super-committee

Bringing great attention to, and making big fanfare about something that in reality has little or no possibility of sucess, or has far less significant outcome than originally expressed. Originates from the establishment of a Committee established to purportedly reduce the debt of the federal government in 2011. Unfortunately the committee and the establishment of this committee was all a ruse, and failed to produce any significant debt reduction, but more legislative back-biting in congress. Alt. - See Smoke and Mirrors.

You want a new car? Let me establish a super-committee and we'll get right on that one.

by halejr November 21, 2011

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Get the super-committeemug.

Kelly's Law of Committees

None of us are as dumb as all of us.
A counter to the older, pro-teamwork adage "None of us are as smart as all of us."
Speaks to the risk of lower-level workers' input being useless if upper management gives its own opinion first, due to the tendency of workers to fall in line once the position of the leader (who could fire them for dissent) is known.
The wording above was written on a wall at NASA's Houston complex after the Challenger disaster, as reported by astronaut Mark Kelly, husband of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. Although the concept has long been known of, once it took the form of an aphorism, it acquired a viral quality.

Niels Bohr and son Aage asked low-level engineer Richard Feynman their questions before asking higher-ups like Oppenheimer, partly to avoid taking up important administrators' time, but also to avoid Kelly's law of committees. Asking the higher-ups first, with lower-level workers present, would have a chilling effect on the latter's offering their own ideas and concerns.

by WhatwasIsaying December 24, 2024

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