I recently received a job offer from a local company. The offer itself was somewhat low on salary for the experience required. In addition, the job offered no paid holidays or vacation. Of course, they would still require you to take certain holidays off, they just wouldn't pay for them. The job was also somewhat risky, as the company basically did projects for outside companies, and if they didn't get a contract for a few weeks, they would let you go. Essentially, you were a W2 contractor for this company. In fact, if I had taken the job, I would have been termed a contract employee. However, in an effort to play both sides of the fence, despite all the lack of paid time off, and the fact that you would get laid off if there was no work, they still also termed their contract employees as exempt so that they wouldn't have to pay them overtime.
Well, since they offered no paid time off, I had to figure out how much that was going to cost me each year. They kept telling me to look at the "total package". However, they should have told me to just look at the base salary, because the total package involved me having to subtract from that. The total compensation they were offering was a few thousand more than I make at my present job. However, I stand to lose probably five or six thousand if I leave my present job, due to quarterly bonuses, 401k matching, profit sharing, Employee Stock Purchase program and other stuff. So in effect, the new company was asking me to make a move for a decrease in pay, at least for the first year.
While doing some research on salaries in the area, I found that the amount they were offering was about $10,000 below the average for the position. So they were offering below market wages AND not paying any time off.
So, naturally, I could not accept their offer. Instead, I made a counter offer. I asked for a compromise between what I was asking, which was industry average (despite thinking of myself as above average. See how accomodating I am?) and the amount they offered. I also asked that they pay for holidays and three weeks vacation. I told them that if it was a problem to give a new hire three weeks paid vacation, I would settle for two weeks. I also asked for a modest starting bonus to cover the losses I would suffer from leaving the old job.
Apparently, they were very upset at this counter offer, and I will no longer be considered for positions at this company. They rescinded the offer and gave the job to someone else. (Actually, no one else in this region has the combination of skills they were looking for, so I guess they had to settle for someone who can't do the job as effectively as me).
So when did it become a no-no to negotiate with a prospective employer? I realize this isn't the dot com era, but the economy is getting better, I am getting several notices a week from headhunters seeking to see if I am available. Another good question is, if you can't negotiate at hire time, when do you negotiate? Once a company has you, it is almost impossible to negotiate a new salary. If you get a raise, it will be only a few thousand. Just as in the '90s, the only way to get a significant raise is to go to a new company. Well, anyway, I feel that I should be allowed to negotiate with a company that pays far less than industry average, offers no paid time off, and expects you to take the risk of losing your job if they can't find a contract. I guess they figure they can find some suckers in the local market that don't have a job and would be willing to take anything just to work. That kind of sucks, because it brings down the average salaries for those of us who are more experienced and can actually do the job.

Today is the 10th anniversary of the bombing of the Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City byt Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols. I am once again saddened and outraged at the injustice of the murder of 168 people, 18 of which were children and infants. The fact that none of my family were directly affected, despite living in Oklahoma City does nothing to console me or to relieve my anger at the perpetrators of this crime. The fact that Timothy McVeigh was executed for committing this crime does little to console me. I wish that we had resurrection technology to bring him back to life and kill him repeatedly, over and over. If he were driven insane by this process, we should treat him until he is well again, and then kill him some more.
My birthday, April 19th, was ruined forever by this tragedy. My own family on this day forgets my birthday, but remembers this tragedy. I don't blame them, and that is not why I am angry. I am angered because of the people whose entire lives were ruined, destroyed in an instant, by this evil, evil person. Beyond the people who died in the tragedy itself, there were the thousands of people who lost spouses, children, friends, even whole families. People committed suicide from the sorrow of the loss. McVeigh claims these people deserve to die because they served the "Evil Empire". Children and infants serve the empire? Please. What about McVeigh himself. He served the "Evil Empire" in the army. Why didn't he set a good example by killing himself first?
Even ten years later, the anger at this injustice boils inside of me. I don't think it will ever go away. Time doesn't heal all wounds. May God be with all the families of those hurt and killed in this tragedy. May God welcome them into heaven with open arms. And may Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols burn forever in Hell.

I hate April 1st. Okay, so maybe it was funny for the first couple of hundred years to make fun of the pagans celebrating the new year 3 months into the Christian calendar, butI think April Fools day has lost it's way. Probably very few people remember the origin of the holiday and instead spend the entire day making up horrible ways to trick people and making up phony headlines. Today I heard some idiot on the radio convince a DJ to call his wife and tell her he was a Law Enforcement Officer and that her husband had been picked up for solicting for prostitution. That's not funny! That's horrid!
To me wading through the jokes and fake slashdot articles and all the other BS on April 1st is just a chore. I liken it to having to "just hit delete" on the 1,000 or so spam e-mails I get a day.
Of course, I also hate the commercialism of Christmas, and having to wear green on Saint Patricks day. In fact, I pretty much hate tradition right down the line. I mean, tradition is supposed to be about remembering the origins of a practice. But nobody does! It becomes tradition for tradition's sake, which is meaningless and an afront to the thing you were trying to memorialize.
There may be those who take offense at my attitude towards April Fool's day. They say I should just enjoy it. I hope they also equally enjoy my own tradition which I invented for this day. Every time someone plays a joke on me, I punch them in the face. If they don't enjoy it, perhaps they just need to be more open minded and realize that, hey, it's just an April Fool's prank.

The only good news is that Terri is now free of the starvation and dehydration that has been forced upon her these last few weeks by her murderers.
It is inconceivable to me that we can force a human being to starve to death, yet if I don't feed my dogs, I would be put in prison. The priorities of society are so screwed up it is unbeleivable. Save the whales, murder the people.
What is truly sad is that Michael Schiavo went through such a change of heart when the money entered the picture. For the first several years, he tried all kinds of therapy and took her to many doctors in order to help her try to recover. However, after successfully suing one of her doctors, and getting a large sum of money for her treatment and for his own pain and suffering, his attitude totally changed. He stopped all therapy. He began pursuing legal action to stop her from being fed. He gave up on her completely. In fact, not only did he give up on her, but he forced everyone else to as well. He refused to allow her parents to take her back and care for her. Why? Because he stood to get the remainder of her lawsuit awards if she died. He wouldn't get that money if they burned it all up on therapy. It was also at this time that he began saying that she never would have wanted to live this way.
Sadly, it even became more than about the money, because at the last hour, he wouldn't even allow Terri's parents in to see their daughter as she passed away. Not only was he an accomplice in her murder, but he intentionally added to their pain by not allowing them to see their daughter, whom they had raised for 18 years and cared for these last 10 years. Michael Schiavo is obviously a man who became consumed by evil; the love of money, and the desire to hurt others. It is a shame, because he didn't start out that way.
Rest in peace, Terri. I hope that we can bring your murderers to justice.