From Introduction

I once believed that the myth of Eden was a religious zealot’s way to relate to the onset of agriculture some 12,000 years ago. Whereas mankind had once depended on the benevolence of the Creator for his daily fruit, he suddenly had a way to grow and harvest what he wanted, to store the products of his labor, and to bargain with others for a sample of his bounty. What a breeding ground for avarice, jealousy, thievery, and all things evil!

Now I know better—bureaucracy precipitated the fall from grace. Man’s happy existence, the living together of species of all sorts, the simple relationship between benefactor and recipient all changed the moment bureaucracy reared its ugly head. No longer could anyone in the hierarchy of life reach out to touch someone else without crossing lines of authority, violating published and unpublished rules, upsetting the established order, or otherwise being a nuisance.

On the seventh day, God did not rest; She wrote bylaws and established committees, naming Satan and His minions to chairmanships. What is the proof of my assertion, you ask. There is none! You simply have to do what Sister Mary Beatitude told me to do many years ago: accept it on faith. Or, if you have an enquiring mind, look around and reach your own conclusions. Doesn’t bureaucracy run like poison through the veins of all impaired businesses, religions, and governments on the face of earth? Don’t committees and their bureaucratic rules muddle decision-making and impede justice? Isn’t being appointed to a position of power in a hierarchy a bit like lighting up that first joint—leading to ever more assertive behavior and the stronger drug of service on committees, chairmanships, elected office and finally consorting with Satan Himself?


From Chapter One

The rules of behavior in bureaucracies often are called politics. As a young man in academics, I argued with neighbors and friends that academic politics were worse than those of other organizations, notably the military and big business. It’s not that I had extensive experience with the politics of the military and big business. I just couldn’t imagine a system where politics could be any more petty or more vicious than those I was encountering in the hallowed halls of higher education. I rationalized my view by saying that academic politics are so intense because the rewards in academics are so few and far between. Toss a scrap of meat to dogs and infighting will be more vigorous among the pack that is starving (the academics among us) than among the well-fed pack. I also thought that academic politics were particularly nasty because one seldom knew from where the political bombshells were being launched. The lines of authority seemed easier to cross for those enjoying academic freedom than for those in other organizations; thus, an attack might be launched from anywhere within the hierarchy for totally obscure motives.

With time I realized that the size of rewards and the ease of crossing lines of authority were only two facets of bureaucracies that frustrate lives. A process of maturity, I imagine, much like my realization at the dawn of my 40th year that people who disagreed with me actually thought they were right! What a realization—one that caused me to rethink my approach to the rational arguments of which academicians are so fond! Through personal experience and vicariously I learned that the thorns of frustration are different for bureaucracies in diverse fields, though there are common threads.

Those common threads are the subject matter of this book. Herein I describe many of the facets of bureaucracies that readers will encounter as they go through life. I use the word ‘life’ here, because bureaucracies (and consequently politics) are not limited to the work place. Anywhere two or more people gather is fertile ground for bureaucracy and politics. Marriages, churches, soccer teams, unions, neighborhood associations, and other social groupings are bureaucracies rife with politics.