Thinking the Unthinkable

I came across an article on the downfall of the newspapers.   The plight of the newspapers didn't really interest me, but the article had some interesting things to day about selectively _not_ thinking about the worst case scenario:

http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/shirky09/shirky09_index.html

"When reality is labeled unthinkable, it creates a kind of sickness in an industry. Leadership becomes faith-based, while employees who have the temerity to suggest that what seems to be happening is in fact happening are herded into Innovation Departments, where they can be ignored en masse. This shunting aside of the realists in favor of the fabulists has different effects on different industries at different times. One of the effects on the newspapers is that many of their most passionate defenders are unable, even now, to plan for a world in which the industry they knew is visibly going away."

It reminded me a little bit of printing in general.