Monthly Archives: October 2009

The False Security of Bureaucracy

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Bureaucracy is a necessary part of a complex society such as ours. To administer programs, whether publicly or privately, requires a lot of record-keeping and implementation of elaborate policies. The problem is that bureaucracies have an easier time growing than shrinking, and we need to constantly look for ways to trim the fat, continuously. There is an an analogy in programming: when you add features, modify behavior, or fix a bug, it is extremely easy to both obfuscate your purpose and to accumulate dead code, and software engineers worth their salt will tell you that you need to be ruthless about clarity and trim the fat as soon as you spot it. It’s human nature to let cruft accumulate in our systems.

One bureaucracy that irks me in particular is the post-9/11 security apparatus. The TSA keeps fighting the last battle: they check our shoes after the shoe-bomber incident; they confiscate liquids after the liquid bomb scare. One could argue that the TSA is trying to prevent known sabotage modes, I suppose. It all seems awfully reactive, though, and I worry that we’re not attacking the root of the problem, which could manifest itself in new ways we have not yet imagined.

Even more troubling is how this mindset has expanded into the public sphere. When I was going to museums in D.C. recently, the guards insisted on checking my backpack. Fair enough. The inspection consisted of glancing in as I opened two of the four compartments. I could have been hiding anything under the top items that they saw, or anywhere in the pockets that they didn’t inspect! What, then, is the use of these inspections? They are not really making us any safer, and I think that alone would neutralize any deterrence these policies might have. Are they simply reassurance that we’re doing something, even when that something is ineffectual?

Back to trimming the fat: when will these extra security/reassurance measures ever be turned back? Can things ever be as they were? Will we ever be safe enough to stop feeling paranoid? Will we ever focus on things that have a real impact, both assertively promoting peace and tolerance and defensively securing our real vulnerabilities (like, say, water treatment plants)?

Bad BIOS!

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In my quest to get my motherboard (Gigabyte S-series GA-MA790FX-DS5) to wake-on-LAN, I tried upgrading the BIOS from Gigabyte’s download site from version F6 to version F8F. Bad idea! After the upgrade, the system would sometimes reboot spontaneously. This seemed to happen with more resource-intensive processes. The Gigabyte support folks were not really helpful (they just told me to check the cables), and, indeed, I am still working with them to fully enable the wake-on-LAN feature, which they claim is fully tested.

Since reverting the BIOS back to F6, the spontaneous reboot problems seem to have gone away.

Looking back on a marriage

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Music I heard with you was more than music / And bread I broke with you was more than bread

Thus did Hugh Franklin propose to Madeleine L’Engle, beginning the union chronicled in Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage, book four of the The Crosswick Journal series of L’Engle’s autobiographical writings. This is a sweet book that reminisces about her early life and marriage and becomes more and more preoccupied with Franklin’s illness in the author’s present. In fact, the second part of the book more than anything journals L’Engle’s attempt to cope with his deteriorating condition, trying to balance hope, acceptance, and normalcy.

What surprised me about this book is how religious L’Engle was. Not terribly so, mind you, but in this book she does talk about her belief in Jesus and the solace and inspiration that she finds in religion. I suppose it’s not unexpected, since the only books of her that I read were the Time Trilogy, which have an underlying spiritual theme. I always interpreted that theme to be generically (rather than theistically) about good and evil, love and hate, though in retrospect I was taking it metaphorically where possible (the need to Deepen) and suspending my disbelief elsewhere (“he calls them all by name”).

This leads me to my meta-reaction: little atheist me chuckles on reflecting that some of my favorite books growing up are (yes, present tense) ones that deal with Big Themes by authors who turn out to be decidedly theist. L’Engle is one, of course; C. S. Lewis pops to mind as another. I suppose the main attraction lies with the fantasy and science-fiction elements, not to mention the archetypal fight between Good and Evil. It also helps that these are works of fiction, which live in a separate universe where I can suspend my disbelief. For though I know that the physical world that we share is mathematically and scientifically fascinating but unsentient, I can also inhabit inner worlds where magic and Epic Struggles do exist. And really, who wants to live without magic?

What’s in a marriage?

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We just returned from our first wedding since we ourselves got married a year ago. The groom and bride are pretty awesome people: geeks, fans of the outdoors, interesting and engaged in the world. We were glad to be part of the community witnessing their vows. A highlight for me was the acoustic metaphor of how each one is an interesting tune alone, but the tunes combine and vary to make beautiful music. Just as cool was the groom’s ring: not a ring at all, but a tattoo around the finger, unveiled at the ceremony. This would be just about the only type of tattoo that I would consider having myself!

I found it interesting to reflect on how I feel at other people’s weddings. There’s always happiness, of course, but also a bit of introspection. When I was single, I wondered whether I would find the right man with whom to face life together. When I was dating, I thought about how contented I was and how “maybe, someday….”

Now that I am married, seeing others pledge their vows reinforces the solemnity of my own. Two people freely choosing to be partners in life, to face the obstacles together and celebrate the triumphs, to help each other grow as individuals. A couple asking their community to witness their promises, to hold them accountable, to provide support and validation. Oh, and how the future stretches out before us! What challenges will we face as the calendar turns, what fights and ailments and frustrations! And how many tender moments, how many unexpected gifts, how many adventures and projects!

Being married does not change the work that it takes to be in a relationship: communication, empathy, respect, selflessness. But being married is a constant reminder of a choice freely taken that I will gladly stand by my husband even at his worst, and the reassurance that he will stand by me even at mine.

Short Story Delight

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Sometimes I get so caught up on things I have to do or want to do that I forget to read. When I do read, I seem to be turning more to non-fiction than anything else (who would have guessed?), so that when I do finally remember how much I enjoy narratives, they come as soothing balms that take me to worlds other than my own. And short stories? They are like literary tapas, tiny morsels of delight, easily grasped in one bite, all the more powerful for their brevity.

It was such a pleasure, then, on a recent flight, to gorge on the short stories in The Best American Short Stories 2002. With authors ranging from Michael Chabon to Arthur Miller to others of whom I had not heard, these stories were eclectic and delightful. And what made the whole experience more charming is that this was a book I picked up from the library on a whim during one of those rare days when I ventured outside the office.