What Irked You Today?

[bobthehobbyguy]

I call them cell phone zombies. They are completely obvious to there surroundibgs. Saw a program that did an experiment. Had a clown on a unicycle ride by people on cell phones. Somebody would come up to the person and ask them if they saw the clown and they would say no. They then would show them the video. Needless to say they were amazed.

[Danno]

Judging by what I've seen driving through Geneva, I'm not sure if kids are being taught that, or maybe their parents were never taught that considering the ages of the ADULTS I've seen do that when going to and from work. Another problem is that if somebody's kid gets hit doing something like that, it's not the fault of the child or the parent, it's the fault of the person that hit them for not stopping in time or swerving to avoid their precious child........even if it's a loaded freight train on a single track with no siding and the engineer is hard on the horn and brakes while the person who gets hit is too busy ignoring what's going on around them to notice anything important.

You mean the 'Tony Stewart Theorem' doesn't apply? "Anybody who walks anywhere a car could hit them, deserves to be run over, and asked for it, too!"

[chunkypeanutbutter]

You mean the 'Tony Stewart Theorem' doesn't apply? "Anybody who walks anywhere a car could hit them, deserves to be run over, and asked for it, too!"

These are two different things. One is malicious, the other is passive. Someone getting hit by a car while on a phone is passive, but approaching a car while high on marijuana intent on causing physical harm to someone is malicious.

Also, he didn't deserve to be hit. It just happened by accident.

The kid was high and was most likely hopped-up because of the race.

Apples and oranges.

Edited October 5, 2014 by chunkypeanutbutter

[Danno]

These are two different things. One is malicious, the other is passive. Someone getting hit by a car while on a phone is passive, but approaching a car while high on marijuana intent on causing physical harm to someone is malicious.

Also, he didn't deserve to be hit. It just happened by accident.

The kid was high and was most likely hopped-up because of the race.

Apples and oranges.

Not apples and oranges.

Tongue in cheek.

Parody.

Maybe even a little sarcasm.

Illustrating the absurd by being absurd.

But not 'apples and oranges.'

[chunkypeanutbutter]

Sorry, couldn't tell if you were serious or not

[slusher]

When I turned 18 and started working full-time and going to school, I was "on my own" as far as money was concerned. My parents just didn't have it. I paid them room & board, paid for my own telephone bills, cars, car insurance, gas, etc.

I understand what you mean. I see spoiled teens everyday with new cars, cell phones, running around and not working at anything. My father died when I was 18 from lung problems and hard work. I was working as a teen while spoiled kids played. I do understand some things never change..

[Danno]

Sorry, couldn't tell if you were serious or not

No problem. A little of both.

[Joe Handley]

You mean the 'Tony Stewart Theorem' doesn't apply? "Anybody who walks anywhere a car could hit them, deserves to be run over, and asked for it, too!"

No, I'm saying if his parents are anything like the adults I've seen while driving to and from work, they may have never taught him that lesson because they may have not been taught that themselves.....throw in something like an intoxicant, a distracting device, or even the attitude "It can just stop for ME!" then that makes bad decisions worse. Not saying they deserve it, but are in my eyes at least 95% culpable in their own injuries or deaths as well as the mental well being of the operator of the machine that injured or killed them as well as any witnesses due to their own actions.

[Tom Geiger]

I understand what you mean. I see spoiled teens everyday with new cars, cell phones, running around and not working at anything. My father died when I was 18 from lung problems and hard work. I was working as a teen while spoiled kids played. I do understand some things never change..

Work ethic is something that's learned by example. My father was an army officer, and once retired held responsible jobs in industry. I was expected to be productive at an early age. Back when I was young, the family rule was that you had to accomplish something for the family every day. My father would come home from work and ask, "What did you do today?" and I'd be proud to answer that I had mowed the lawn, vacuumed the living room or washed the car. It was just a given and I'd feel guilty if I hadn't been productive that day. And I still get that feeling today!

My father also taught me the value of a dollar. My house was a comfortable life. We always lived middle class, never went without a meal or decent clothes, but if I wanted extras and spending money, there was no allowance. I had to go out and earn my own money. So from an early age, I mowed lawns, washed cars and did other neighborhood chores. I earned my Raleigh Chopper spyder bike a dollar at a time. My father taught me how to gauge my spending, "Think about how much work it took you to earn that money, then decide if that item is worth that much work!" I still do that!

So I wound up with a strong work ethic, that I tried hard to pass on to my daughters. Both of them have good jobs, pay their own way in life and have earned things like new cars. The oldest followed in my shoes buying a low mile 2 year old Ford Fusion for cash that she had saved. My younger daughter shares my passion for cars and put 50% down on her new top of the line Fiat 500 convertible. The dealer was impressed saying that they rarely see young people with a large down payment. Both of them are frugal and have money in the bank.

And we have friends who were never responsible, had the work ethic of Homer Simpson and never respected money, spending to the limits of their credit limits. We watched them flop from one disaster to another over the years, and they didn't realize that their kids were watching and learning too. Those kids mimic the same behaviour today. Enuf Said!

Edited October 5, 2014 by Tom Geiger

[southpier]

"hopped - up" ???

[Agent G]

Work ethic and the concept of instant gratification.

I began a career in the PD with the thought in mind that I was there until I could retire. That's what we did then. You left only to better yourself and your family, regardless if that meant leaving for another department or leaving the profession altogether. Young coppers now don't see it that way. I simply do not understand the concept of bouncing around from agency to agency looking for "a good fit". These kids now never stay one place long enough to be vested.

I personally would be suspicious of a resume' listing several different LEO jobs before the age of 40. Where is the long term planning? Why can't this kid stay anywhere and is always looking for something else?

Why should I hire a person who may leave within a few years?

It's no secret here that after marriage #3 ended I was going to leave the GCB. No sense in staying in what I would describe as a "toxic" enviornment. Heck, for the last 5 years I've been looking. Ultimately I decided I liked what I was doing and that straight retirement wasn't for me. The new MrsG said she was comfortable with my job as it is and didn't want me to quit just to quit.

I stuck it out, a new administration came in and I got promoted.

Holy Carp.

G

[Tom Geiger]

I stuck it out, a new administration came in and I got promoted.

In my career I found that my situation changed on the average of every two years due to changes in the company. So every time I got a bad boss or otherwise was in an undesirable position, I just dug in my heals and soon enough it changed again!

[chunkypeanutbutter]

"hopped - up" ???

Different people react differently to different drugs.

[southpier]

I have worked with a number of people from my parents' generation that have had a job long enough to pull a pension and then have gotten another job.

now, I think once employees figured out they were expendable, the idea of looking for another job starting on day one of your present job has become the norm.

I believe the average job changes in a person's work span, say 20 to 64, is 7. some companies do not value "tree-huggers".

there has to be a happy medium. I've never been happy with a job I've had more than 4 years.

[Agent G]

In the private sector I see that occurring.

In public service, police, fire, ems etc. bouncing around really makes no sense. Why uproot yourself to go and do the same S#!^ in a different place especially when there's no increase in benefits?

G

[Tom Geiger]

now, I think once employees figured out they were expendable, the idea of looking for another job starting on day one of your present job has become the norm.

I believe the average job changes in a person's work span, say 20 to 64, is 7. some companies do not value "tree-huggers".

Most companies have done away with pensions, including the top 5 pharmaceutical companies, so there is no reason to stick around. Working in the same industry most people stuck with the same company because they were building on their pensions. People were eligible for a pension after five years, but hit the maximum at 25 years of service. Now I see people with 8 years changing companies because they have nothing to lose.

On the flip side as was looking for a job at 55, I was told that the age discrimination wasn't as strong because companies were only looking at you to do the job they needed now, and fully expecting you to leave in 5-7 years.

[crazyjim]

Before retiring after 31 years with the same company, I was shocked to learn that the younger people coming in were being told to plan to look for new places of employment every 5 years or so. Get as much out the company you're working for, and then move on to another to gain more education and experience.

[Pete J.]

This is the old "grass is greener" thing and it has been gaining momentum for years now and not as a result of the younger population. I am not sure where this started, but it seems that companies have the attitude that they need "fresh blood" to keep the company competitive. They are willing to pay more for an outside employee than the give a competitive raise to an internal employee to do the same job. This is why you see these horribly expensive CEO's jumping from company to company and making ridiculous salaries. This philosophy has carried down to the entry level workers. Companies no longer view a long term employee as an asset any more, just someone they can replace with new ideas.

[Danno]

Companies no longer view a long term employee as an asset any more, just someone they can replace with new ideas.

Or, for a lower salary.

A major company I worked for in private industry was consistently in the upper ranks of Fortune 500's "Best Places to Work," usually in the top 25. But, they systematically culled out the older, longer term employees with higher salaries and forced them out before 'normal' retirement time was achieved. They 'early-retired' or forced experienced people to quit or drove them into stress-induced escapes, from the top down (salary-wise), on a regular basis.

All the new, young hires came in at higher salaries than they could get elsewhere, but often 1/4 or 1/3 of what the vets who were being forced out were being paid. So, they had a net-sum gain all the time but just didn't seem to care that older, experienced workers were being turned out with nowhere to go to earn at the level they were.

Bean Counting 201 in the Brave New World.

Edited October 6, 2014 by Danno

[Rob Hall]

In the tech industry it's normal to stay 2-3 years at most at companies as an FTE. 6-18 months is typical as a contractor. With over 16 years in the game, the longest I stayed at one company was almost 5 years. I know very few of my peers that have stayed longer than that.

Edited October 6, 2014 by Rob Hall

[Tom Geiger]

But, they systematically culled out the older, longer term employees with higher salaries and forced them out before 'normal' retirement time was achieved.

I worked for my first company for 15 years. I bled their colors, worked all kinds of unreasonable hours and volunteered for more. Over the years I got top ratings and raise percentages. My hard work paid off. I was living the American dream! Then right after 911, a lot of companies used the recession as an excuse to do mass layoffs.

Prior to this, one of the major insurance companies (I forget which one or I'd name them!) let go a lot of people over 40 and there was a lawsuit that got all the way to the Supreme Court for age discrimination. The company's defense was that all of the folks they let go were at the top of the wage scale and they no longer wished to pay that much money for those jobs. The fact that all of them were over 40 was just a coincidence. And our top court bought it!

So when I got laid off, I was told it was because I was a high wage earner, in the top 25% of the pay scale for my position, and the company no longer wished to pay that much for that job. Well, DUH! you guys kept giving me raises for performance!

[blunc]

In the tech industry it's normal to stay 2-3 years at most at companies as an FTE. 6-18 months is typical as a contractor. With over 16 years in the game, the longest I stayed at one company was almost 5 years. I know very few of my peers that have stayed longer than that.

I have worked at two tech (semiconductor) companies in Arizona, one for ten years, the other for twelve years. My job at each company ended because the companies either closed down or closed the site. The last one was due to bean counters in another country rather than bad performance on the part of the site.

Now the tech world just wants to cycle "temps" through their company rather than invest in good employees that will stick around for a while. There is no good reason to stick with a company that doesn't convert temps to regular employees, no good reason to do your job any better than it takes no to get let go for bad performance.

[Pete J.]

When I started to work at Sears 17 years ago, there were a lot of long term employees around as in ones with over 25 years experience and the company ran like a clock. We had a smallish cadre of older, experienced FT employees and then hired a bunch of mostly college kids that the old timers taught the business too. We didn't expect the part timers to stick around because once they go their education they went off and did what they were educated to do. This business model worked well because we had young smart beginners and seasoned teachers and paid both a good wage Then it all changed and by the time I gave up on Sears two years ago there was one person selling appliances with over 20 year and everybody else had less than 3 year. I ended my career at Sears as a commissioned sales person and in the time I was there, commissions had been cut so drastically most employees were making minimum wage. I couldn't stand it any more. That business model will eventually collapse on itself.

[Pete J.]

I think my darned head is going to explode. I bought a slightly used Starrett dial caliper off the internet knowing that it was damaged but usable but I got it cheap. I did this because Starrett has a repair program that just can't be beat. $85 and they rebuild it and spec it out to new specs. Cheap at 4 times the price. Only down side, it takes 6 weeks for the repair. Got it back a month ago and was using it to check the diameter of some of my wire gauge bits. I set it on my lap and reach for another bit. Next thing I know, crunch! It hits the floor. Now Starrett makes rugged tools and the chance of damage is low. Well, not my luck. It landed on the one spot that could damage the internal works and it did. The dial is jammed. Back to Starrett and another $85.

The good side is that I went down to my favorite machinist junk store(candy store for metal workers) looking for a replacement to get me through and he has no dial calipers. Digging through the used tool selection(he has a ton) and I find a Starrett 1" micrometer in the box, with a little staining but everthing looks good except for a little Prussian blue on the handle. It zeroed out so I figure it will do to finish sorting my drill bits. I ask him how much, he responds with "Whats it worth to you?" I figure, what the heck, I got nothing to lose, "$40" He says "That'll work". I throw two $20s at him and run! A useable $230 tool for $40. That softens the blow of paying another $85 to Starrett.

Edited October 7, 2014 by Pete J.

[Harry P.]

Yeah, but isn't it killing you to think that maybe he would have taken $30 for it?