Week deux

When I was practicing law, I used to imagine that my client could be in my office watching me work, and I'd want them to be satisfied that they were getting good value for their money. Ok, ok, there were some clients whom I was happy to bill for every second I spent, say, in the shower, thinking about their case. Anyway, with the enduring debate over whether the amount of government we have is too little, too much, or just right, and all the hostility expressed toward civil servants (for example, in the budget debate and the campaign for governor in California), I wonder sometimes what the public would think if they could watch their tax dollars at work in the agencies and departments that do the people's work.

Of course at times they would see inefficiency and incompetence at times. More than in your average corporation? I don't know. But they would also see people working long hours to get a web portal running to provide information to people about their options for health care coverage. www.healthcare.gov. Check it out. They would be impressed, as I was, by a meeting of brilliant, dedicated people working together to figure out what things that insurance companies spend their money on should count as "improving health care quality." I know we may disagree over whether the government should be influencing how insurance companies spend your money, or whether we should leave that up to them and to "the market." But I think most people would agree that if we are going to have a law that gives the government that job, this was an impressive group of people and an impressive process to be involved in the decision.

So many decisions, so little time. I feel as though I'm drinking from the proverbial fire hose while running after the proverbial train that is leaving the proverbial station.