Musings from the CU Suite

Written by Anthony Demangone

I'm not sure when I first learned of Occam's razor, but I've carried the principle with me ever since.

Just what is it?  According to Wikipedia...

Occam's razor (also written as Ockham's razor from William of Ockham, and in Latin lex parsimoniae) is a principle of parsimony, economy, or succinctness used in logic and problem-solving. It states that among competing hypotheses, the hypothesis with the fewest assumptions should be selected. The application of the principle often shifts the burden of proof in a discussion.The razor states that one should proceed to simpler theories until simplicity can be traded for greater explanatory power.

You can use the principle in your management role, and it does a great job of cutting through the fog. Why did something happen? Go with the simplest explanation, until that is disproved by facts.

Everyone loves a good conspiracy theory. Occam's razor, though, says before you look for conspiracies, assume simple forces were at work.

And so it goes with Banker attacks.  Credit unions have it so easy! We don't pay any taxes. (Wrong.)  The playing field is tilted our way. We have an unfair advantage over bankers.

If that were the case, one would assume a flurry of de novo credit unions would pop up across the landscape.  Or that banks would convert to credit unions.  Now, that wouldn't be an easy transition, but it is possible.  

Anything but has been happening. To believe the banker attacks, you'd have to believe that even though credit unions have an unfair advantage in the market place, banks remain banks because...well, just because.  And the credit unions that have converted to banks?  They must have done so because they wanted to trade their unfair advantage for something else. 

Occam's razor says this: that argument is too complicated. Look for something simpler. 

My guess?  Bank attacks are simply propaganda.  It is a power struggle, and everyone likes less competition. Banks included.  

So, I'll stick to that.  Until a better explanation comes along.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

You might also be interested in:

1. Credit Union Corporate Governance: The Secret to our Success. (Musings.)
2. The Difference, In a Nutshell. (Musings.)