Re: Most of a nation on probation (GPS convicts)
Bear saith:
Right. Between all the "offender databases" and "surveillance for your (cough) protection" and so on, anyone who's got a record winds up so completely frozen out of normal society that it becomes impossible for them to get by without continuing as a part of criminal society.
It's the twenty-first century. Nobody cares if you go straight anymore....
Which brings this to mind again. This and the Where to go thread. So where and what are the disenfranchised to go and do? I'm a middle aged IT professional, recently downsized from a very good job. I also have a felony conviction for selling pot back in the 60's -- big deal, eh? Well it is now -- I've been turned down for three jobs because they did a background check. I no longer even bother to apply if they mention background or drug checks -- which rules out one hell of a lot of places these days and it's on the increase. I never had a background check before this for any job. What does that have to do with my ability to write code? I'm seriously considering taking up robbing banks -- what the hell, my health isn't too good, I have no insurance, can't get a job -- and fuck no, I won't work at Hardees. Why should I? What does my record have to do with my productivity -- my work record is excellent. I've also thought a lot about suicide, but figure if I'm going that far, I might as well give bank robbery a try -- I can always blow my brains out if I get caught. I had a lot of time to think about this, and I'm not finding many answers -- and like Bear and others have said, the future looks pretty bleak. Another thing that set me off on this rant was May's comments about "black hoes" etc. I guess I've come to understand quite well what it means to be black. Fuck it -- why not welfare if you can, why not sell drugs or rob? If the other option is working at a fast food place? Fuck that and fuck anybody who thinks you should.
On Thu, 12 Jul 2001, A. Melon wrote:
Which brings this to mind again. This and the Where to go thread. So where and what are the disenfranchised to go and do?
[Long sorry tale deleted] Start your own company doing some sort of consulting/IT/technical support for small to medium sized businesses. One aspect I've found very succesful is to do 'on site' and not have an 'office' per se. Unless you live in BFE you should be able to bring in enough cash through that to keep the table and lights working. -- ____________________________________________________________________ Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in night: God said, "Let Tesla be", and all was light. B.A. Behrend The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------
-- On 12 Jul 2001, at 11:30, A. Melon wrote:
Which brings this to mind again. This and the Where to go thread. So where and what are the disenfranchised to go and do? I'm a middle aged IT professional, recently downsized from a very good job. I also have a felony conviction for selling pot back in the 60's -- big deal, eh? Well it is now -- I've been turned down for three jobs because they did a background check. I no longer even bother to apply if they mention background or drug checks -- which rules out one hell of a lot of places these days and it's on the increase. I never had a background check before this for any job.
I have never had a background check until after I was hired at my current job. After I had been hired for a long time, suddenly they did background checks on everyone, though surely by then they knew everyone well enough to know that none of us were likely to run amuk and start shooting coworkers. Suddenly background checks are in. I do not know why. Guess I should ask. --digsig James A. Donald 6YeGpsZR+nOTh/cGwvITnSR3TdzclVpR0+pr3YYQdkG 3ioZ50uTpQ0lfU+N0bUBR6WAIOG0TlR7rZ9ej25v 42aW8lUO9htFqGvce/flksyuH0an/Sy96xOU3ilbw
I have never had a background check until after I was hired at my current job. After I had been hired for a long time, suddenly they did background checks on everyone, though surely by then they knew everyone well enough to know that none of us were likely to run amuk and start shooting coworkers.
Suddenly background checks are in. I do not know why. Guess I should ask.
I think they are afraid of being sued if anyone anywhere in the USA claims to have been hurt or inconvenienced or discriminated against due to one of the company's products. "How can you say you are safe? You employ KNOWN DRUG ABUSERS!" At a previous employer of mine - a very large US company - checks for drugs & so on came in about 5 years ago. Also, to intense bad publicity, tests for HIV and other diseases (because of health insurance, supposedly). They didn't apply to existing employees except in safety related jobs. Very much the flavour of the month, because of news articles blaming drunk or drugged train drivers, machine operators & so on for causing accidents. As our company has lost or killed maybe couple of hundred people in industrial accidents in the previous decade or so we were sensitive to it. Though why they wanted to extend it to workers who didn't drive anything more lethal than a desk was beyond me. Here in the UK (things may be different in the US) it is probably easier for someone with a criminal record to get a job with government or public bodies, or with charities and non-profit organisations, than it would be with a private company. Though of course it depends on the nature of the record. I doubt if a 30 yearold record for hemp is going to lose anyone any job at the moment in Britain. It might even be a qualification fro getting elected to Parliament. For about 6 months now prominent politicians have been queuing up to "confess" to having smoked dope in their mis-spent youths. Ken Brown
participants (4)
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A. Melon -
jamesd＠echeque.com -
Jim Choate -
Ken Brown