Alan Caruba's blog is a daily look at events, personalities, and issues from an independent point of view. Copyright, Alan Caruba, 2015. With attribution, posts may be shared. A permission request is welcome. Email acaruba@aol.com.
When I first worked for government, lo those many years ago in 1963, at CA Division of Highways, the politicians were quietly corrupt, as a great majority of politicians always have been. Given the huge amount of temptation, it would take a saint to be otherwise.
But those professional civil engineers who ran Hwys were not in the least that way, as far as I could determine, and from what I could see. At the faintest trace of whatever even faintly looked like there might be corruption at lower levels, immediately took steps to prevent it from continuing, and we, the troops of the "front lines", so to speak, were informed of what had occurred, and the penalties meted out. Which were significant.
"Failure to wear seat belts is grounds for dismissal," a large lettered sticker on the dashboard of the state cars said. The sign meant what it said.
It made me proud to work for such a corruption-free agency. The regulators and inspectors were not in bed with those they regulated and inspected.
Governor Jerry "Moonbeam" Brown changed all of that. He made a point of appointing only those to control state agencies whom had not the faintest bit of knowledge of anything said agency did. He said that he didn't want the appointed heads of agencies to be prejudiced by knowledge of the work the agencies did. Only sycophants could get higher management positions.
After "Moonbeam" Brown was no longer governor, the situation improved somewhat, but the damage had been done, the same sycophants left in place to do the higher level management, who themselves promoted only sycophants to themselves, the state agencies never to fully recover again.
ZAP...
ReplyDeleteSodom and Gomorrah didn't have anything on that bunch of thieves, liars, crooks and perverts in D.C.
It's interesting Mr. Caruba. I've thought of that conversation of Abraham a lot these past months. Sad, I guess more than Interesting.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless~
When I first worked for government, lo those many years ago in 1963, at CA Division of Highways, the politicians were quietly corrupt, as a great majority of politicians always have been. Given the huge amount of temptation, it would take a saint to be otherwise.
ReplyDeleteBut those professional civil engineers who ran Hwys were not in the least that way, as far as I could determine, and from what I could see. At the faintest trace of whatever even faintly looked like there might be corruption at lower levels, immediately took steps to prevent it from continuing, and we, the troops of the "front lines", so to speak, were informed of what had occurred, and the penalties meted out. Which were significant.
"Failure to wear seat belts is grounds for dismissal," a large lettered sticker on the dashboard of the state cars said. The sign meant what it said.
It made me proud to work for such a corruption-free agency. The regulators and inspectors were not in bed with those they regulated and inspected.
Governor Jerry "Moonbeam" Brown changed all of that. He made a point of appointing only those to control state agencies whom had not the faintest bit of knowledge of anything said agency did. He said that he didn't want the appointed heads of agencies to be prejudiced by knowledge of the work the agencies did. Only sycophants could get higher management positions.
After "Moonbeam" Brown was no longer governor, the situation improved somewhat, but the damage had been done, the same sycophants left in place to do the higher level management, who themselves promoted only sycophants to themselves, the state agencies never to fully recover again.
Once great damage is done, it cannot be undone