Morning Reflections

Early morning reflections...

One consequence of the Hawaiian tragedy was the resignation of the management chief in Maui. He cites health reasons but the real reason is his being targeted for what is being called the "failure" to sound the alarm systems that might have saved lives by triggering an evacuation. The reason the alarms were not sounded is that the system that has been in place for years is designed to move people out of the way of possible tsunamis by moving to higher ground. Such a move in this case would have sent people into the fires, not away. Moreover, there were no plans to evacuate people from areas deemed safe from tsunami threats so the alarm systems would have just added to the danger. 

As I listened my mind wandered to all the times I have heard similar warnings about weather threats, child abductions, road closures and such. I wondered how many agencies, commissions and other regulatory authorities we have and realized how much they affect our ordinary lives. Interstate commerce, stock trading, food safety, work rules, labor laws... the list seems endless. 

My web search "How many federal commissions do we have?" (noting two billion-plus responses) was reworded to read "The President also appoints the heads of more than 50 independent federal commissions, such as the Federal Reserve Board or the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as federal judges, ambassadors, and other federal offices." 

Before moving on with the rest of my day, I finally settled on the Wiki article Independent agencies of the United States government which lists a remarkable array of agencies and commissions. This, I suppose, is what cynics call the deep state, or swamp, in an effort to suggest political implications. 

Take a look at the list and decide for yourself what life would be like this population of technocrats -- nearly all of which are non-political -- were somehow fashioned into the political resources authoritarian leaders typically use to control non-democratic regimes. FTC, ICC, GSA, NLRB, NRC, Peace Corps, Social Security, Postal Service, the list seems endless.

"Agencies outside of the executive branch" are also noted...

• Fannie May
• Freddie Mac
• National Gallery of Art
• Smithsonian Institution

That's enough. 
Time to start my day...