Andy Lacey
andy at minstersystems.co.uk
Fri Feb 18 10:11:37 CST 2005
>>Does that mean where NOBODY has decent medical coverage?
No Charlotte, it means that if you want to pay you get very good private
medical coverage but if you can't or don't choose to then yes you get in
line for some treatments but still get emergency treatment immediately. As
opposed to if you can't pay you get left at the side of the road.
--
Andy Lacey
http://www.minstersystems.co.uk
--------- Original Message --------
From: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
<accessd at databaseadvisors.com>
To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
<accessd at databaseadvisors.com>
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
Date: 18/02/05 16:49
>
> Universal health plan? Does that mean where NOBODY has decent medical
> coverage? In countries with "universal" medical, you get in
line for
> health care. If you're wealthy, you can jump the queue by paying for
> your care. If you aren't wealthy and you die before it's your turn for
> the transplant, pacemaker, dialysis, whatever, too bad.
>
> Charlotte Foust
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jim Lawrence [mailto:accessd at shaw.ca]
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 8:40 AM
> To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
>
> OT: Totally
> Hi John:
>
> Do you think they will have a 'universal' health plan in place in US in
> the next ten years like some 'Democrats' have been talking about?
>
> Jim
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of John W. Colby
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 7:58 AM
> To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
> Yea, the days of working for IBM for 40 years and retiring at X% of
> salary and full medical are over. The kid graduating from college today
> will likely have at LEAST 5 to 10 jobs over 40 years and in the not too
> distant future will be damned lucky to have any medical, even while
> working.
>
> I was reading on the internet (MSNBC) the other day that the company
> average cost of medical per worker covered was $6000 / year in 2000, and
> is now $12000 5 years later. That is a double in five years and the
> projection is that it will continue into the foreseeable future.
>
> Hmmm... $24,000 in 2010, $48,000 in 2015, 96,000 in 2020...
>
> Seems rather likely that only the company execs will have medical
> coverage by 2015.
>
> I am an independent contractor. I pay $700 / month for just my wife and
> I. I would pay an addition 200-300 if I had children. Will I be able to
> pay for medical in 5 years? Maybe, but my rates will be a LOT higher.
> In 10 years? No.
>
> I do have a plan though. I will pick some thing that happens to me,
> blame it on a deep pocket, sue and retire on my 1/2 billion dollar
> settlement, and SCREW the rest of you guys. ;-)
>
> John W. Colby
> www.ColbyConsulting.com
>
> Contribute your unused CPU cycles to a good cause:
> http://folding.stanford.edu/
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Lawhon, Alan
> C Contractor/Morgan Research
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 10:38 AM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
>
> Randall:
>
> Good luck on getting reemployed. I've been down the exact same road as
> you, (i.e. laid off by a defense contractor), so I know where you're
> coming from.
>
> After I was laid off, (along with a group of about 6-8 other people), it
> took me nearly four months to get re-employed, during which time I
> managed to drain nearly all of my savings. The strange thing about
> being laid off was that this particular job was my first
"professional"
> job after I had graduated from college - and it only lasted about six
> months - so I was blown away when the manager called us all into a small
> office and told us the bad news. I remember thinking at the time, while
> he went on and on about this not being "a negative reflection on any
of
> you or the job you have done," ("Yea, right!"), thinking to
myself "Hey,
> this is NOT what I spent six years struggling in college for - to be
> unceremoniously dumped!" Fortunately, I was unmarried, so I didn't
have
> to go thru the stress of explaining to a "better half" that
there was
> going to be a drastic slowdown in the income stream.
>
> I've been lucky since then in that I've managed to stay (more or less)
> gainfully employed, but the business we're in is very up and down. As
> one boss once told me, "Alan, in government contracting it's either
> feast or famine. If you've got a contract, it's feast. If you don't,
> it's famine ..." (In government contracting, if you're a
"worker bee"
> doing mundane technical work - like computer programming or run-of-the-
> mill engineering work - it's a mistake to ask for [or demand] too much
> money. They'll just hire a younger worker willing to work for less. The
> reality is that on government contracts neither the contractor (or the
> government) wants the most efficient and/or "productive"
workers. They
> want the "cheapest" workers. (Nobody ever acknowledges this
openly, but
> a defense contractor maximizes profit by hiring workers as cheaply as
> possible since the government pays a fixed hourly rate for each
"labor
> category" - irrespective of the competence and skill of the
> interchangeable "worker unit" that is plugged into the slot.)
It's
> really just a game ... <End of rant>
>
> I've never forgotten the experience of walking the streets ("pounding
> the
> pavement") trying to get a job interview where everybody you talk to
> says, "Sorry, we're not hiring ..." (Just make sure that you
have a new
> job lined up before you make any "career change".) I long ago
realized
> that there is no "security" in life. Even Albert Einstein, the
great
> physicist, once complained about the "constant struggle" people
have to
> go thru just to keep food in their stomachs.
>
> A funny thing about being suddenly (and unexpectedly) unemployed: You
> find out (real quick) who your friends are ...
>
> Alan C. Lawhon
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Randall
> Anthony
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 8:29 AM
> To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
> Steve,
> I find myself in a position similar to yours, unfortunately I got laid
> off in the process (lack of contractual funding, natch).
>
> 1. I was very much immersed in developing and maintaining dbases and
> applications from Access2.0 through A2K, using SQL and ASP pages for
> some.
>
> 2. As the work slowed down, my access to developing new apps
> disappeared. Consequently, when push came to shove, my skillsets
> deteriorated.
>
> 3. The company I worked for was a division of a defense contractor with
> a small IT department. Last I heard that division's IT department is
> getting smaller.
>
> 4. So, during this "sabbatical", I decided to bite the bullet.
I've
> got one class left, SQL Server 2K Implementation and Administration. I'm
> now an MCP in ASP.Net development, I'm studying to pass the SQL
> Programming exam next week, then I have two exams left to get my MCDBA.
> If I had achieved this while working, that company would have given me a
> bonus and a pay raise, however, even if I had accomplished this with
> them, I still would have gotten the axe.
>
> I have spoken with a number of professionals in the field when I was
> contemplating getting my Masters degree. Most concurred that a Masters
> would be beneficial if you were aiming for management type positions
> within the IT world, but the return on investment would be negligible if
> I wished to remain technical. Ergo, the next best thing to separate
> oneself from the pack in IT is to get certified (in my humble opinion).
>
> I'm starting to get more positive replies from companies I have
> submitted a resume to, and I feel fairly confident that I will be
> affiliated with someone soon. I think that could be attributed to my
> obtaining certification.
>
> Randy.
>
>
> Dear Group,
>
> Could you indulge me in a little survey?
>
> 1) What's your main line of work these days? Access development, SQL
> Server administration/development, VB, ASP/ASP.NET, PHP...?
>
> 2) How does your work today differ from what you were doing a few years
> ago? Is it only that you're using newer versions of the same tools, or
> are you doing entirely different development work?
>
> 3) Are you independent or do you work for a company? If you work for a
> company, what's the size of the company and where do you fit in?
>
> 4) Do you have any Microsoft Certifications? If so, do you keep current
> with them, and/or have they made any difference in your current
> position?
>
> Thank you very much. I'm approaching a career crossroads with the
> decision to stay in business as an independent developer or not. I have
> picked up a fair amount of .NET knowledge (the hard way -- is there any
> other?) but I have no Microsoft certifications.
>
> Regards,
>
> Steve Erbach
> Scientific Marketing
> Neenah, WI
> www.swerbach.com
> Security Page: www.swerbach.com/security
>
>
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