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nothingburger2 [2020/04/26 13:05] – revuskynothingburger2 [2020/04/26 13:54] – revusky
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 It could well be that a similar answer applies to //nothingburger-ism//. What do you do about an open source project that has devolved into a state of nothingburger-ism? Answer: Don't let your project devolve into nothing-burgerism! It could well be that a similar answer applies to //nothingburger-ism//. What do you do about an open source project that has devolved into a state of nothingburger-ism? Answer: Don't let your project devolve into nothing-burgerism!
  
-Once a once healthy project has lapsed into //nothingburger-ism//, I believe it is very hard for it to get out of that state. Now, if nothingburger-ism was a purely //technical// problem, I suppose it would not be so intractable. However, that is not the case. I'm pretty sure that it is primarily non-technical factors that make the situation so impossible -- things best understood in terms of social psychology and such. In any Psychology 101 course, one typically learns about the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milgram_experiment|Milgram experiment]] from nearly 60 years ago. This demonstrated just how conditioned people are to obey anybody that they perceive as an "authority figure". Quite literally, many people will electrically shock somebody to death rather than disobey authority. //Perceived// authority really, since the "authority figure" in the Milgram experiment actually has no real authority over the subject.+Though admittedly, not as absolutely impossible as retrieving one's car keys from the bottom of the ocean, when a once healthy project has lapsed into //nothingburger-ism//, I believe it is extremely hard for it to get out of that state. Now, if nothingburger-ism was a purely //technical// problem, I suppose it would not be so intractable. However, that is not the case. I'm pretty sure that it is primarily non-technical factors that make the situation so impossible -- things best understood in terms of social psychology and such.  
 + 
 +In any Psychology 101 course, one typically learns about the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milgram_experiment|Milgram experiment]] from nearly 60 years ago. This demonstrated just how conditioned people are to obey anybody that they perceive as an "authority figure". Quite literally, many people will electrically shock somebody to death rather than disobey authority. //Perceived// authority really, since the "authority figure" in the Milgram experiment actually has no real authority over the subject.
  
 Though shocking in a way, the Milgram experiment does reflect my own casual observation. Not just in open source software by any means, I have been continually amazed at people's passive acceptance of what is obviously completely illegitimate authority. Though shocking in a way, the Milgram experiment does reflect my own casual observation. Not just in open source software by any means, I have been continually amazed at people's passive acceptance of what is obviously completely illegitimate authority.
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 In Hollywood movies there is frequently some pivotal moment in which an authority figure has some sort of breakdown and starts ranting, talking such such self-evidently deranged nonsense that he immediately loses all credibility. One example that comes to mind is the Captain Queeg character in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Caine_Mutiny_(film)|Caine Mutiny]] portrayed by Humphrey Bogart. In Hollywood movies there is frequently some pivotal moment in which an authority figure has some sort of breakdown and starts ranting, talking such such self-evidently deranged nonsense that he immediately loses all credibility. One example that comes to mind is the Captain Queeg character in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Caine_Mutiny_(film)|Caine Mutiny]] portrayed by Humphrey Bogart.
  
-But that is Hollywood. I was pondering how frequently such things happen in real life and I came to the conclusion that this mostly just happens in movies. In the real world, it seems to be just about impossible for an authority figure to lose his authority this way. Just for example, I recall the president of the United States of some years back, one George W. Bush, arguing that it was necessary to invade Iraq because we had to //fight the terrorists **over there**// or we'd be fighting them //**over here**//. As I recall, nobody bothered to ask the president how said "terrorists" were going to get //**over here**//. It's not just that this made no sense, but rather, //it was multiple degrees away from making any sense//. Even if we accepted the (frankly dubious) premise that Iraq and Afghanistan were full of these terrorists who want to come //**over here**// and kill random people, AND further accepting the (frankly dubious) premise that they had the means somehow to get //**over here**//, how would invading and occupying these countries remedy the problem? (If anything, it would exacerbate the problem, but certainly not make things better!) If real life worked like these Hollywood movies, the appropriate people would have shown up shortly to drag off Mr. Bush to the rubber room. Or, if not quite that, by talking such self-evident nonsense, Bush would have squandered pretty much all of his credibility and moral authority. Well, we know that nothing of the sort happened. Mr. Bush got the "splendid little war" that he (or, more precisely, his handlers) wanted and was re-elected to a second term in office.+But that is Hollywood. I was pondering how frequently such things happen in real life and I came to the conclusion that this mostly just happens in movies. In the real world, it seems to be just about impossible for an authority figure to lose his authority this way. Just for example, I recall the president of the United States of some years back, one George W. Bush, arguing that it was necessary to invade Iraq because we had to //fight the terrorists **over there**// or we'd be fighting them //**over here**//. As I recall, nobody bothered to ask the president how said "terrorists" were going to get //**over here**//. It's not just that this made no sense, but rather, //it was multiple degrees away from making any sense//. Even if we accepted the (frankly dubious) premise that Iraq and Afghanistan were full of these terrorists who want to come //**over here**// and kill random people, AND further accepting the (frankly dubious) premise that they had the means somehow to get //**over here**//, how would invading and occupying these countries remedy the problem? (//If anything, it would exacerbate the problem, but certainly not make things better!//) If real life worked like these Hollywood movies, the appropriate people would have shown up shortly to drag off Mr. Bush to the rubber room. Or, if not quite that, by talking such self-evident nonsense, Bush would have squandered pretty much all of his credibility and moral authority. Well, we know that nothing of the sort happened. Mr. Bush got the "splendid little war" that he (or, more precisely, his handlers) wanted and was re-elected to a second term in office.
  
 Now, I don't mean to say that these Captain Queeg moments //never// occur in real life. "Never" is a strong word and how could I know that anyway? However, I would say that they are much more the exception than the rule. What is typical, as the Milgram experiment and the preceding case of George Bush show, is that very many people, maybe the vast majority, will not question a perceived authority figure even under quite extreme, downright surreal conditions. Now, I don't mean to say that these Captain Queeg moments //never// occur in real life. "Never" is a strong word and how could I know that anyway? However, I would say that they are much more the exception than the rule. What is typical, as the Milgram experiment and the preceding case of George Bush show, is that very many people, maybe the vast majority, will not question a perceived authority figure even under quite extreme, downright surreal conditions.
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 That is my current position. I am satisfied that it is correct. However, I am perplexed, quite frankly, that it took me so many years to realize this. Well, I can be quite slow at times. That is my current position. I am satisfied that it is correct. However, I am perplexed, quite frankly, that it took me so many years to realize this. Well, I can be quite slow at times.
  
-In the [[nothingburger3||next segment on nothingburgerism]] I shall make some more general observations about the phenomenon, and what counter-measures are possible. However, I will say up front that I don't have any definitive answers. In that sense, I write this essay more to open a much-needed discussion than anything else.+In the [[nothingburger3||next segment on nothingburgerism]] I shall make some more general observations about the phenomenon, and what counter-measures are possible. However, I will say up front that I don't have any definitive answers. In that sense, I write this essay more to open a much-needed discussion than anything else. If you wish to engage in such a discussion, please do go here: https://discuss.parsers.org/t/the-art-of-the-nothingburger/38)