Go Ahead, Just Believe...

philman_36 ^ | 11-30-04 | philman_36

[philman_36]

As anyone who knows me can verify I've often railed about people who refer to our government as a Democracy when it is a Republic. It seems that there is a movement, with all of the "each vote counts" hullabaloo and the calls for the removal of the Electoral College, to bring about actual Democracy in America, yet that too won't make a difference. Because, and I hate to burst the bubble of those desiring a Democracy, and it doesn't matter what form of government is in place, we all face a more deadly peril that needs to be taken care of no matter which side of the political spectrum one may come from.

And, scoff as you will (I've got flame proof Skivvies), that peril is Bureaucracy, for that, in fact, is what America has become...a Bureaucracy. A body of nonelective government officials, administrative policy-making groups, and government by specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rules, and a hierarchy of authority.

The first rule of a Bureaucracy is it must survive. And a Bureaucracy can survive through almost anything. Whether it's in a Republic, a Democracy, a leftist Democratic administration or a centrist/right Republican administration it will survive and even prosper. If workers within the Bureaucracy can aid its longevity then things will get done to make that happen.

As an example, and an illustration as to how long the Bureaucracy has been in place and functionally operating, I ask the reader to consider what happened when Prohibition ended. Harry Anslinger, the Arch-Bureaucrat went from one office (within the Treasury Department's Prohibition Unit of the Prohibition Bureau) to a whole new, newly created, Federal Bureau of Narcotics (it was created by then Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon, Anslinger's wife's uncle) The Narcotics Division had previously existed within the Prohibition Unit. (this also illustrates that the Bureaucracy can grow, giving it a "living" quality, and thus having a need to survive...It's Alive!)
Administrations may come and go, but the Bureaucracy must survive.

Part of that Bureaucracy, in my opinion, is The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) which in addition to being the largest federal employee union representing 600,000 federal workers in the United States and overseas--also represents some 4,500 employees working for the District of Columbia government.. [BTW...look here for a 2000 FR article where their numbers are stated as only 100,000] That is 600,000 people folks and anyone with any inkling of how unions operate has got to admit that such a number is a force to be reckoned with and that is, by their admission, only "the largest" federal employee union. How many countless smaller unions exist is something I've not looked into...yet.

And this, finally, brings me around to what troubles me and got me thinking about all of this. The first is the New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (NFCMH) created by the POTUS by Executive Order. One of the biggest beneficiaries of this new program is SAMSHA and The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS). (note that members of The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) National Advisory Council Subcommittee on Consumer/Survivor Issues includes people who have experienced mental illness, treatment, and recovery. Now that is one group of Bureaucrats who I really want looking out for my best interests (/sarcasm).

The second thing that is troubling me is the national database to collect information and track the progress of every college student in the country. According to The Boston Globe's article "US eyes collection of college-student data" the idea was proposed by a research wing of the Department of Education. Now that is another fine group of Bureaucrats who I really want looking out for my children's best interests (/sarcasm).

My point, which I hope you've waited for, is that these Bureaucratic institutions seem to be up to something. At the end of the day we all need to remember that, as the thinking goes...the Bureaucracy must survive...and these things seem to be helping it to do so. Now, as to what the end desires are, I've no idea and they may have started out with the best of intention. However, we know what is said about the best of intentions, they often result in the worst of consequences.

I'm merely asking others to think about this as well. Consider that a person usually debates internally before deciding upon their actions. The Bureaucrats in these Bureaucratic institutions have probably done so as well, it's human nature, and their end designs and desires are their own. I do know that we as Americans need to seriously consider the implications of such programs at the hands of Bureaucrats. Our elected officials may not be ones we approve of, but Bureaucrats are there forever. We can get rid of one group, but the other is thoroughly entrenched behind their desks.

Now, if you're one of those folks who believe in the perpetual goodness of government and if you want to believe that these things are all being done for "the benefit of the American people", then "Go ahead, just believe"...

[philman_36]

An FYI for some of you who responded.
(A faceless bureaucracy is so much easier to blame than anyone in particular.)
Whoever drafted this little beauty of an exception to the privacy laws, its sweeping language shows that the drafter knew just what he was doing. This was no random slip of the pen.