The Peter Principle: Why Things Always Go Wrong
by Laurence J. Peter (1919-1990) and Raymond Hull (1919-1985)
For anyone who is frustrated with the dysfunction of a bureaucracy, this satirical study of hierarchiology—the social science of hierarchies—will shed some light. The Peter Principle states, “In a hierarchy, everyone tends to rise to his level of incompetence.”
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Mayhem at Midnight
by Toby Price
Mayhem at Midnight is a children’s book about autism. But that’s not why I’m featuring it. I am compelled to call attention to the story of the author. And that led me to discover some stunning statistics about illiteracy in America.
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The Tyranny of Metrics
by Jerry Z. Muller
“This book argues that while they are a potentially valuable tool, the virtues of accountability metrics have been oversold, and their costs are often underappreciated.” There are chapters on the dysfunction of “metric fixation” in colleges and universities; schools; medicine; policing; the military; business; and philanthropy. Problems include gaming the system, costs exceeding benefits, and diverting effort from the core mission. A major theme is metrics as a substitute for competent judgment.
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The Higher Education Bubble
by Glenn Harlan Reynolds
In the first decade of the new millennium we saw the dot-com bubble and housing bubble end badly. In this concise 48-page booklet, University of Tennessee law professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds explains why higher education will be the next bubble to burst. “Bubbles burst when there are no longer enough excessively optimistic and ignorant folks to fuel them.”
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The Key Point 