Observations.
Pictured is an image of the miasmatic scene at the Heiskell Post Office. Every day, in the wee hours, pallets of Amazon packages are unloaded for the postal workers to sort and deliver. I’m not sure how this came to be. I have heard lots of theories. However, all I know is that it has had a huge impact on the workers and the service this facility can provide.
Note: Not a single worker has complained to me. Through rain, snow, the black of night and Amazon, the mail will get delivered.
It’s just one more example of what plagues our country and our world. Decisions and actions with unintended consequences. My years of experience in business brought me to understand the concept of critical path analysis. One of my favorite sayings is, “It’s simple to make things complicated, but it’s complicated to make things simple.”
First, understand what the problem really is if one exists at all. Spend much time studying possible solutions and then see what things might happen because of implementing change. Is it worth it?
So much is being done without regard to how it will benefit the people who elect the people, people who we expect to represent our interests. So often they put their thumb on the scale to make decisions and support ideas that benefit their own personal biases, or those of a few influential people.
Close to home, look at the city of Knoxville and Knox County. If the cloud of self-interest and partisan positioning were removed, we might be able to look at the possibility of metro government. Bet some backs are already raised. We have metro schools and one electrical utility. If you look at a map of the city overlaying the county it looks like an amoeba. If you are driving the porifera of the city, you will be driving in and out of the county.
I recently heard of a police chase where the city police had the persons they were after pinned down. However, they had now traveled into the county, so they had to wait until the sheriff’s deputies came on scene to proceed.
We have so much duplicity in our local government. I have heard all the arguments why there is opposition. I find it ironic that some of the people who are adamantly against metro government are the same ones who advocate budget cuts and “smaller” government.
Could we not, by committee, take a serious look at what this might really do for the people of Knox County and Knoxville City? Do a comprehensive study looking at pros and cons, objectively.
Isn’t it the responsibility of our elected representatives to strive to provide all the citizens they represent with fair and equitable essential services? The current system doesn’t do that.
I started out talking about the postal situation because it is such a blatant example of what happens when the effect of change isn’t analyzed before implementation.
We could all benefit from a little less chaos and a little more Merry!
Dan Arp is retired and lives in Heiskell.
