The little black book of red tape

The little black book of red tape

by Ian Vince

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About
Everyone has a call-centre story or some nightmare encounter at the hands of 'customer services' to relate. This book is a kind of compendium of such stories, a sort of almanac of the bullshit of the modern world, and a catalogue of individual heroic battles against the corporate state. It features the Derby householder who is selling off minute plots of his back garden to well wishers around the world for 1p each to prevent the council putting a bypass through it; the Shropshire bus service that doesn't stop as 'stopping disrupts the timetable'; and the hospital recently fined 2.5 million for using 'spare capacity' to treat patients quickly.

Discussion questions for The little black book of red tape

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  1. 1

    How does Ian Vince use humor and absurdity to make the frustrating realities of modern bureaucracy both entertaining and infuriating to read about?

  2. 2

    What does the phrase "the corporate state" mean in the context of the book, and how do everyday citizens find themselves at odds with it?

  3. 3

    Share your own ultimate customer service or bureaucracy nightmare; how does your experience compare to the most outrageous stories featured in the book?

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