I welcome but why did that old haggard lose his sense? KR On Sun, 10 Mar 2024 at 22:11, gopala krishnan <[email protected]> wrote:
> Mr Rajaram, > > I never feel any resemblance since I think positively. You only think any > note or saying or quote is intended to you or hinting you. > Gopalakrishnan > > On Monday, 11 March, 2024 at 07:28:21 am IST, Rajaram Krishnamurthy < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > PARKINSON’S LAW EXTRACT > > ANY RESEMBLANCE IS REGRETTED KR IRS 11324 > > In France the initial mistake was made of seating the representatives in > a semicircle, all facing the chair. The resulting confusion could be > imagined if it were not notorious. No real opposing teams could be formed > and no one could tell (without listening) which argument was the more > cogent. There was the further handicap of all the proceedings being in > French— an example the United States wisely refused to follow. But the > French system is bad enough even when the linguistic difficulty does not > arise. Instead of having two sides, one in the right and the other in the > wrong— so that the issue is clear from the outset— the French form a > multitude of teams facing in all directions. With the field in such > confusion, the game cannot even begin. Basically their representatives are > of the Right or of the Left, according to where they sit. This is a > perfectly sound scheme. The French have not gone to the extreme of seating > people in alphabetical order. But the semicircular chamber allows of > subtle distinctions between the various degrees of tightness and > leftness. There is none of the clear-cut British distinction between > rightness and wrongness. > > One deputy is described, politically, as to the left of Monsieur Until but > well to the right of Monsieur Quelque chose. What is anyone to make of > that? What should we make of it even in English? What do they make of it > themselves? The answer is, "Nothing." > > All this is generally known. What is less generally recognized is that the > paramount importance of the seating 16 plan applies to other assemblies and > meetings, international, national, and local. It applies, moreover, to > meetings round a table such as occur at a Round Table Conference. A > moment's thought will convince us that a Square Table Conference would be > something totally different and a Long Table Conference would be different > again. > > These differences do not merely affect the length and acrimony of the > discussion; they also affect what (if anything) is decided. Rarely, as we > know, will the voting relate to the merits of the case. The final decision > is influenced by a variety of factors, few of which need concern us at the > moment. We should note, however, that the issue is actually decided, in the > end, by the votes of the center bloc. This would not be true in the House > of Commons, where no such bloc is allowed to develop. But at other > conferences the center bloc is all important. This bloc essentially > comprises the following elements: > > a. Those who have failed to master any one of the memoranda written in > advance and showered weeks beforehand on all those who are expected to be > present. > > b. Those who are too stupid to follow the proceedings at all. These are > readily distinguishable by their tendency to mutter to each other: "What is > the fellow talking about?" > > c. Those who are deaf They sit with their hands cupping their ears, > growling "I wish people would speak up." > > d. Those who were dead drunk in the small hours and have turned up (heaven > knows why) with a splitting headache and a conviction that nothing matters > either way. > > e. The senile, whose chief pride is in being as fit as ever— fitter indeed > than a lot of these younger men. "I 11 walked here," they whisper. "Pretty > good for a man of eighty-two, what?" > > f The feeble, who have weakly promised to support both sides and don't > know what to do about it. They are of two minds as to whether they should > abstain from voting or pretend to be sick. > > Toward capturing the votes of the center bloc the first step is to > identify and count the members. That done, everything else depends on where > they are to sit. The best technique is to detail off known and stalwart > supporters to enter into conversation with named middle-bloc types before > the meeting actually begins. In this preliminary chat the stalwarts will > carefully avoid mentioning the main subject of debate. They will be trained > to use the opening gambits listed below, corresponding to the categories a > to /, into which the middle bloc naturally falls: > > a. "Waste of time, I call it, producing all these documents. I have thrown > most of mine away." > > b. "I expect we shall be dazzled by eloquence before long. I often wish > people would talk less and come to the point. They are half too clever, if > you ask me." > > c. "The acoustics of this hall are simply terrible. You would have thought > these scientific chaps could do something about it. For half the time I > CAN'T HEAR WHAT IS BEING SAID. CAN YOU?" > > d. "What a rotten place to meet! I think there is something wrong with the > ventilation. It makes me feel almost unwell. What about you?" > > e. "My goodness, I don't know how you do it! Tell me the secret. Is it > what you have for breakfast?" > > f "There's so much to be said on both sides of the 18 questions that I > really don't know which side to support. What do you feel about it?" > > If these gambits are correctly played, each stalwart will start a lively > conversation, in the midst of which he vows steer his middle-blockman > toward the forum. As he does this, another stalwart will place himself just > ahead of the pair and moving in the same direction. The drill is best > illustrated by a concrete example. > > We will suppose that stalwart X (Mr.Sturdy) is steering middle-blossman Y > (Mr. Waverley, type f) toward a seat near the front. Ahead goes stalwart Z > (Mr. Staunch), who presently takes a seat without appearing to notice the > two men following him. Staunch turns in the opposite direction and waves to > someone in the distance. Then he leans over to make a few remarks to the > man in front of him. Only when Waverley has sat down will Staunch presently > turn toward him and say, "My dear fellow— how nice to see you!" Only some > minutes later again will he catch sight of Sturdy and start visibly with > surprise. "Hallo, Sturdy— I didn't think you would be here!" "I've > recovered now," replies Sturdy. "It was only a chill. " The seating order > is thus made to appear completely accidental, casual, and friendly. That > completes Phase I of the operation, and it would be much the same whatever > the exact category in which the middle-blockman is believed to fall. > > > > Phase II has to be adjusted according to the character of the man to be > influenced. In the case of Waverley (Type f) the object in Phase II is to > avoid any discussion of the matter at issue but to produce the impression > that the thing is already decided. Seated near the front, Waverley will be > unable to see much of the other members and 19 can be given the impression > that they practically all think alike. > > "Really," says Sturdy, "I don't know why I bothered to come. I gather that > Item Four is pretty well agreed. All the fellows I meet seem to have made > up their minds to vote for it." (Or against it, as the case may be.) > "Curious," says Staunch. "I was just going to say the same thing. The > > issue hardly seems to be in doubt." > > "I had not really made up my own mind," says Sturdy. 20 "There was much to > be said on either side. But opposition would really be a waste of time. > > What do you think, Waverley?" > > "Well," says Waverley, "I must admit that I find the question rather > baffling. On the one hand, there is good reason to agree to the motion ... > > As against that... Do you think it will pass?" > > "My dear Waverley, I would trust your judgment in this. You were saying > just now that it is already agreed. " > > "Oh, was I? Well, there does seem to be a majority. ... Or perhaps I > should say ..." > > "Thank you, Waverley," says Staunch, "for your opinion. I think just the > same but am particularly interested to find you agree with me. There is no > one whose opinion I value more." > > Sturdy, meanwhile, is leaning over to talk to someone in the row behind. > What he actually says, in a low voice, is this, "How is your wife now? Is > she out of the hospital?" When he turns back again, however, it is to > announce that the people behind all think the same. The motion is as good > as passed. And so it is if the drill goes according to plan. > > While the other side has been busy preparing speeches and phrasing > amendments, the side with the superior technique will have concentrated on > pinning each middle-blockman between two reliable supporters. When the > crucial moment comes, the raising of a hand on either side will practically > compel the waverer to follow suit. Should he be actually asleep, as often > happens with middle-blockman in categories d and e, his hand will be raised > for him by the member on his right. This rule is merely to obviate both his > hands being raised; a gesture that has been known to attract unfavourable > comment. With the middle bloc thus secured, the motion will be carried with > a comfortable margin; or else rejected, if that is thought preferable. In > nearly every matter of controversy to be decided by the will of the people, > we can assume that the people who will decide are members of the middle > bloc. Delivery of speeches is therefore a waste of time. > > K Rajaram IRS 11324 > > -- > On Facebook, please join https://www.facebook.com/groups/keralaiyerstrust > > We are now on Telegram Mobile App also, please join > > Pattars/Kerala Iyers Discussions: https://t.me/PattarsGroup > > Kerala Iyers Trust Decisions only posts : https://t.me/KeralaIyersTrust > > Kerala Iyers Trust Group for Discussions: > https://t.me/KeralaIyersTrustGroup > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "KeralaIyers" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/keralaiyers/CAL5XZopoR_G6sFwYGKDm%2B_FgbVkpdt40N-nFpBQ2p1j%2B1tJ3VQ%40mail.gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/keralaiyers/CAL5XZopoR_G6sFwYGKDm%2B_FgbVkpdt40N-nFpBQ2p1j%2B1tJ3VQ%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CAL5XZooLjx3DwNLbaPFNxgZmHz7FGt3ejBa3JO-O5pN20Abctw%40mail.gmail.com.
