Various contexts have been lost, but this exchange has led to a lot of imaginations, so I made a note of it
A. “Please do X.” “Mr. B, is the cause that you are not doing X?” Mr. A. “Yes, we think it is because you are not doing X. Please do X.” src Symbols replaced for ease of reference.
- Is Mr. A in a position to tell Mr. B to “do X” without specifying why?
- That’s not to say it doesn’t happen, depending on the contractual relationship.
- If it were an ordinary co-worker or something, it would be a rather awful thing to say.
- Mr. B’s “Is the cause that you’re not doing X?” is an oxymoron.
- At least he’s saying that the problem may be caused by something other than “not doing X”.
- If I were to supplement it with more words, I’d say, “You seem to think the problem is caused by ‘not doing X’ and you’re trying to do X as a countermeasure, is that really the right decision?” Or something like that.
- Mr. B may be put in a position where he cannot clearly express that concern.
- For example, Mr. A is a power-harassing boss, and when you argue with him, he gets furious.
- Mr. A’s response to this
- ‘I suspect it’s because I’m not doing X.’
- Nothing more information.
- Mr. B is questioning the decision, but he keeps piling on, “Do it because I think it’s the right thing to do,” without providing any particular evidence.
- Mr. A doesn’t understand why Mr. B is asking the question back.
- Mr. A thinks he is answering the question, but he is not answering anything substantive.
We are both polite on the surface, but communication is not going well and frustration is building up on both sides.
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