Once upon a time there was a street with a series of big potholes.
The residents of the street called the mayor, who called the Department of Public Works, who sent out a man.
“Bad potholes, no doubt,” he said. “But as I came here, I noticed several other parallel streets with similar problems. Let me look into it.”
Six weeks later a letter arrived.
It was addressed: “To Whom It May Concern”.
It read:
Your complaint about potholes in the 700 block of Foxhill Road was forwarded to the DPW, which studied the matter and found potholes all over the city.The DPW forwarded their study to the State Bureau of Highways which studied the matter and found potholes all over the state.The State Bureau of Highways forwarded their study to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration and the US Dept. of Transportation.They, in turn, did a national study and forwarded their study to the United Nations Commission on Infrastructure Maintenance, which commissioned a global inventory of pothole problems.We write you today to inform you that based on our algorithm of need, the potholes most in need of repair are 25 miles north of Ouagadougo, Burkina Faso.We will start repairs there immediately.
The letter was signed: “Deputy Director of Globalized Concern”.
Under the masthead, in tiny type, was their strap line: “All Potholes Matter”.
2 comments:
Hey! I take exception to the insult to the roads of Burkina Faso. I myself personally have ridden over just about every paved road within 50 miles of Ouagadougou, and found them very comfortable. Nothing at all like that tragic photo of Foxhill Road!
K Berck, retired US diplomat and utterly fearless driver on all continents and both sides of the road.
Excellent! I know the Japanese are giving road aid.
We used to live in Mali, back when Burkina was Upper Volta. I added a Dogon mask picture to bottom of the post. The mask is in my kitchen corner — 57 inches tall and collected in 1963 or so. Grass skirt lost to the elements.
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