”
And the leader took pity on them,
and spoke to the project leader:
“It is a crock of excrement,
and none may abide the odor thereof.”
And the project leader
spake unto his section head, saying:
“It is a container of excrement,
and it is very strong, such that none may abide it.”
The section head then hurried to his department manager,
and informed him thus:
“It is a vessel of fertilizer,
and none may abide its strength.”
The department manager carried these words
to his general manager,
and spoke unto him
saying:
“It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants,
and it is very strong.”
And so it was that the general manager rejoiced
and delivered the good news unto the Vice President.
“It promoteth growth,
and it is very powerful.”
The Vice President rushed to the President's side,
and joyously exclaimed:
“This powerful new software product
will promote the growth of the company!”
And the President looked upon the product,
and saw that it was very good.
After the subsequent and inevitable disaster, the suits protect
themselves by saying “I was misinformed!”, and the implementors are demoted
or fired. Compare Conway's Law.
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