It’s not only that growing bureaucracies cost a lot of money; they also enervate our society. They redistribute power from workers to rule makers, and in so doing sap initiative, discretion, creativity and drive. High school students design their lives to fit the metrics that college admissions officers require. And what traits are selective schools looking for? They’re looking for students who are willing to conform to the formulas the gatekeepers devise. People are weak, fragile, vulnerable and kind of stupid. They need administrators to run their lives. They have to be trained never to take initiative, lest they wander off into activities that are deemed by the authorities to … Continue reading Growing bureaucratization of our life (David Brooks)