The latest news on the listeriosis situation: after having been warned in the media about the meat recall and how everyone should avoid any meat that was processed in a specific plant, which is easily identifiable with the code "97B", we still find corner stores with the banned product on their shelves. Ignorance is the excuse given, they just didn't know that these particular products were part of the ban because they were not told.
Granted, we may not necessarily take everything the news has to say as absolute truth, but for at least two weeks we have had the code "97B" as the one thing to look for on any meat product, including the beef jerky type products found on the countertops of local convenience stores. Did the owner think that somehow these products were not considered meat? Its easy to say that incompetence is the culprit, but let us apply the theories of the September 1 and 2 posts onto this situation.
The convenience store clerk is overworked, so he is rushing to serve customers, stocking shelves, preventing shoplifting and cleaning. The owner is not much better off because since he has reduced his staff to stay competitive, he must pick up what the staff can not cover on their own while doing his usual managerial duties. Do you really think this manager has any time to stop and ponder if product x is part of the recall? Our society has not encouraged us to stop and contemplate; for some unknown reason, contemplation and thinking are seen as laziness so we rush out like fools and get surprised that we missed something crucial. If the clerk or the owner had had the time to think and relax, one of them would have noticed some of their meat products.... and then casually look at the label and notice that the "97B" code was clearly marked on the packaging--> and with that information, the proper phone call would have been made to ask if this specific item was included in the recall (because whatever list existed may not have been completely filled). Why take chances?
The convenience store owner relies on the bureaucracy of his supplier to give him the proper information at the right time. So why would the owner need to think or to verify anything? Whatever list is produced must be accurate and if the list is missing any crucial information, then it is that department's problem not the store owner. "Not my department, not my responsibility, so I don't have to think"; this mantra avoids personal responsibility and if you add this to the overworked status of the owner and the employee: we can see why some products were still found in the corner stores.
So there is an incompetence involved here, but it is based upon the culture of trying to do too much with next to no resources. Not only should we recuperate the lost workforce through downsizing but we should over-employ people (I think the Japanese have this philosophy in their workforce). The extra time that each employee gains would reduce unhealthy stress and allow extra training or extra education. Encouraging the use of spare time at work for self-improvement can only help a democratic citizenry. And if ever there comes a product recall for whatever reason, the staff has the time to "think" and catch the potential oversight of a product not on the list when it should be there.
My logic is to have an abundance of resources to do a limited output properly. Just think of the possibilities: "Windows" would actually work and not crash your computer on a daily basis, you would not have to wait in line for 15 minutes just to order a coffee, and the best yet: you would actually talk to a human being on the phone when trying to reach a government bureaucrat on issue "y" and "x". Gone are the 1950's when you had 5 gas station attendants to serve one car, we are in the days where 1 gas station attendant has to serve 5 cars simultaneously. I would prefer to get closer to the "what" we had before. And you?
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