Who Killed Rex?

The article “Who Killed Rex?” really made me think and caused me to do a lot of head scratching.  After reading it and taking notes on things that I found interesting, the main question I had about the article was who was to blame for Rex’s death.  The author tries to do research and figure out if one individual is to blame or if it is a certain group within the telephone company such as the Sales or Customer Service department.  He finally comes to the conclusion that he can blame the Network Control Center (NCC).  Although, I do see his point of view I have a bit of a different opinion on who is to blame and why I feel that even though you can hold some more accountable than others, it is really a combination of a group of people that is to blame for Rex’s death. 

A quote from page 11 of the article states that, “NCC workers might blame other units for Rex’s death, but there’s no way to guide interactions, enforce compliance or hold any accountable.”  I totally agree with this quote and believe that it is not simply one individual who is to blame, but a combination of many.  In the article, the author has reasons why it could be the Customer Service Clerk who is at fault for not asking the customer if he had any pets or locked gates.  Also, he states that the individual who opened the gate “was the only one who could have stopped it,” so maybe it was his fault that Rex ran out and died.  These examples give strong points of whom to hold accountable but who’s to say that any of these are more important than the other.  I feel that all of these do play a factor in the death of Rex, but it’s not one persons fault more than the others.  Yes, the Customer Service Clerk should have asked if the customer had pets, and yes the individual cable guy probably should have closed the gate, but that’s not totally their fault.  The cable guy is not responsible for chasing after pets and making sure they don’t run away.  He is supposed to be informed ahead of time if the customer has pets so he can close the gate.  His job does not entail him chasing after dogs and making sure they don’t run away, he is supposed to fix the interrupted cable service, and if told ahead of time, to close the gates for any pets the customer may have.  With all that said, I think that the customer is a little bit to blame for the death as well.  So he was not asked if he had any pets or locked gates, but he still should have been cognizant of the fact that he knew the cable guy was coming over and should have taken the appropriate action with his dog Rex.  As a dog owner myself, I get very upset when workers come in my back yard and let my dog out.  I feel that it is there fault and they should know that my dog will run away.  But is that really fair to place all the blame on them?  If I know that my dog will run away if the gate is open, then I should be aware when workers are going to and from the backyard and either tie my dog up so she won’t run away or bring her in the house until the worker leaves. 

All I’m saying is that everyone plays a part in the death of Rex, and even the owner should have been more aware that his dog would run away if the gate was left open.  I like how the author looked at different parts of the company to be held accountable for Rex’s death, and that made me realize that even though they all played a role, there is really no one individual who is to blame for the death of Rex the dog.