xoB, what a great thread topic. I am reading a book,
The Rule of Nobody, by Philip Howard, which discusses at length the causes for such dysfunction and suggests solutions to the problems. His key observation points to mistrust as the root cause of such rules and that the solution must include human judgement. I am thoroughly enjoying this book.
Mr Howard says there is a political factor involved, succinctly put by the Economist:
Quote:
|
“The Rule of Nobody is even-handed in its politics, noting that right and left have saddled America with overly detailed regulations, under pressure from special-interest lobbies (among them incumbents who see regulation as a useful barrier to new competition). One root of the problem is mistrust, Mr Howard suggests. Conservatives distrust public employees and so seek to limit their powers of discretion. The left thinks that business bosses will run amok unless bound.”
|
I highly recommend the book. It's a great discussion of the problem and what can be done to make things better. Of course, that's not quite as fun as pointing out stupendously ridiculous results of people following these rules. That's what this thread's for!