Thursday, December 12, 2002

LeBron is coming.  Read this excellent piece from ESPN2 on basketball phenom LeBron James, even if you aren't a basketball fan.  What a strange world he lives in.  What must it be like to be everybody's meal ticket?    1:45:18 PM    Say what?[]

Today, the Basketball Pipeline looks at the 10 most exciting players in the NBA.  Does Yao make the cut?  Also, who's hot and cold in the NBA right now?  We'll give you a hint: one of the hot teams features two former superstars who are over 300 years old... 10:33:11 AM    Say what?[]

My Employer Is Screwing Me I have to get this off my chest.  I took a new job in June.  Better money, badly needed change of scenery were the main reasons.  I sacrificed vacation time in the process, though, going from 4 weeks to 2.  Huge sacrifice.  I love vacation; who doesn't?  Get paid to not work.  But it's more than that.  I need the time off.  I just go nuts if I don't get a certain amount of time away from any job. I made my sacrifice clear to my employer, and tried to bargain for 3 weeks.  I was told there was no room to move.  I wanted the job, so I took it.  I never thought to ask that I could use my two weeks when I actually wanted to use them.  Turns out, our company shut down for the whole week of July 4.  I was like "awesome".  But it turns out, we only get the 3rd and 4th as a Holiday; the other days were COMPULSORY VACATION!  That's right; they force employees to use three vacation days that week, no option.  I was livid. Now, here comes Christmas week.  Rumor is, they are thinking of doing the same thing.  Beautiful.  Six out of my 10 days of vacation, and my company dictates to me when I must use them.  Not only that, but they don't even give you the courtesy of a month's notice to tell you that they are doing it. How the hell do you plan a vacation when you only have 4 vacation days to use at your discretion (but it might be 7, depending on their whims)?  What really burns me is that I made my feelings about vacation known at the time of my interview, not three weeks before the July holiday.  Did they mention any of this to me?  Of course not.  Really engendering trust right from the start. All of this makes me so angry that I get sick.  So sick that I have to call in and miss work once every six weeks or so.  A liberal sick-day policy allows me to do that, and I don't feel bad about it in the least. Well, not that anybody gives a damn at all about any of that, but I feel better having written about it... 9:45:36 AM    Say what?[]

Middle-school Gambling Ring Exposed School officials in Glenview, IL have uncovered a gambling ring that has been operating in the halls of the middle school.  Wagers ranged from $2 to $10 and were taken over the phone, on the internet and at school.  The students weren't expelled, but they are going to have to write an essay and watch an educational film about gambling. Here's what I'd like to see them write in their essays: "Why am I being punished?  Most of the adults I know gamble on either the lottery, at a casino, or in office pools.  What's the difference?  Why are we being punished for providing a service to other students?  We are using our analytical skills to run a business.  How is this different than the stock market?" The larger point, of course, is that gambling can be addictive, and kids probably shouldn't be involved in it.  But that's a utopia; the reality is that gambling is everywhere.  LInes are published in the newspapers.  Vegas ads run all the time on TV, along with local casino ads.  Kids aren't blind.  They see what's going on.  When we sit them down and preach to them about the dangers of drugs and gambling or Republicanism, they see right through it, because they know those things wouldn't exist if an awful lot of people weren't supporting them. 9:32:50 AM    Say what?[]

Keeping Faith In Government Bush exercised Executive Fiat to implement his faith-based intiative yesterday.  The Senate wouldn't even give him the time of day on it, so this is their Plan B.  Why don't I have fiat powers in my life?  I want a day off?  Personal Fiat.  It is done.  Actually, I guess I do have Personal Fiat...  I'm not an attorney, but I don't understand how this can pass consitutional muster.  How can the government make preferential funding decisions on the basis of religion?  Of course, it fits perfectly with the Bush M.O.: Forge ahead, and let the other people worry about technicalities like constitutionality.  By the time the courts sort it all out, it will be somebody else's problem. 9:23:25 AM    Say what?[]

© Copyright 2003 Doug Hennessee. Last update: 1/1/2003; 1:55:15 PM.