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That thought came to mind while reading a delightful series of stories by my colleague Joe Holleman. The stories explored the chain of events that led to former Comptroller Darlene Green being issued two payroll checks for a job she has not held in more than 30 years. As Holleman pointed out in his stories, there is no indication that Green knew anything about these checks until he told her they had been issued.

“Wow. Did they do that? Can you find out what happened and let me know?�

Through interviews and email chains, Holleman appears to have sorted things out.

Apparently, the whole mess started with an email from an employee in the comptroller’s office seeking help from the personnel department with former comptroller Darlene Green’s pension. People to people communications. No wonder things went sideways.

In the coming Age of Machines, this sort of thing would not happen. Instead, a clerk from the comptroller’s office would call a clerk from the personnel office and inquire about the status of Green’s retirement.

The personnel clerk would say to the office chatbot, “Hal, I’ve got a tricky one. We need to figure out the retirement benefits for Darlene Green. She worked as budget director, a Civil Service position, and then she was comptroller for 30 years. She earned retirement benefits in both jobs. There might be a question of accrued leave, too. Can you figure out what her monthly check should be?�

“I just did Dave. I looked up her records while you were talking and I made the necessary calculations. Should I communicate directly with the chatbot in Payroll and have her start sending out the checks?�

“Yes, Hal.�

What actually happened is much more interesting. The employee from the comptroller’s office sent an email to the personnel office. “I need guidance on how all this plays together and what needs to be done.�

The email went to three people.

One responded.

That’s not surprising. In the world run by people, the go-to response is often to look the other way. Most employees would read the email asking for help and think, “Not my problem.�

But there is always a person who will meet a situation head-on. These are the people who make the world run. When you are lost in the middle of a forest, somebody has to say, “Let’s go this way.�

In this instance, that person was Bionnca Lambert, a resources manager. She boldly stepped forward with a suggestion. “We need to submit a change assignment action of return from in-service leave back to position in the Budget Department. Then we can proceed with submitting her paperwork.�

You read those two sentences and about all you can say is, “Sounds like a plan to me!�

But exactly what was the plan? It was to put Green back on the payroll as budget director.

Bryan Boeckelmann, the deputy personnel director, tip-toed into the fray. He sent an email to his boss, Acting Director John Unnerstall, in which Boeckelmann said the plan was illegal. But he was gentle about it.

“Anyway, I am not trying to get involved,� he wrote.

And so the city suddenly had two budget directors. Payroll issued two checks to Green, but they were not delivered.

About that time, Holleman appeared and did what newspaper reporters do. He asked questions. He put in a Freedom of Information request for emails.

The mess emerged.

It took a while for Unnerstall to respond, but when he did, he took “full responsibility� for the situation.

Of course, taking responsibility means different things in different cultures. In Japan, for instance, a boss who takes responsibility generally resigns. In our country, “taking responsibility� is the necessary first step in dodging blame for whatever disaster you are “taking responsibility� for.

Unnerstall probably figured he had a low bar to pass. His predecessor was Sonya Jenkins-Gray, who was terminated for taking a city car and a city employee to Jefferson City, allegedly to look for her husband. When she was terminated, she sued the city. All this caught the attention of Gov. Mike Kehoe, who named Gray to a position on the newly reestablished Board of Police Commissioners. She then took a job in the sheriff’s office under the embattled Alfred Montgomery, whom the state was trying to remove from office.

Forced to choose between the unpaid gig with the Police Board or the paid gig with the sheriff’s office, Gray chose to keep the unpaid gig.

I will miss the Age of People when it’s gone.

In a final tribute to the Age of People, the city has announced an investigation into the handling of Green’s retirement. It will be conducted, at least partially, but the Personnel Department.

I hope to bring my grandchildren to the hearings. They will grow up in the Age of Machines. I want them to know what they’ll be missing, and what it used to be like when people, not machines, ruled the Earth.