>
> With respect to Jason's point that Neil was too useful (where
> he was, at D-Ops) to be promoted, I have to disagree. I could easily
> see Burnside as the Deputy Chief, at which point he would still be
> running the Ops department, but from the 6th floor instead of the 5th.
> He could never fully delegate such a function. He would be a "working
> manager."
> With such additional authority I could envision him taking
> assignments himself if necessary, such as going after the hated African
> dictator who killed a Sandbagger.
>
I think the prospect of Burnside having even more power really scares
both "C's" as well as Peele and Wellingham. That's the main reason why
they passed him over for promotion. They think Burnside is too much of a
cowboy or risk taker to have that much power. He's very good at his
current job, but they probally think that he doesn't follow the proper
channels to be any higher up. That is, without having something like C or
Peele to offer counter-balance to Burnside's actions he would be a danger
to the SIS. I agree, if promoted to Debuty Chief, Burnside would
probally still have a hands on approach to controling the Sandbaggers. So
him being promoted wouldn't mean the Sandbaggers losing Burnside's
genius. But on the other hand, Burnside having more power would mean he
would really start pushing the boarderline. That is, without even Peele
slowing Burnside down, I think Burnside would start to become a
liability. At least that's how Burnisde's superiors would think. Whether
that would be the case or not depends on how you look at it.
JASON POTAPOFF. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Email: jpotapof@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca
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