Posts Tagged: those who work behind desks and counters

“THANK GOD FOR BUREAUCRATS!”

On November 23, 2018 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

I know quite a few words, but spelling is another matter.  I’ve never been a good speller, and suspect that I never will be.  Sometimes, even my spell checker has no idea what I’m trying to write.

For example, my spell checker had no idea what I was trying to spell when, in my gratitude list this morning, I tried to give thanks for “beaururcrats”.  A red line appeared under the word, but no suggestion for what it should be.

So, I looked it up, and here is what I found at https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bureaucrat, accessed 11-23-2018:

bureaucrats

And then, I scrolled down a bit, and read the following:

“Did You Know?

In French, a bureau is a desk, so bureaucracy means basically “government by people at desks”. Despite the bad-mouthing they often get, partly because they usually have to stick so close to the rules, bureaucrats do almost all the day-to-day work that keeps a government running. The idea of a bureaucracy is to split up the complicated task of governing a large country into smaller jobs that can be handled by specialists. Bureaucratic government is nothing new; the Roman empire had an enormous and complex bureaucracy, with the bureaucrats at lower levels reporting to bureaucrats above them, and so on up to the emperor himself.”

I was pleased that the website also thought that, perhaps, bureaucrats get an undeservedly bad rap.

I suppose that two of the bureaucracies that get the worst rap in our country are the IRS and the Bureau of Motor Vehicle Registration.  However, I’ve even had good experiences with those bureaucracies.  No sarcasm; I’m serious!

I have found that my dealings with these groups of “people behind desks” (or counters) were characterized by courtesy, knowledge, patience, and helpfulness on their part.  “Weren’t there long lines?!” I hear someone say.  Well, yes, of course.  But I suspect that was largely because they were understaffed.  And why were they understaffed?  Apparently, I wasn’t paying enough taxes for them to hire more people.  I most certainly did not see anyone who was not working.

The Bible says that we ought to give honor to people who deserve honor.  (See Romans 13:7, where Paul specifically mentions those who collect taxes!  I assume that chariots and donkeys did not have to be registered in those days.)

So, to all of you who work at thankless jobs behind counters and desks—thanks!

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