Reducing the Bureaucracy

A federal hiring freeze is a good start, but the Washington bureaucracy–including the Pentagon–needs a ten to twenty percent authorization reduction, not just current bodies.

C. Northcote Parkinson noted in the 1950s: (1) “An official wants to multiply subordinates, not rivals” and (2) “Officials make work for each other.” The number employed in a bureaucracy rose by 5–7% per year “irrespective of any variation in the amount of work (if any) to be done”.

“No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth!” Ronald Reagan

Also called a self-licking ice cream cone.

 

 

 

 

Book Review: The Guernseyman by C. Northcote Parkinson (Four Stars)

Book Review: The Guernseyman by C. Northcote Parkinson

Four Stars out of Five

Rises from the sea of Napoleonic war British naval fiction. The protagonist is at once more human and more likable than the likes of Horatio Hornblower or even Jack Aubrey. The writing focuses more on his inner life as well. Parkinson’s skillful plotting places his hero at the scene of numerous real historical events.

Of particular note to American readers of this volume may be Parkinson’s examination of how the American Revolution looked from the British and Loyalist points of view, and how their side was troubled with almost insurmountable command and logistics issues.

The author’s name should sound familiar. Parkinson is the author of the famous Parkinson’s Law that work expands to fill the time allotted to it.