Yisro, or Yitro, (he had 7 names actually, so a little Ashkenasic/Sephardic dialect doesn’t matter much ) or Jethro in English – saw Moshe spending all day with people, adjudicating cases, listening to arguments and problems and questions. Jethro advised him to set up a hierarchy of empowered leadership, who would ultimately be answerable to Moses, but could make Jewish leadership more accessible and sustainable. G-d signed off at Jethro’s plan, and it was done.

Today we get annoyed with red-tape barriers, layers of bureaucracy and ineffective government. But we ought to remember that ideally, the concept is a great concept. Delegate specific powers, make tiers of authority, create systems for everything to work. So it is a good idea, but systems have to be in place to protect the system, too…