One of my least favorite words/phrase is "Living Document" (aka Dynamic Document). The technical definition of this term is:
A living document or dynamic document is a document which may be continually edited and updated by either a limited or unrestricted group.
So in the simplest terms a living document is a document that says what I say it says today. That means if I decide tomorrow that it means crackers and edit this post to say it means cracker that it means crackers.
Living documents are bullshit. Our Constitution (probably most often cited as a living document) is no such thing. Our founding fathers were educated men who knew and understood the law. They knew what they were writing when they wrote it. And the original text, when read with standard definitions and understanding states exactly what they wanted it to mean. There is no need for reinterpretations by our judicial system.
All men are created equal...yes they are. We do not need laws saying specific groups are equal. It's already there.
We have a right to bear arms...yep, that means we have the right to own guns.
free speech? no permit needed. no special free speech zones required.
get the picture.
the same theories apply to the corporate world. you know contracts are now living documents. that means they aren't worth the paper they are written on. misson statements look great and impressive but rarely say anything of true substance.
why can't we just say what we mean? why can't we believe that something written over 200 years ago is simple and straightforward?
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