[Grovenet] Social Security

[Eric Canon]

Your DMV experience is one I share Kristy.
They've been great, friendly, efficient, and
knowledgeable. The ad is similar to, and reminds
me of, the same people with similar voices who,
when they attack school funding, criticize
teachers as over paid. It offends me to my core.
How dare they. 

--- Kristy <hannah at teleport.com> wrote:

>  Thank you so much for this message, Eric. I've
> been sitting here watching 
> that commercial and it just irks me every time.
> The people working at the 
> level shown are not the ones making millions.
> 
> It always makes me think of DMV...I guess
> that's the only place I end up 
> waiting in a serious line. I remember that 35
> years ago it was far from a 
> pleasant experience. I was new in the state and
> had to do DMV tasks that 
> were new to me. And no one 'cared.'
> 
> A couple of years ago I went to deal with a
> problem of my own making (tho 
> not "on purpose" 8-)) and the line was
> long...but it went amazingly fast. 
> Each of the workers was steady and prompt...no
> one was eating or sleeping or 
> gossiping...etc. When it came my turn, I knew
> some of the answers, had some 
> of the paperwork I needed, had left one
> important piece in the car, etc. 
> Instead of glaring, or sending me away to start
> over, the woman quickly and 
> pleasantly found a way to look up the
> information on her computer, filled it 
> in on the application, did whatever, and I was
> out of there, feeling valued 
> and "worthy." What a very long way they have
> come since the 1970s! And I 
> hope the snide and rude attitude of that
> commercial doesn't make them want 
> to do it the way they are being given credit
> for.
> 
> As a retired public servant, I know it is far
> too often a thankless job. I 
> was working long hours, including many that
> were not "paid" time, was 
> struggling to find ways to get the results that
> I (and any thinking citizen) 
> wanted, and then had to listen to how I was
> sitting on my duff and 
> wasting!!! the money that was begrudgingly
> handed out for the task. And the 
> loudest voices by far were those of people who
> hadn't participated in the 
> system in 50 years and had no idea what it took
> to make it run.
> 
> So often I wished that they could be made to
> come and do my job for a 
> month...and then we'd talk again. I am sure
> that they wouldn't have survived 
> the first week...maybe the first day...and
> they'd be happy to vote to employ 
> someone, anyone but themselves, to do it!
> 
> And yes, I enjoyed my job most of the time. It
> is rewarding to work hard and 
> make progress.
> 
> I guess you "hit a button" ... sorry to rattle
> on!
> Kristy
> 
> > This is a mind set. By that, I mean the
> > indignation and helplessness people feel is
> > accelerated with emails like the one Hoss
> shared
> > with us and passed on in response to his own
> > feelings about how things are going (as I
> > remember, Hoss has sent this same one before,
> > too, and perhaps forgotten it was bogus). And
> > there are people only too willing and eager
> to
> > take advantage of that attitude.
> >
> > Case in point is the measure to cap
> government
> > spending.
> >
> >
>
http://www.ocpp.org/2006/issue060629%20TABORduck.pdf
> >
> > There were ads in the Oregonian this week
> showing
> > a nasty looking civil servant with the
> headline
> > that the unions have arraigned with their
> muscle
> > and implied greed that state offices be
> > overstaffed. The message is that the only way
> to
> > out fox the unions is to cap spending. It's a
> > TABOR law just like Colorado passed and later
> > rescinded. Of course, if the unions had a
> tenth
> > of the influence of the people who spend big
> for
> > what they want, the minimum wage would be a
> lot
> > closer to a real living wage, which would
> help
> > our entire nation.
> >
> > Same with the measure about term limits. Have
> we
> > not learned? Running a government is
> complicated.
> > There are a lot of us folks living here now.
> We
> > need experienced people who know how the
> thing
> > works. But the mindset is that politicians
> are
> > corrupt. They may be sometimes, but there are
> > many who are entirely honorable and
> dedicated, as
> > well as smart and experienced! Term limits
> hurts
> > our chances for effective government, not the
> > other way around. Keep the good ones who
> serve us
> > well, and then we need to do the work to
> identify
> > the corrupt and inept ones and vote them out.
> > (Looks like we did good with Charles Starr,
> who
> > was so pathetic, and obstructionist, too.)
> >
> > When a measure like this comes along,
> frustrated
> > voters, who don't pay quite enough attention
> as
> > they should, see instant relief, and
> confirmation
> > of what they suspected all along. They choose
> the
> > easy way. I mean, if we're looking to
> attribute
> > blame, let's put it on the politician! Much
> > better than on one of us for being
> uninformed!
> >
> > Another example that really fried me was
> Terry
> > Rilling's response to Chuck Riley's piece in
> the
> > News Times. Chuck Riley realizes the schools
> have
> > been squeezed by the legislature big time.
> He'd
> > like the Oregon legislature to do their duty
> by
> > our schools.
> >
> > Terry Rilling, on the other hand, says the
> > schools have little regard for our hard
> earned
> > money and waste it hand over foot.
> >
> > To me, that's utterly insulting to our school
> > board. It's utterly insulting to Jack Musser.
> > It's insulting to everyone who works so hard
> to
> > give our kids the education they deserve. It
> > tells me Terry Rilling is ignorant of the
> > situation and that his mind is closed shut.
> He
> > won't listen to our school leaders. Where
> Chuck
> > wants to sit down and talk with the voters
> about
> > schools, Terry wants to tell you raising
> taxes is
> > not something he will consider and that the
> > schools need to do with what they have, even
> if
> > they are presently underfunded. Some folks
> > believe that. Rilling will get lots of votes
> with
> > that position. But, if you're concerned about
> our
> > schools, it's more of the same. Charles Starr
> all
> > over again.
> >
> > I've heard and talked with closed minds in
> the
> > legislature myself. I don't like their smirk
> very
> > much. Educating kids is our responsibility,
> as a
> > society. If we don't it won't get done.
> >
> > There is a group of very greedy folks who fan
> > these flames, with their emails and ads and
> sound
> > bites. They manipulate our citizens. We are
> all
> > victims of their excesses.
> >
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