Red Tape: Its Origins, Uses, and Abuses
By (Author) Herbert Kaufman
Foreword by Philip K. Howard
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Brookings Institution
8th June 2015
United States
Professional and Scholarly
Non Fiction
353.0973
Paperback
132
Width 139mm, Height 216mm, Spine 9mm
177g
First published in 1977, Red Tape remains a definitive account of modern lifes greatest, but absolutely necessary, scourge. Kaufman takes us on an unblinking tour of the dismal landscape of red tape: its messy, it takes too long, it is out of date, it makes insane demands, it increases costs, it slows progress.
But he also shows us another side. Red tape is how government protects us from tainted food, shoddy products, and unfair labor practices. It guarantees a social safety net for the elderly, the disabled, and victims of natural disasters. One persons red tape is another persons protection.