Drunken Wisdom

Anyone else feel really good about their job? How about the US economy in general? Personally, I think we’re hosed. Decades of subsidized “free money” programs for every special interest group under the sun…a politically-correct culture that permits - no, encourages - mediocrity…plus an out-of-control government that views its citizens as a tax base and nothing more…well, I think we’re seriously screwed.

The other day I sat in a very depressing meeting with my manager and some of my colleagues. Let me admit up front that I’m not much of a team player. I don’t like micromanagement and those projects that succeed seem to do so in spite of project managers’ efforts. Me? I much prefer to be given goals and turned loose. My applications are released on-time and well within budget. I make sure that I take good care of my applications’ users. Furthermore, as I’ve repeatedly told various bosses over the last few years, “My shit works.” I am proud to say that I do good work and I have the track record to prove it. So imagine my distress at listening to my boss tell me that no work may be done unless it’s approved, prioritized and scheduled by senior management. That 20% of effort that resolves 80% of the business users’ needs? Not gonna happen unless they go to their management team and get the paperwork completed, approved, prioritized and scheduled. As he put it, “there’s going to be fewer people working on fewer projects.” Also, I’m not to talk to the business to find out what they need. Everything has to go through a centralized project management team. So basically we’re going to be less responsive by adding more process/management to an already constipated workflow. All of this, of course, is being pitched as “we’re doing this for the business. It’s going to help them.” Apparently by being less responsive to their needs, the business units are supposed to realize all that IT does for them. As a wise man once pointed out, you cannot make this shit up. Perhaps now you understand why when I refer to the MIS department’s management team, I call them “the MIS-management team”. Probably doesn’t endear me to them but neither does good work so oh well.

All of which brings me back to the overall state of affairs here in the US. I look around these days and get the feeling that my company is just reflecting where we are as a country: falling faster and faster as the dysfunctional management team nods sagely at each passing floor and announces “Hey, we’re okay so far.” My employer has shipped nearly all manufacturing jobs out of the country and the monthly list of layoffs just keeps getting longer and longer. Everything is outsourced…oops, excuse me. I’m not supposed to use that term anymore. The jobs aren’t being outsourced, they’re being “best-shored”. As if calling it something else makes a shit sandwich taste good. Look at this, folks:

Right-click and open in the new window…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46r4yxttThw

People living in shanty towns here in America. In this day and age. In America, goddammit. How long until someone you know lives in one, too? Or maybe you’ll end up in one. Or me. More likely me, I suppose, but at least I’ll have government healthcare, right? Because the same bureaucratic thugs who run the local DMV deserve to be entrusted with managing our healthcare.

I guess I’ll just keep my head down and start sending out resumes again. This, too, shall pass. I hope. In the meantime, I note that while the “tarandfeathers.com” domain is taken, the “ropeandlampposts.com” domain isn’t. Might as well get a headstart on that, too. I’m sure we’ve all got plenty of candidates for that particular project. We’re already way over budget but maybe, just maybe, we can get it implemented on time.