How to Ride a Dead Horse: Version 2

Dakota tribal wisdom says that when you discover you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount. However, government bureaucracies often try other strategies with dead horses, including the following:

1. Buying a stronger whip.
    
2. Changing riders.
    
3. Saying things like "This is the way we always have ridden this horse."
    
4. Arranging to visit other sites to see how they ride dead horses.
    
5. Increasing the standards to ride dead horses.
    
6. Appointing a committee to study the dead horse.
    
7. Waiting for the horse's condition to improve from this temporary downturn.
    
8. Providing additional training to increase riding ability.
    
9. Passing legislation declaring "This horse is not dead."
    
10. Blaming the horse's parents.
     
11. Acquiring additional dead horses for increased speed.
     
12. Declaring that "No horse is too dead to beat."
     
13. Providing additional funding to increase the horse's performance.
     
14. Commissioning a study to see if private contractors can ride it cheaper.
     
15. Removing all obstacles in the dead horse's path.
     
16. Taking bids for a state-of-the art dead horse.
     
17. Declaring the horse is "better, faster and cheaper" dead.
     
18. Revising the performance requirements for horses.
     
19. Saying the horse was procured with cost as an independent variable.
     
20. Raising taxes (any excuse will do).
     
    
And if all else fails:
21. Promote the dead horse to a supervisory position

 

Posted 27.July'03