In the diner where my working life began hung a photocopied epigram, splattered with coffee and grease: "The beatings will continue until morale improves." We all get the joke: The supervisor is committed to doing the absolute wrong thing until his charges cheer up and give him the right result. The premise is absurd, a Samuel Beckett play in a single sentence. It's quite a funny play, too — unless you happen to be the one getting beaten. The executive personnel of this establishment changed frequently; most had never managed employees before, and some reacted to their insecurity by ... Read More