How World War II Bureaucratic Sabotage Endures in the Defense Department, and How to Fight Back
Alexis Bonnell
In an age where power hangs on technological advantage, America's greatest saboteur may be itself. A World War II sabotage manual from the predecessor to the CIA reveals how bureaucracy drains the Defense Department of purpose and delays progress. But there is hope: By treating time as a strategic weapon and embracing AI and other innovations, public servants can cut debilitating "toil," unlocking productivity and passion to secure America's advantage.
During World War II, the Office of Strategic Services — predecessor to the Central Intelligence Agency — produced a manual detailing methods of sabotage intended for the European Allied resistance in German-occupied areas to disrupt the German war machine. But this wasn’t about blowing up bridges.1 The Simple Sabotage Field Manual established disruption tactics to impede productivity and create inefficiencies in enemy organizations. These tactics were considered subversive acts of warfare.
Ironically, from rigid adherence to procedure to endless deliberation in committees, many of these tactics have become normalized and even embraced in modern workplaces. How did we come to unwittingly replicate this wartime sabotage directed at our enemies to proliferating it against ourselves?
https://tnsr.org/2024/11/how-world-war-ii-bureaucratic-sabotage-endures-in-the-defense-department-and-how-to-fight-back/
