Where are Charles Nelson Reilly and Charro when you need them ?
As a kid, I would watch “The Gong Show “ and “Hollywood Squares “ . They were both mindless shows, the former very adept at showcasing really talentless people making fools of themselves performing bad talent acts.. The later-Hollywood Squares- was equally inane but it was more urbane because you had characters like Charles Nelson Reilly and Paul Lynde, both of whom were very bright and witty.
Now, into the second year of the reign of No. 45, the scene in Washington is resembling the set of “The Gong Show “. We have seen the coming and going of Spicer, Preibus, Scaramucci, Comey, Tillerson, McCabe, McMaster and now Shulkin. All of these people performed the duties and tasks that they were assigned to, and yet they were gonged by the Emperor No. 45.
We have witnessed a lot of turmoil and upheaval, to say the least. No.45 has been known to enjoy a lot of chaos and havoc with regard to his organization. One could argue that the decision-making process could be described as impulsive and abrupt, always in the flurry of massive contradictions.
One could reasonably ask is this an appropriate form of management and governance ? We will have to see. The fallout from the tax cuts and tariffs may spurn short-term growth for the economy, may indeed generate some new jobs . However, the longer term concerns will be what happens after the next seven years, after the reign of No. 45 when the bills come due ?
It’s like going out with your friends to a nightclub, “ dancing it up and making deals “( Joni Mitchell ) and at the end of the night discovering that the bar bill still has not been paid.
I have observed that organizations, when they work well, demand intentional planning and forthright vision; goals need to be determined that are realistic and can be measured accurately. Furthermore, programs and organizations need to have mechanisms to appropriately evaluate the effectiveness of their performance.
Above all, leadership executives need time to get to know the mission of their agencies and to know their people and resources, to understand the strengths and the challenges of their organization and its setting.
You can’t run an effective agency and turn over leaders like flipping burgers or being speedier than a Marshall Fields revolving door.
The current trend can only produce for you, at best, McLeadership !
Chuck Barris knew that he was promoting game-show kitsch.
“ But by 1980, he realized that his heyday was coming to an end and he sold his production company for $100 million.
His next undertaking, movie production, was not as successful and his Gong Show Movie adaptation stayed in theaters for only one week.
That brought on a crisis of confidence and Barris holed up in a New York hotel for two months writing his 1984 memoir Confessions of A Dangerous Mind, in which he claimed to have been a CIA assassin. It was adapted into a 2002 film directed by George Clooney.” Chuck Barris, ‘Gong Show’ host who claimed he was a CIA assassin …https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/…/gong-show…chuck-barris…/99483048/ Cached
One can only hope that the current Washington version of “The Gong Show “ will eventually not be renewed for another season.
Then again, maybe we need some comic relief.
Cucci Cucci !
May it be so.
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