After a night of drunken frivolity, Dick can't wait to hit the sack. He has spent much of the evening over at his next door neighbor's house at one of Bob's frequent barbecues. In a matter of moments, Dick falls fast asleep.
A few hours later something jars him awake. Bleary-eyed, he fumbles for his glasses and the light switch for the lamp on the bedside table. As he staggers out of bed, he realizes he smells a dense cover of smoke. After frantically checking around his house for the possible source, he goes out onto his back deck with the idea of checking his roof.
Once on the deck, he sees that the back of Bob's house is engulfed in flames. He runs down the back steps to see if the fire will threaten his property. Because the houses are far enough apart and the direction of the wind, he feels confident that the fire will not be a threat to him.
At this juncture, the story can go one of two ways.
Scenario #1
Realizing that he himself is in no danger, Dick goes back to bed.
Scenario #2
Dick rushes over to Bob's house and taps on Bob's bedroom window. "Hey Bob, I noticed a little bit of smoke coming from your backyard." Alarmed, Bob thanks his buddy and says he will go investigate.
"No need to do that," Dick tells him. "It's just a little wisp of smoke. I bet it's coming from the embers of the grill." Bob thinks about what Dick is telling him and feels relieved. "If you want me to," Dick says, "I'll call my friend in the fire department to come up for a look-see, but I'm sure he won't find anything."
"Okay," says Bob. "If the smoke seems of some concern at some point, I'd appreciate it if you would make that call." "Will do buddy," Dick tells him. With that, Bob collapses back in bed.
As Dick starts to make his way back to his home, neighbor Jane from across the street pops out of her house. She can see the flames shooting out of Bob's roof. "Oh my gosh," she screams, "Bob's house is on fire!!"
"I know," says Dick. "I just told Bob all about it." "Have you or Bob called the fire department?" Jane asks frantically. "Of course, I did that first thing," Dick declares.
"We need to get Bob and his cat out of there before the whole thing is engulfed," Jane yells. "I don't think we should overreact," Dick responds. "If Bob wants our help, I'm sure he'll ask."
Of course, Bob never asks for that help, so he and his cat perish in the fire.
(In my view, this is the way most corporations and governments deal with mega disasters. They provide incomplete information and lie to cover their own negligence.)
A few hours later something jars him awake. Bleary-eyed, he fumbles for his glasses and the light switch for the lamp on the bedside table. As he staggers out of bed, he realizes he smells a dense cover of smoke. After frantically checking around his house for the possible source, he goes out onto his back deck with the idea of checking his roof.
Once on the deck, he sees that the back of Bob's house is engulfed in flames. He runs down the back steps to see if the fire will threaten his property. Because the houses are far enough apart and the direction of the wind, he feels confident that the fire will not be a threat to him.
At this juncture, the story can go one of two ways.
Scenario #1
Realizing that he himself is in no danger, Dick goes back to bed.
Scenario #2
Dick rushes over to Bob's house and taps on Bob's bedroom window. "Hey Bob, I noticed a little bit of smoke coming from your backyard." Alarmed, Bob thanks his buddy and says he will go investigate.
"No need to do that," Dick tells him. "It's just a little wisp of smoke. I bet it's coming from the embers of the grill." Bob thinks about what Dick is telling him and feels relieved. "If you want me to," Dick says, "I'll call my friend in the fire department to come up for a look-see, but I'm sure he won't find anything."
"Okay," says Bob. "If the smoke seems of some concern at some point, I'd appreciate it if you would make that call." "Will do buddy," Dick tells him. With that, Bob collapses back in bed.
As Dick starts to make his way back to his home, neighbor Jane from across the street pops out of her house. She can see the flames shooting out of Bob's roof. "Oh my gosh," she screams, "Bob's house is on fire!!"
"I know," says Dick. "I just told Bob all about it." "Have you or Bob called the fire department?" Jane asks frantically. "Of course, I did that first thing," Dick declares.
"We need to get Bob and his cat out of there before the whole thing is engulfed," Jane yells. "I don't think we should overreact," Dick responds. "If Bob wants our help, I'm sure he'll ask."
Of course, Bob never asks for that help, so he and his cat perish in the fire.
(In my view, this is the way most corporations and governments deal with mega disasters. They provide incomplete information and lie to cover their own negligence.)
Good one.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Thurman.
ReplyDelete