Deciding between two choices

[Marshall Rose]

> Ignoring me tentative analysis of the cause, would you agree that
> we have a problem with making, and sticking to, decisions?

i guess we'd have to have a basis of comparison to answer that question.
certainly, i can imagine someone in the US congress asking the same
question, but i'm not sure that comparing the two is meaningful...
    
if the question is: comparing 1992 to 2002, has it gotten worse? the
answer is:
    
    then and now, most of the time, there aren't problems
    
    then and now, every now and then, some really bad problems come up
    
looking back, it's probably true that there are a few more bad problems
happening now, but that can be explained by the fact that the ietf has a
few more working groups now.
    
where there are problems, i think that a different management philopshy
may be helpful.  for example:
    
in the case of midcom, providing we agree on a minimalist framework for
the issue, is it really so bad to have multiple approaches to solving it?
    
perhaps so, perhaps not.
    
if so, and in the absence of really clear superiority of one approach
over all the others, is it really so bad to have the market decide
instead of the midcom wg?
    
perhaps so, perhaps not.
    
to come full-circle: rough concensus isn't the problem here -- deciding
how to manage the problem, when to manage it, etc., is the issue.
    
/mtr

ps: and no, this stuff isn't always supposed to be easy. if it were easy, then
everyone would be doing it...