Charlotte Foust
cfoust at infostatsystems.com
Fri Feb 18 12:10:42 CST 2005
I work for a Brit and an Irishman, both of whom still have parents
living in their home countries. Shall we talk about hip replacement?
Transplants? Not exactly emergency treatment, and neither are most
pacemakers. Mine was, but what about when it enters the "elective
replacement" state?
Charlotte Foust
-----Original Message-----
From: Heenan, Lambert [mailto:Lambert.Heenan at aig.com]
Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 9:03 AM
To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
Hmm. I see the RNC propaganda machine is doing a great job.
"Universal healthcare" = "Die outside the hospital".
The British health system is in a mess right now because Maggie Thatcher
and her cronies did everything the could to kill it off during 15 years
in power.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [SMTP:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Charlotte
Foust
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 11:48 AM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
> 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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