From: B645ZAW@UTARLG.UTA.EDU (Stephen Tice)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.misc
Subject: = SSZ = (The Strategy of the Status Quo)
Date: 29 Jul 92 00:36:00 GMT

Ever felt like you've been this way before?  

  Back in '75, Laurence Peter (of Peter Principle fame [1]) wrote
a little book called _The Peter Plan_. In there in chapter 6,
Dr. Peter explores further developments in his model metropolis
called "Excelsior City." The theme of the chapter is:

     "...By continuing to exploit the potential of every
      technological development, we unleash vast forces without
      the capacity to predict long-term consequences. Our
      survival requires that past preoccupation with the mastery.
      of nature turn into a preoccupation with the mastery of
      ourselves."

  Dr. Peter goes on to relate a story (provided below) which sounds
amazingly parallel to the course of events today. I think you'll
find the irony quite amusing.

-- Sdt  

[1] "people rise to their highest level of incompetence"          

                              -=-

   Back in 1970, when the federal government implemented cutbacks
affecting the entire aerospace industry -- and panic struck the
workers in one of Excelsior City's major industries -- Supersonic
Zeppelin laid off hundreds of engineers and technicians.

   Hans Zup and many of his co-workers threw in the towel and set
about finding other jobs before their unemployment benefits
expired. But Gustav Wind and the more militant workers initiated
a campaign to force the federal goverment to continue subsidizing
Supersonic Zeppelin.

   Through effective mobilization of community support, a measure
of relief was achieved. First the `Excelsior Daily Log' carried
editorials insisting that if subsidies for Supersonic Zeppelin
did not continue, the country would lose its leadership position
in the world of aviation.       

     "Man is a reasoning rather than a reasonable animal."        
                                   -- Alexander Hamilton

   Jeremiah Beachslic, president of the International Petroleum
Producers Association, met with the members of the oil lobby. He
convinced them of the SSZ's importance to the petroleum industry.
He urged them to use every means at their disposal to obtain an
extended subsidy of the SSZ program.

       "I care not who makes the laws of a nation if I can
        get out an injunction."
                                  -- Finley Peter Dunne

Excelsior's popular Senator, Gabriel Trumpet, clearly saw the
importance of the SSZ program to his constituents. He forthwith
introduced a compromise bill that would finance the development
of prototypes of the SSZ but would not support production of the
airship beyond the research and prototype phase. This interesting
bill met nearly everbody's needs. It providently saved face for
our President, Mack E. Velly, since it continued the administra-
tion's program of developing the SSZ after the Congress had
decided that the country did not need it. It also put some of
Supersonic Zeppelin's influential and highest-paid executives and
engineers back to work. It pleased the superpatriots who felt
that their country *must* lead all other countries in *all* areas
of human endeavor. It reassured the military-industrial complex
that the President would continue to support projects rejected by
the people's representatives, "in the interest of national
security." And finally, because no actual program of building and
flying SSZs was to be undertaken, it temporarily silenced
opposition of the ecologically minded citizens who were concerned
about pollution, the destruction of the protective ozone layer,
and the potential damage from sonic booms. It also defused the
arguments of critics who felt the SSZs would benefit only the
very few who would fly in them -- and yet be paid for from the
pocketbooks of all the taxpayers. The Trumpet Bill was a
political triumph, and ensured Senator Trumpet's re-election.    

   Unfortunately the Trumpet Bill provided only temporary relief
for the very pressing problems of Excelsior City. Many competent
engineers were still out of work. At Excelsior College, Professor
Owen Thinker was heavily pressured to stop his attacks on contri-
butors to environmental degradation. C. Clearly was frustrated
in his attempts to obtain approval for a public education program
of teaching for survival. The board of Baron Bank, which included
Jeremiah Beachslic, Professor D. Kaye, and Frank N. Stein (presi-
dent of Super Sonic Zeppelin), could not see its way clear to
approve the "wasteful" financing of a project to use the consid-
erable talents of the unemployed engineers in solving the hous-
ing, energy, transportation, and pollution problems of the city.
Besides as the board pointed out, it would be inflationary.

                                -=-

The times have changed, and the names, but it's the same old story still.

SSZ                             SSC

Supersonic Zeppelin             Superconducting Super Collider

Excelsior Daily Log             Dallas Morning News [2]

President Mack E. Velly         President George H. Bush [3]

Senator Gabriel Trumpet         Senator Phil Gramm [4]
.
.
.

[2] OpEd (7-28-92), "Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton should follow President
    DMN              Bush's lead and actively lobby for collider funding.
                     ...Scientist know full well the entire country stands
                     to enjoy the spinoff benefits of research -- in
                     education and the environment."

[3] CQ   (6-20-92), "Bush requested $650 million for the super collider,
                     $166 million more than last years appropriation."

[4] Ft   (7-20-92), "What happens if the money is not spent in Texas?"
    Worth            Gramm said. "It's spent somewhere else. I can't sit
    Star             by and let money go to MIT and Harvard and not
    Telegram         fight for the University of Texas and A&M. I'd be
                     Hurting my state." [Story on Balanced Budget Amend.]


Again via The Fort Worth Star Telegram & The Associated Press,
source CBS's "Face the Nation" (7-20-92):

       "GOP will offer its own changes"

        President Bush's campaign chairman said yesterday that
        Republicans will go to the voters with their own message
        of change in support of the re-election.

        High on the list, Robert Teeter said, will be cutting
        federal spending to reduce the budget deficit....


 /                 \           /     = More "Trickle-Down" Logic =      \
(  Stephen D. Tice  )    |    (                                          )
 >                 <  -- S --  > Why do it? For the spinoffs of course. <
(  Arlington Texas  )    |    (  What other reason would would you give  )
 \                 /           \ for an overgrown cyclotron?!           /

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