A metaphor about symptoms and root causes

During one particular rainy season, Owen’s ceiling started to leak.

Upon investigation, he discovered that the source of the leak was an old, overflowing bathtub in the attic. The previous owner must have placed the old bathtub in the attic to catch the drips from the roof.

This solution had worked well, for many years, until that particular rainy season when the rate of rain out-paced the rate of evaporation.

We can probably assume that the person didn’t actually believe that a bathtub in the attic was the right fix.

But given the choice of having the leak continue, this quick-fix didn’t seem like a bad idea.

And since the “fix” worked reliably for many years, it’s easy to understand why resolving the root cause never became a high-priority. 

HT: David Owen

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