Beyond Doubtful Reasons

Bertolt Brecht once wrote a wonderful play about a conformist male waiter who imagines himself as a “Knight in Shining Armor” who sets the World around him fair and square.
Just like a weak kid  fantasizes of having Super Powers to punish his abusers.

Well, if only that world were not bound by one’s fantasy.
Sounds familiar? Not really ? Let’s make it close and personal.

Office Aborigine

( Play in One Life - No entr’acte allowed, play goes on until the main character dies…)

Characters in no particular order:

• Manager - middle-aged functionare, concerned with “not letting others to make a mistake that could cost him his job”

• Manager’s Manager - middle-aged functionare, concerned with “not making a mistake that could cost him his job”. Has more tenure than his subordinate managers.

• Director - post-middle-age functionare, concerned with “his subordinate managers making a mistake that could cost him early retirement”.

• Manager’s Pet - Coworker who has extracurricular relations with the manager.

• Cherry picker - Manager’s Pet who is allowed to pick his(her) own projects.

• Techno Whiz - Owns latest gadgets and tips management on the important usability trends, such as winning “Doom 3″ in under five minutes. Often chosen for technology research.

• Kudos Ripper - Pursues management with ingenious ideas of finishing other people’s work. Depending on her social status, she gets it, most of the times.

• The Genius - It’s less troublesome to let him win his way than argue. Countless examples of his intellectual superiority, from teaching Australian Aborigines to hunt to citations of the sources you cannot verify, take most of his work hours. Management hates, fears, and promotes him.

• The Customer - Anyone in the Company having feedback powers affecting one’s career.

• Aborigine - Office inhabitant of undetermined age trying to survive between recessions, management power wars, re-orgs, political games, etc… His social obligations tamed his natural responses into politically correct reflections. He longs to run free. Some day…

So, one perfectly normal day, while Aborigine is cutting through this game of stolen ideas, unfair workload, unexplainable promotions, customers’ complaints, inquires into his IQ, decimating his achievements, lying, betraying, being not heard, asked to leave the room, etc.., etc…, etc…

He just gets up from the ergonomic chair of his and decides that it’s time to SPEAK UP !!!

**** Now, in the best traditions of the B. Brecht’s Theater,  it is time for the actor-the-person to step out of his character and present his very own views on the situation. Here we go:

Actor: “Please, don’t do it. They do not speak your language. They detest it. They find your common English a slur - offensive, rude, inexcusable, unfit for communicating on the premises. Everything you say could be used against you. Remember - you have right to remain silent. Be smart. Use it.
SHUT UP !!! ”

• Footnote: Functionare (Fr) - A bureaucrat

- How are you?
- Fine (Perfect, Good, Extraordinary, etc…).

Well, as innocent as it is, neither inquirer nor responder are truthful. The former usually does not care, while the latter does not want to expose his or her soft inner self by opening up before a stranger, who by default does not give a damn of what you really feel.

On a personal note, I have met two individuals in my life who were exceptions to this rule.

The first one always answered the question straight and truthful, “Mediocre!”
Later, he moved to Midwest and changed his name to “Honest Abe”.

The second one, obviously troubled by the perspective of being involved in the casual lies, would avert his eyes from the oncoming coworkers, while attempting to pass them by in the narrow isle between the laser printer and the coffee machine. Due to the stiff neck problem, his entire body would jerk up, like a stubborn puppy that is dragged away by the annoyed owner.

Next time before you submit to your natural instinct of producing the politically correct version of “Get away, none of your business”; stop and think of this - what if you die the next instant with a casual lie being the last thing you have done in this world?

We probably should ban “How are you?” greeting. To the time we are ready for it.

Why do We Lie?

Has anyone ever counted number of casual lies dropped by an average person a day?

They are sent away as the prodigal sons, just to return inevitably to their issue point, sender, creator, whoever, and hit him( her ) right in between those wide opened eyes with a deafening, “Why did you let me happen at the first place?”.

Unbelievable as it is, we all do it on a daily basis. Why? Oh, if there was an easy answer, we would not need to blog it, wouldn’t we? Let’s lie about it, err … talk about it.

And I promise to be truthful as long as you are truthful about your feelings of what you are about to read…

So, let’s the truthful lies begin…