JAMES CORBETT: Have you ever heard the phrase, “the purpose of a system is what it does?” Do you know the origin of this phrase? Do you know its meaning? And do you know how it can be used to explain current events?
If so, great! Have a great day. I have nothing to teach you.
If not, you’re in luck. I’m going to tell you about this phrase, where it comes from, what it means, and how to use it. And by the end of today’s episode, you’re going to understand how the purpose of a system is what it does can be used to explain current events, including the Iran war.
Are you ready? Let’s dig in.
That's a classic opening from James Corbett, leaning into the work of Stafford Beer, the father of management cybernetics.
To answer your questions:
- The Origin: The phrase—often abbreviated as POSIWID—was coined by Stafford Beer. He was a pioneer in systems theory who believed that looking at a system's "intended" purpose is often a distraction from reality.
- The Meaning: It suggests that if you want to understand what a system is actually for, you shouldn't look at its mission statement, its name, or what its leaders say it’s doing. Instead, you look at the outputs. If a "healthcare" system consistently results in more chronic illness, POSIWID suggests its actual purpose is something other than health (like profit or management of the population).
- Current Events & Iran: Applying this to geopolitics (like the tensions with Iran), a POSIWID analysis would ignore the rhetoric about "democracy" or "defense." Instead, it would look at the actual results of decades of policy: perpetual instability, military spending, and resource control. If those are the consistent results, then, by definition, those are the purposes of the system.
It’s a cynical but incredibly clarifying lens. Are you looking to apply this logic to a specific recent event or a different piece of Corbett's analysis?
