A Health and Human Services official has resigned in disgust from his job monitoring research misconduct because of his frustration with the federal bureaucracy.
A Health and Human Services (HHS) official has resigned in disgust from his job monitoring research misconduct because of his frustration with the federal bureaucracy.
His resignation letter is brutal.
“[M]y role as ORI Director has been the very worst job I have ever had and it occupies up to 65% of my time,” he wrote. ”That part of the job is spent navigating the remarkably dysfunctional HHS bureaucracy to secure resources and, yes, get permission for ORI to serve the research community. I knew coming into this job about the bureaucratic limitations of the federal government, but I had no idea how stifling it would be.” According to Wright, activities that in his capacity as an academic administrator that took a day or two, took weeks and months in the federal government.
He then recounts some examples, such the inability to get approval to spend $35 and the inability to hire someone because there was “a secret priority list.”
But hey, don’t worry, we know that HHS will do so much better running the healthcare industry.
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A Health and Human Services (HHS) official has resigned in disgust from his job monitoring research misconduct because of his frustration with the federal bureaucracy.
His resignation letter is brutal.
“[M]y role as ORI Director has been the very worst job I have ever had and it occupies up to 65% of my time,” he wrote. ”That part of the job is spent navigating the remarkably dysfunctional HHS bureaucracy to secure resources and, yes, get permission for ORI to serve the research community. I knew coming into this job about the bureaucratic limitations of the federal government, but I had no idea how stifling it would be.” According to Wright, activities that in his capacity as an academic administrator that took a day or two, took weeks and months in the federal government.
He then recounts some examples, such the inability to get approval to spend $35 and the inability to hire someone because there was “a secret priority list.”
But hey, don’t worry, we know that HHS will do so much better running the healthcare industry.
Readers!
Every February I run a fund-raising drive during my birthday month. This year I celebrate my 72nd birthday, and hope and plan to continue writing and posting on Behind the Black for as long as I am able.
I hope my readers will support this effort. As I did in my November fund-raising drive, I am offering autographed copies of my books for large donations. Donate $250 and you can have a choice of the hardback of either Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8 or Conscious Choice: The origins of slavery in America and why it matters today and for our future in outer space. Donate $200 and you can get an autographed paperback copy of either. IMPORTANT! If you donate enough to get a book, please email me separately to tell me which book you want and the address to mail it to.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Gee, welcome to the world of government employees – state as well as federal! I began my career in IT with the State of NJ and left in disgust (politics, bureaucracy, idiocy, nepotism, etc…) after only one year, only to return twenty-five later after retiring from an exciting and fulfilling career in private industry. The second time I lasted five years; nothing had changed and I was embarrassed to associated with the clowns running the project on which I acted as a technical liaison. I am amazed that anything ever gets accomplished and that there is any measure of success in government endeavors.
I recently completed an online course titled “introduction to homeland security” because the local community college is offering certificates in homeland and maritime security. (Textbook; Introduction to Homeland Security by Bullock, Haddow, and Coppola) These courses would have a tie-in with my current job. The introductory course explored the history and general structure of this incredibly large and complicated bureaucracy. Before I started this course, I thought that I had a general knowledge of this department’s mission. Needless to say, I was shocked at the scope and reach of this newest branch of the federal government. It is intimately involved with every part of modern society. It has had so many reorganizations and reformations that its hard to keep track of it all. I rather doubt that anyone, especially the previous secretary (Janet Napolitano) has a complete knowledge of its many facets today. The duplication of functions exposed by this general overview course throughout this organization indicates massive opportunities for waste and abuse. I can imagine that HHS is as complex and impenetrable as DHS, and I can understand the frustration of David Wright.