And those of us who crave structure can find it in the academic hierarchy-topped, of course, by the departmental secretary. People from scholarly backgrounds may thus have a hard time fitting into campaign headquarters. The typical campaign office is a mess of jammed photocopiers, ringing telephones and half-empty Diet Coke cans, all bathed in the aroma of burnt popcorn. The cast of characters keeps changing. Consultants and staffers get hired and fired-or in failing campaigns, they quit when their paychecks bounce.
Volunteers drift in and flake out.
And even the best-run campaigns suffer from duplication of effort and wiggling lines of authority. Then the completed project got lost amid the turmoil following the Quayle nomination. I left New Orleans disappointed that all my work had seemingly gone to waste. Alas, I suspect that many of my other projects died as soon as they left my hands. Whether your work finally serves any purpose, you must do it quickly.