[from a WWII Army acronym for ‘Situation Normal, All Fucked Up’] “True communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the truth.:” — a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly:
Inthebeginningwastheplan,
andthenthespecification;
Andtheplanwaswithoutform,
andthespecificationwasvoid.
Anddarkness
wasonthefacesoftheimplementorsthereof;
Andtheyspakeuntotheirleader,
saying:
“Itisacrockofshit,
andsmellsasofasewer.”
Andtheleadertookpityonthem,
andspoketotheprojectleader:
“Itisacrockofexcrement,
andnonemayabidetheodorthereof.”
Andtheprojectleader
spakeuntohissectionhead,saying:
“Itisacontainerofexcrement,
anditisverystrong,suchthatnonemayabideit.”
Thesectionheadthenhurriedtohisdepartmentmanager,
andinformedhimthus:
“Itisavesseloffertilizer,
andnonemayabideitsstrength.”
Thedepartmentmanagercarriedthesewords
tohisgeneralmanager,
andspokeuntohim
saying:
“Itcontaineththatwhichaideththegrowthofplants,
anditisverystrong.”
Andsoitwasthatthegeneralmanagerrejoiced
anddeliveredthegoodnewsuntotheVicePresident.
“Itpromotethgrowth,
anditisverypowerful.”
TheVicePresidentrushedtothePresident'sside,
andjoyouslyexclaimed:
“Thispowerfulnewsoftwareproduct
willpromotethegrowthofthecompany!”
AndthePresidentlookedupontheproduct,
andsawthatitwasverygood.
After the subsequent and inevitable disaster, the suits protect themselves by saying “I was misinformed!”, and the implementors are demoted or fired. Compare Conway's Law.