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Is Past Prologue to 21st-Century Civil Service Systems? Exploring Historical Frames for Discovering Lessons about Institutional Futures

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Comparative Civil Service Systems in the 21st Century

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Abstract

George Santayana’s famous aphorism, ‘Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,’ explicitly reminds us that knowledge of history offers invaluable guidance decisions. Historical understanding conveys wisdom; ignorance of it invites disaster. Thus anyone with a modicum of good sense studies history, not for history’s sake, but for sheer self-interest in order to improve one’s own capacity for improving the odds of making better choices about what courses of action to take in the future. Increased historical awareness yields numerous benefits.

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References

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Authors
  1. Richard J. Stillman II
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Public Administration, Leiden University, The Netherlands

    Frits M. van der Meer (CAOP Professor of Comparative Civil Service and Public Sector Reform) & Jos C. N. Raadschelders (Professor and Associate Director of Faculty, affiliated Professor of Public Administration) (CAOP Professor of Comparative Civil Service and Public Sector Reform) &  (Professor and Associate Director of Faculty, affiliated Professor of Public Administration)

  2. John Glenn School of Public Affairs, Ohio State University, USA

    Jos C. N. Raadschelders (Professor and Associate Director of Faculty, affiliated Professor of Public Administration) (Professor and Associate Director of Faculty, affiliated Professor of Public Administration)

  3. Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands

    Theo A. J. Toonen (Dean, Chair in Institutional Governance and Public Administration) (Dean, Chair in Institutional Governance and Public Administration)

  4. Delft and Leiden University, The Netherlands

    Theo A. J. Toonen (Dean, Chair in Institutional Governance and Public Administration) (Dean, Chair in Institutional Governance and Public Administration)

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© 2015 Richard J. Stillman II

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Stillman, R.J. (2015). Is Past Prologue to 21st-Century Civil Service Systems? Exploring Historical Frames for Discovering Lessons about Institutional Futures. In: van der Meer, F.M., Raadschelders, J.C.N., Toonen, T.A.J. (eds) Comparative Civil Service Systems in the 21st Century. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137491459_17

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