the Daily Whale - 12 October 1993

Learn Bureaucratese!

Lesson 4: A major function of bureaucrats is to explain errors, that is, to make excuses. In bureaucratese, most excuses include certain stereotyped elements. Learn these scapegoats: the customer, the computer, the other department, the incomplete or incorrect paperwork. Never blame headquarters or higher management, and especially not if it’s their fault.