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1.  

   Blaming the gov't

   

   2Lazy2Register, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 5:10am

   
   

   It's pretty easy to blame our "do as I say not as I do" nanny government for just about anything, and for good reason. I could easily go into a Dennis Miller style rant: I spend over $500 and 40 hours a year accounting for every single penny I've made or spent to an organization that can't even balance its OWN books. We aren't allowed to pledge allegiance to "one nation, under God," but we have to swear to tell "the full truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God." It's ok to drug test high school kids, but no one is drug testing the people that influence these kids (teachers, administrators, school boards). The list goes on and on. Because of this, people are so cynical about anything having to do with the government that it's easy to blame just about anything on them and get buy-in from the common folk. But I won't go into a rant. :-)

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2.  

   Add Wall St. To The List

   

   Prashant Agarwal, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 7:21am

   
   

   Don't forget to add Wall Street to the list of culprits involved with the telecom debacle. Their over-zealous pursuit of quarter-to-quarter gains didn't help. Don't get me wrong, ultimately the companies and managements are to blame for their troubles, but to some degree their are influenced by the market environment.

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3.  

   Re: Blaming the gov't

   

   LittleW0lf, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 8:19am

   
   

   It's ok to drug test high school kids, but no one is drug testing the people that influence these kids (teachers, administrators, school boards).

   While I agree with your rant, I cannot agree with this...most school districts in the nation already have random drug tests for faculty and staff. In California, it is actually required by law, with a stringent "Positive and your fired," rule which basically boils down to the person who fails a drug test having to procure a lawyer and fight the issue in order to keep their job. This includes false positives, which actually happens a lot, a friend of mine had a hard time keeping his job after they tested him positive for heroin (which he has never used,) due to the fact that this guy loved eating bread with poppy seeds on it. However, this is only k-12, colleges are another story. I don't think school boards are required to be tested, so that might account for the overall stupidity of school boards across the nation, and especially in California.

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4.  

   Re: Blaming the gov't

   

   2Lazy2Register, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 9:10am

   
   

   In California, it is actually required by law...
   
   You're right - I shouldn't have confused a local issue with a national issue. Pretty intelligent law in California - it's not like that here. As a parent, though, I consider my childrens drug education to be my decision and my responsibility. If I want to buy a home drug test and test my children, that's up to me. I don't think the schools should have anything to do with it. But that's just me. I'm a bit of a libertarian. I got a little riled up this weekend when our local paper ran a front page story questioning why a multi-million dollar taxpayer funded organization (DARE) is completely unaccountable for the money, and seems to spend more time building up its organization than it does performing its intended function.

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5.  

   Re: Blaming the gov't

   

   Anonymous Coward, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 12:04pm

   
   

   We aren't allowed to pledge allegiance to "one nation, under God,"

   I think the gist of the decision was that the agents of the state (ie the school system) are not permitted to obligate others (ie students) to say it. You can say whatever pleases you.

   Personally, I tell people who ask me to swear "so help me go" that I'll say the words and touch their book if they insist -- but such a promise holds far less weight with me than me giving my personal word. Their choice.

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6.  

   Govt - Big Corp: Same Difference

   

   Chris, Jul 2nd, 2002 @ 12:20pm

   
   

   I think a lot of the big companies, many of the telco's included, basically do function just like government at the seior management level. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. There is no accountability for bad, stupid, or unethical decision making. It's very rare that a politician is held accountable by the voters, and its even more rare that a CEO is held accountable. Two examples, both from telco:
   
   Qwest - Nacchio gets "fired" but is given a consulting contract on the way out rumored to be worth millions.
   Worldcom - Ebbers gets a million dollar pension for life, after running the company into the ground and apparently violating a whole bunch of laws on the way.

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7.  

   No Subject Given

   

   Anonymous Coward, Jul 3rd, 2002 @ 6:37am

   
   

   >They blame "greedy" local governments for trying to get extra money out of the various telecom initiatives, that either drove up the prices for telecom companies, or made them have to make costly changes that left certain areas uncovered.< br>
   Since when does the telecom industry absorb any sort of fee without passing it along to the customer? Of course with all the woes in the telecom industry they'll have to raise rates again. That will be the excuse once again this year (and probably the next few years). I'm sure their six-figure executives will continue to be paid for their creative f##k-ups while we the working class continue to be laid off left and right.

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