“I hold that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and is as necessary in the political world as storms to the physical.”
- Thomas Jefferson in a letter to James Madison (undated), quoted from a WSJ Editorial by Arthur Herman
In other words, we might be living in a political tornado alley.
The two names dominating political discourse these days are those of our President, Donald Trump, and his DOGE Director, Elon Musk. The Diff is essentially an apolitical blog, so don’t tune out!
Herman cites a book (The Founders Mentality by Zook and Allen) that describes business founders (Musk and Trump are both members of the “club”) as being driven by “bold missions, bias for action, and aversion to bureaucracy.”
The test underway is whether one or some can lead a hugely complex bureaucracy in a risk-taking, rapid-fire decision-making manner that reduces or avoids delegation or (Zook) “anyone or anything that stands in the way of (vision).”
Herman claims, it would seem accurately so, that founders “will inevitably inspire as well as alienate.”
Whether we’re inspired or alienated by the current state of affairs (in our government, jobs, and lives), there’s never been a better time to get actively engaged and find a way to make a difference.
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