The Wright Brothers did not just "jump off a cliff with a dream." I guess
this proves my contention that one cannot use the empirical method to
disprove the empirical method. That is, an example only reinforces the
power of examples.
On a less puristic note, I do agree that the world is created by systems,
by system interactions. Is it the empirical method or the dream that
creates a new possibility? Is it the string section or the horn section
that creates the symphony? To me, the trap to avoid is the trap of
believing that the empirical method reveals WHAT IS. Deming often said,
"No theory, no learning." When we begin to believe in WHAT IS without an
inquiry into WHY IT IS, or HOW IT IS, we become stuck.
The most powerful system is the system created by the interaction between
the world and our perception of it. Once we begin to change this system,
we begin to profoundly alter what is possible.
Happy Leap Day,
-- Ron Davison, San DiegoLearning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>