Thread by @swardley

X : The map is not the territory!
Me : Of course not. But there is a reason why military history has used maps for communication, learning and strategy rather than relying on verbal stories. Topgraphical intelligence has a long history of delivering results.

X : But maps have perspective and could lead to the wrong action!
Me : All maps are imperfect and don't tell you what to do. But even with this you can challenge a strategy based upon a map far more effectively than with a story because you can learn from context.

X : I disagree!
Me : Fair enough. Are you expecting me to try and persuade you?
X : I want you to prove maps are more effective than stories.
Me : Ignoring that maps are a very advanced form of visual story telling, is military history not enough?
X : No.

Me : How about modern navigation, GPS and the history of exploration? Haven't you noticed how they all use / are based upon maps which replaced the use of verbal stories from ancient history?
X : I use stories for navigation.

Me : As in directions to the local cafe?
X : Yes
Me : Ever tried co-ordinating the movement of 10,000 troops with verbal stories or managing complex worldwide supply chains with this?
X : We do in business.

Me : Ever noticed how much business is gut feel, meme copying, highest paid person's opinion?
X : That's because the stories they use are ineffective.
Me : So the answer is stories, just you need to create the right story? How do you do this? How do you learn right from wrong?

X : By questioning the story until you get the right one.
Me : Questioning against what?
X : Against experience.
Me : Experience of what?
X : What you're trying to do.
Me : And how do you understand that?
X : Through the story.

Me : But why?
X : Why what?
Me : Why are you trying to do this thing that your stort is telling you to do?
X : That's part of the story.
Me : So, it's all self referential and self justifying. Have you ever considered your story is just part of a larger landscape?

X : Of course, that's part of the story.
Me : So the landscape is part of your story?
X : Yes.
Me : How do you explain this story of the landscape to others, so they can challenge what you're doing?
X : It's part of the story.
Me : Ever tried describing a modern atlas as a story?

X : I don't understand.
Me : Take a modern atlas and convert it to a story. Every path. Every possible route. Every journey. Every movement from A to B. Every wrong turn ... all as a story.
X : That would be impossible.
Me : Which is why we use maps.

X : Mapping business is impossible.
Me : I do it all the time. What's hard to do is to make an effective story of a business landscape, in the same way it is very hard to make an effective story for an atlas. Maps are good at describing landscapes, it's why we use them.

X : I don't understand your maps, nobody does.
Me : Thats a different problem. No child inherently understands maps, they have to learn.
X : I'm no child. I've been doing strategy for thirty years.
Me : Looks like we've found something else we disagree on.

X : Insulting someone is not a way to persuade them.
Me : You're confusing me with someone else. I have no interest in peruading you that using a map rather than a story to understand a landscape is more effective. It would deprive me of pure comedy gold.

X : I am not here for your amusement.
Me : Hatrick! I beg to differ and you're handsomely rewarded for the mirth you bring. There's not much from our economic to political to business systems that I don't find hilarious. It's just a pity they damage so many lives.

... the best part of that glorious film "idiocracy" is the realisation that it's not some future state but an acerbic commentary on today.

We are living in the "idiocracy", it's all around you. Things become a lot easier if you open your eyes and appreciate this.

X : Do you mean like Brexit?
Me : Precisely. Part of the population and a ruling class ignores a vast swathe of the population, gets hacked off when it doesn't vote the way its supposed to and decides the best way to resolve this is to call them "idiots" etc. It's farcical.

... I particularly like the "It woz the Russians wot dunnit" ... ditto with Trump. This wouldn't have even come close if vast chunks of the population hadn't been ignored for such a long time in pursuit of "market" interests. It's easier to blame others than question yourself.

These questions are easier to understand if you realise that Trump and Leave didn't "win" rather the DNC and Remain, despite all the advantages, lost. You have to ask, "How did we lose?" ... which will bring you to questions of disenfranchised population, the lack of hope etc.

... note to self, try not to write long twitter threads on a mobile with a small screen ... where's the edit button for all my typos? Oh well.

X : What would you do to fix these problems?
Me : I'd start with being honest, by understanding the landscape, by admitting we have failed huge numbers of people and look to provide a path forward for everyone that rebalances society. @jeremycorbyn seems to understand this.