NASA Has a Message
- Thread starter Scruddy
- Start date
Saw the dei chief at the atf tried quickly swapping her role and description but got caught. Rats scurrying.
For my money, there's absolutely a place for DEI initiatives. In my profession, for example, women of a certain age absolutely got shit on when they were breaking into the profession, and people need to understand what that was like. And I've heard great talks by colleagues within other subgroups where they told their personal stories about things they had to overcome personally and professionally. IMO, they're at their best, and can be very good indeed, when they reinforce the commonality and universality of having to overcome something or achieve something, regardless of whether that 'something' is on someone's 'alphabet list' or not. That's the kind of thing that gets people pulling together and supporting each other.
But unfortunately, the industrialization of DEI has all too often just turned it into a cliche playbook. The same speakers, the same harangues, sometimes to the point that some of it almost becomes a parody of itself. (Just the other day, for example, the Bishop urged us to remember the immigrants who cut our grass, clean our homes, drive us to our destinations, and cook our meals. Really?) Or worse - when they just reinforce the subgroups as being unique or separate from the organizational whole. But hey, it's not the first time that industrialization of something led to lower quality, administered by lazy people. through a bloated bureaucracy with spending authority.
The administration's approach on DEI is a pretty good metaphor for its overall approach. They've come out of the gates very, very hard -- too hard imo. Perhaps because they think they have a narrow window to get things done based on their first administration and midterm dynamics, perhaps because they think 'ripping the bandage off' is the best strategy for resetting the baseline of discussions, or perhaps (unlike me) they really think ''color blindness" and its analogues isn't just a theory. Whatever the thinking, I do hope that we can retain the best parts of these initiatives, which begin with simply talking to your coworkers.
But unfortunately, the industrialization of DEI has all too often just turned it into a cliche playbook. The same speakers, the same harangues, sometimes to the point that some of it almost becomes a parody of itself. (Just the other day, for example, the Bishop urged us to remember the immigrants who cut our grass, clean our homes, drive us to our destinations, and cook our meals. Really?) Or worse - when they just reinforce the subgroups as being unique or separate from the organizational whole. But hey, it's not the first time that industrialization of something led to lower quality, administered by lazy people. through a bloated bureaucracy with spending authority.
The administration's approach on DEI is a pretty good metaphor for its overall approach. They've come out of the gates very, very hard -- too hard imo. Perhaps because they think they have a narrow window to get things done based on their first administration and midterm dynamics, perhaps because they think 'ripping the bandage off' is the best strategy for resetting the baseline of discussions, or perhaps (unlike me) they really think ''color blindness" and its analogues isn't just a theory. Whatever the thinking, I do hope that we can retain the best parts of these initiatives, which begin with simply talking to your coworkers.
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