Wicked problems

Most problems plaguing us today are wicked problems.

Wicked problems are problems that do not have one simple solution. They usually sit across many fields and factors like the ugly fat blobs they are. They are interdisciplinary and solving one part usually affects another part of the problem, much like trying to solve one face of a rubics cube messes up the other sides.

After attending a few policy discussions in the evenings with Minister Chan Chun Sing (Extremely informative and completely informal, usually 8 - 10pm at Buona Vista CC. Like his Facebook page to get the next meeting date), I realised that most problems involving the confluence of politics and economics are wicked problems indeed.

People sometimes accuse the PAP of running Singapore like a company. This probably means applying economic logic to otherwise political problems. Take for example, public transport in Singapore today. Trains are overcrowded, yes. Having been on trains for so long, from personal experience they have certainly gotten more packed over the years. What is the obvious solution? Buy more trains. Increase the frequency. So easy, I could run the government. This is an example of an economic solution, but people often fail to follow the logic to the end after their point is made.

Trains cost money, and if you read the yearly releases for SMRT, they are making less profit in their train service. The economic logic here is simple, increase the fares, remove concessions, or move investment away from trains and into other more lucrative services.

If this were London, or New York, you could bet your bottom dollar they would have gone with the economic solution. That's why you pay 6 to 8 dollars to sit on less comfortable trains in New York. Whereas, you pay 2 dollars to sit on ultramodern trains to anywhere in Singapore. This is because fare hikes, concessions and improvement in train infrastructure is a political problem, not an economic problem. Listening to the public's calls for improvements, the government is pressured to act on it. But the government does not run SMRT, it is a private company. The government wishes to be reelected, the company wishes to make profits. Thus, a wicked problem ensures.

Does this mean nothing can be done? Not quite. These are wicked problems, but not intractable problems. The only way to solve them, in my view, is to break them down into individual problems and solve them first. Much like fighting a flu, you have to start by treating the symptoms.

Sidebar: I'm a huge war history enthusiast, and this suddenly reminded me of the Blitzkrieg strategy the Germans used in World War 2. The Armoured Charge was a  game changer in WW2. Using a mass of Tanks and Mechanized Infantry, they could punch through traditional defense lines quickly and encircle opposing armies. But in the end, this tactic was defeated by orderly retreat with strategic depth, wearing out the attackers; or picking at the shoulders of the main column until it was vulnerable to flanking.

Much like the Blitzkrieg, these problems have to be slowly chipped away at, with trial and error solutions until it can be solved with a grand masterstroke. This will take years of small improvements in every avenue, such as transport networks, fare models, rush hour planning etc. As for orderly retreat with strategic depth, you can imagine our Reserves to be that strategic depth. If the current model eventually becomes non viable, the Reserves will provide the funds for some limited time for another solution to be found, so throwing our Reserves into every problem cannot be the solution.

So if there's some burning issue you have, some intractable problem, start picking at the shoulders, break it down into smaller, more solvable parts, and you'll find the problem will start to seem less wicked in time. As for the larger socio-economic problems Singapore faces, unfortunately they will not, and cannot be solved in a day. But in the years to come, the problems should improve. You may not even notice it when it's eventually solved.

Stream of Consciousness

Posts on this blog are like crocodiles.

No seriously wait for it.

Only 5% of them make it from the egg to adulthood.
I usually have all these stream of consciousness thoughts in the most inopportune moments. In the car, on the bus, in the shower. Basically places where I can't just write them down and upload them immediately. Besides, I don't like to write while I'm thinking. I prefer to have the whole idea form in my head, exploring every possible train of thought before I write them down. Combined with the unconscious routine everytime I switch on my computer, by the time I get to facebook, I've forgotten 90% of what I'm supposed to write.

Anyway. This blog has pretty much become obsolete. I remember I had the grand idea of writing one post a day, imitating some famous live bloggers I admire on Youtube. Unfortunately, my life just isn't interesting enough for that. Neither do I have feelings, political views or hateful rants to vent on this medium. Life events and the such are promptly recorded on Facebook, Twitter, and the plethora of social media that act as personal paparazzi.

Thus, I have decided to repurpose this space to my random thoughts and analysis on various things that interest me. Time will tell if I actually follow through.