Both the failures and successes of those organizations occupying a middle ground between government bureaucracy and private corporations such as Amtrak, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the U.S. Postal Service, and the Maryland Stadium Authority are analyzed. Rather than come to some definitive conclusion about the effectiveness of this type of organization, the author attempts to use the examination to explore how an American "experimental society" searches for ways to best provide goods and services. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.