Tuesday, May 3, 2011

The rectification of names

General Michael Hayden, former Director of the National Security Agency and Central Intelligence Agency said that when he was an ROTC instructor he would quote Confucius to his new students: "The rectification of names is the most important business of government.  If names are not correct, language will not be in accordance with the truth of things."  

"The point had less to do with communicating than it did with thinking -- thinking clearly.
Clear communications begins with clear thinking.
You have to be precise in your language and have the BIG IDEAS right if you are going to accomplish anything."
General Michael Hayden in his paper The Future of Things "Cyber"

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great man. . .

General Quarters said...

Pilate saith to him: "What is truth?"