Possession of a valid license or permit to perform the duties of the position

To contact us Click HERE
Possession of a valid license or permit to perform theduties of the position
Lutz v Krokoff, 2012 NY Slip Op 07938, Appellate Division,Third Department
It is well settled that employmentin certain positions or occupations in New York State requires the individualto posses a valid license or its equivalent. Examples of this includeteaching in a public school, operating motor vehicle on public highways,practicing law or medicine and serving as a certified public account. In theevent the individual no longer possesses the required license or permit, he or she canneither lawfully perform nor be permitted to perform the duties requiring thepossession of a valid permit or license.*
When it learned that a police officer’s driver's license wastemporarily revoked, the police department’s chief advised the officer thatpossession of a valid driver's license was a minimum qualification foremployment by the department as a police officers and gave him an opportunityto provide documentation demonstrating that he possessed a valid driver’slicense.**
When the officer could not produce evidence that hepossessed a valid driver’s license his employment was terminated “for failure to meetthe minimum qualifications for his position.”
The officer then initiated an Article 78 proceedingchallenging his termination as arbitrary and capricious and affected by anerror of law. Supreme Court dismissed the police officer’s petition, promptinghis appeal to the Appellate Division.
The police department, conceding that possession of a validdriver's license was not specifically listed as a minimum qualification forappointment to the position of a police officer, nevertheless contended thatsuch a license was an implied requirement in view of the fact that the jobdescription for its police officers listed, among other things, the "[a]bility to operate anautomobile."
The Appellate Division was not persuaded by this argument,ruling that “summary dismissal of an employee based merely upon an inferencecannot be countenanced.” In contrast, said the court, “Where summary dismissalhas been upheld for failure to maintain a minimum qualification of employment,the qualification at issue has been clearly and explicitly set forth.”
Further, the court observed that the record indicated thatalmost one third of the police officers employed by the department performedfunctions other than those requiring possession of a valid driver’s license andnoted that the department’s “Standard Operating Procedures” stated that apolice officer shall "[p]ossess a valid New York State driver[']s license,whenever required as a condition of employment" (emphasissupplied by the court).
In the court’s view, this “conditional language” suggestedthat that there were police officers in the department who were not required topossess a driver's license as a necessary condition of employment.
Noting that the civil service commission havingjurisdiction had promulgated a class specification for another position,firefighter, that explicitly required the possession of a valid New York Statedriver's license at the time of employment and throughout the duration of theindividual’s employment as a firefighter, the Appellate Division concluded thatthe police officer’s termination without a hearing was both arbitrary andcapricious and contrary to law and reversed the lower court’s ruling
* See, for example, Meliti vNyquist, 41 NY2d 183
** In the words of theAppellate Division, citing Carr v NYS Dept. of Transportation, 30 AD3d 1110,"an employee charged with failing to possess a minimum qualification ofhis or her position is only entitled to notice of the charge and theopportunity to contest it.”
The decision is posted on the Internet at:http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2012/2012_07938.htm

Failure to correctly identify the court and the name of the judge signing a search warrant a fatal defect

To contact us Click HERE

Failure to correctly identify the court and the name ofthe judge signing a search warrant a fatal defectPeople v Gavazzi, 2012 NY Slip Op 08054, Court of Appeals
This LawBlog’s summary of Gusler v. City of Long Beach, USCA,Docket #11-4493-cv [see http://publicpersonnellaw.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-failure-to-name-parties-appealing.html]noted that the U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, ruled that the failure tocorrectly name the parties appealing a federal district court’s ruling was afatal jurisdictional defect.
In People v Gavazzi the defects challenged by Gavazziinvolved the name of the jurisdiction, the name of the court and the name of the justice signing a searchwarrant.
The Court of Appeals, Justice Smith dissenting, held that awarrant to search Gavazzi’s residence in the Village of Greene, Chenango County, was defective as the result of the inadvertent typing of "Local CriminalCourt, Town of Broome, Broome County" at the head of the warrant insteadof "Local Criminal Court, Town of Greene, Chenango County." There isno municipality of Broome in either Broome County or Chenango County and theVillage Justice signed the warrant without correcting the error.
Further, said the court, the Justice’s signature on a linemarked "Signature of Judge or Justice” was illegible.
The Appellate Division had held that the warrant did not substantially complywith §690.45(1)* of the Criminal Procedure Lawbecause it contained "no information from which the issuing court can bediscerned" (see 84 AD3d 1427 at 1429). The Court of Appeals agreed withthe Appellate Division's analysis, explaining that a search warrant must contain"[t]he name of the issuing court," again citing CPL §690.45 [1]).** Here, however, the Village Justice who signed the warrantincluded no designation of his court, his signature was illegible, there is noseal, and the caption referred to a nonexistent town.
In the words of the Appellate Division, "on its facethe warrant appears to [have been] issued by an unidentified judge in anonexistent court and town in a different county", concluding that thewarrant did not substantially comply with CPL §690.45(1).

The bottom line: evidence sized under color ofthe warrant had to be suppressed.
* §690.45, in pertinent part,provides that “A search warrant must contain: 1. The name of the issuing courtand, except where the search warrant has been obtained on an oral application, thesubscription of the issuing judge;"
** The Court of Appeals notedthat standard for adherence to the statutory requirement is "substantial —rather than literal — compliance."
The decision is posted on the Internet at:http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2012/2012_08054.htm

E-mails between a public employer and an applicant for public employment may be subject to disclosure pursuant to the Freedom of Information Law

To contact us Click HERE

E-mails between a public employer and an applicant forpublic employment may be subject to disclosure pursuant to the Freedom ofInformation Law
Hernandez v Office of the Mayor of the City of New York, 2012 NY Slip Op08067, Appellate Division, First Department
Sergio Hernandez filed an Article 78 petition seeking acourt order annulling the determination of the Office of the Mayor of the Cityof New York denying his requests under the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL)for certain e-mails sent from or “received by any government email accountsassigned to the Office of the Mayor to or from Cathleen Black, at the time shewas a nominee for the position of New York City School Chancellor” and certainother records.
Supreme Court directed the City to produce redacted copiesof such e-mails, which as the Appellate Division subsequently noted, were not exemptfrom disclosure as inter- or intra-agency materials within the meaning ofPublic Officers Law §89[2][g].
The City appealed the court’s order.
The Appellate Division sustained the lower court’s ruling,explaining that Black was not an agent of the City since she had not yet beenretained as Chancellor. In addition, said the court, Black was not actingsimply as an outside consultant on behalf of the City, but was a privatecitizen with interests that may have diverged from those of the City.
The decision is posted on the Internet at:http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2012/2012_08067.htm

Newspaper reports admitted into evidence in an administrative disciplinary proceeding

To contact us Click HERE

Newspaper reports admitted into evidence in anadministrative disciplinary proceeding
2012 NY Slip Op 07479, Appellate Division, Fourth Department
A volunteer firefighter filed an Article 78 petitionchallenging the Volunteer Fire Company’s decision,  to expel him from membership in the Fire Company following a hearing held pursuant to General Municipal Law §207-l.
The petitioner contended that the Fire Company had violated§160.50 of the Criminal Procedure Law, which provides for the “sealing” ofcertain record, when the Company admitted into evidence media reports relatedto the petitioner's arrests or when it presented the testimony of a policeinvestigator who was involved in the relevant criminal investigations.
As to newspaper media reports concerning petitioner'sarrests, the Appellate Division, citing New York State Dept. of MentalHygiene v State Div. of Human Rights, 103 AD2d 546, 549, affd 66NY2d 752, said that such newspaper reports are not "official records andpapers . . . relating to [the petitioner's] arrest or prosecution" withinthe meaning of CPL §160.50(1)(c). Further, said the court, it is "permissible to consider the independent evidence of the conduct [of thepetitioner] leading to the criminal charges."
As to the testimony of the police investigator, the courtexplained that the police investigator was "free to testify frommemory" concerning the conduct that led to the petitioner's arrests.”
The Appellate Division then stated there was substantialevidence establishing that the petitioner had exhibited a lack of "goodmoral character" in violation of Article II, §2 of the Fire Company'sConstitution and By-laws and had committed misconduct under General MunicipalLaw §209-l".
N.B. §209-l provides for the removal of volunteer officers andvolunteer members of fire departments charged with, and found guilty of,misconduct or incompetence after a hearing.
The decision is posted on the Internet at:http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2012/2012_07479.htm

To contact us Click HERE
Recent rulings and recommendations by OATHAdministrative Law Judges
Summaries published by the NYC Office of AdministrativeTribunals and Hearings

Employee alleged to have refused to work overtime
A hospital special officer was charged with insubordinationafter refusing to work mandatory overtime on 42 occasions. The employee did not appear at the hearing and the matterproceeded by inquest.*
Administrative Law Judge Kara J. Miller found that on eachoccasion the officer was given a form ordering him to work mandatory overtimeand warning him that non-compliance could result in disciplinary action.  Each formwas signed and dated by special officer and a supervisor. 
ALJ Miller found that this documentation proved theinsubordination.  She recommended that the special officer be suspendedwithout pay for 45 days.
* Courtshave held that the appointing authority or its designee may proceed with thedisciplinary action even though the employee is not present. Where theindividual is to be  tried in absentia,a diligent effort to contact the employee to inform him or her that thedisciplinary hearing had been scheduled and would take place even if he or shedid appear at the appointed time and place. Notwithstanding the absence of theindividual, the burden is on the charging party to present and prove thedisciplinary charges filed against the worker.
The decision is posted at Health & Hospitals Corp. (Jacobi Hospital Ctr.) v.Cooper (in PDF), OATH Index No 1748/12.

Supervisor charged with leave violations, failure tosupervise subordinates, sleeping on duty and misuse of agency property. 
Following a 7-day hearing, ALJ Kevin F. Casey sustained someof the leave violations, the sleeping on duty charge and the misuse of propertycharge, but he dismissed the failure to supervise charges. 
Noting that it was undisputed that some of supervior’sabsences may have been due to medical conditions that he developed after hisservice at Ground Zero, and that the most serious disciplinary penalty previously imposed onemployee was the loss of 10 vacation days, Judge Casey found termination ofemployment to be an overly harsh penalty and recommended a 48-day suspensionwithout pay, based on principles of progressive discipline. 
The decision is posted on the Internet at Dep’t of Sanitation v. Harris (in PDF),OATH Index No. 760/12

Employees alleged to have ignored directives to stop distributing union literature whilenot on duty
Three New York City correction officers were charged with anumber of allegations of misconduct, chief among them refusing to comply with orders to stopdistributing union literature on Rikers Island while not on duty and refusing to obey orders to leave the secured island.
The individuals denied they were ever given such orders andasserted a First Amendment right to distribute union information whileoff-duty. They also offered videos of some of the incidents into evidence.
ALJ Alessandra F. Zorgniotti sustained the charges that correctionofficers refused to obey orders to stop distributing their materials and orders to leave theisland, as well as charges that one officer filed a false report and anotherfailed to turn over his parking pass promptly.
Other allegations were dismissed.
ALJ Zorgniotti noted that a correctional facility presentsspecial circumstances under the First Amendment, and that the employees hadfailed to prove that their First Amendment rights outweighed the compellinginterest of the Department in maintaining a secure facility. 
Judge Zorgniottirecommended that each officer be suspended for 10 days without pay. 
The decision is posted on the Internet at Dep’t of Correction v. Reuter (in PDF),OATH Index Nos. 1497/12, 1499/12, 1707/12

Motor vehicle operator alleged mentally unfit to perform herduties  
Administrative Law Judge John B. Spooner found that the individualhad a mental disability but that the proof presented at the hearing was insufficient to sustain theallegation that she was presently unfit for her job as a driver.
The ALJ noted that [1] neither of the two incidents proven attrial established that employee was an unfit driver, [2] the individual hadrecently received favorable evaluations of her driving performance, and[3]  there had been no complaints about the employee since January 2011.
Judge Spooner recommended that the disciplinary charges bedismissed.
The decision is posted on the Internet at  Admin. for Children’s Services v. Anonymous(in PDF),OATH Index No. 1546/12

The Saga Continues . . . Chinese Food Restaurants Battle For World Domination

To contact us Click HERE
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Mr. Chow has been a Hollywood institution for decades. Its sleek decor and Peking duck attracts A-listers and power-brokers on a daily basis.

The tony restaurant chain, which started in London, now has outposts in New York, Miami and Las Vegas.
Similarly themed, but less established, is Philippe or Philippe Chow. It shares a surname with the famous restaurant, as well as a similarly posh aesthetic and high-end menu. It, too, has outposts in New York and Los Angeles.

In this case, any imitation is not being treated as flattery by Michael Chow, the art collector and restaurateur behind the original Mr. Chow chain.

Three years ago, he slapped Philippe Chow with a $10 million lawsuit, alleging, among other things, that his former employee ripped off his recipes and changed his name so he would be more closely identified with the restaurateur. The case will go to trial in Miami federal court on Tuesday, with high-powered showbiz litigator Bert Fields representing Michael Chow.
Philippe Chow, who changed his name from Chak Yam Chau before starting the restaurant, fired back with a countersuit charging defamation. The trial is expected to last three weeks, with Michael Chow planning to take the stand next week.

"Michael Chow is one of the great restaurateurs of our age," Fields told TheWrap. "Mister Chow is famous the world over. It pains me to see this man whose name wasn't even Chow copy his restaurant and profit by taking all of those recipes that Michael created. I believe a judge and jury will see things our way and that Michael will come out of this trial just fine."

The suit also accuses Philippe Chow of misrepresenting his past association with the original chain of chi-chi eateries. It alleges that, contrary to Philippe Chow's claims he served as the executive chef of Mr. Chow for over 25 years, he was nothing more than a chopper in the kitchen who rarely cooked.

Philippe Chow and his business partners Stratis Morfogen, David Lee, Costin Dumitrescu and Manny Hailey are named as defendants in the suit.

In an interview with TheWrap, Morfogen lashed out at Michael Chow, accusing him of trying to muddy the waters for his former chef and now competitor. He told TheWrap that the chain is countersuing the restaurateur for defamation.

"If Michael Chow owns lettuce wraps then his next lawsuit should be against P.F. Chang's," Morfogen said.
"We believe the case is meritless," he added. "We believe in the judicial system, and we're not looking to settle -- certainly not with the conditions Chow is looking for."

He said that all of the recipes for the 12 "signature" dishes that the suit claims were stolen -- such as Chicken Satay and Chicken Joanna -- are commonplace in Chinese cooking. He also claims that Philippe Chow did not sign any confidentiality agreements that would bar cooking the same food.

He also stringently refutes the suit's claims that Philippe Chow lacks restaurant experience.

"They called him a food chopper," Morfogen told TheWrap. "Well how does the food chopper beat him every year in Zagat?"

Attorneys for Mr. Chow paint a starkly different picture, alleging that Philippe Chow did indeed sign confidentiality agreements related to the recipes.

But the dispute is about more than just recipes for green prawns, according to the suit.

"Defendants directed their staff to misrepresent that the Defendants' restaurants were in fact Mr. Chow Restaurants or that they were associated or affiliated with the Mr Chow Restaurants, and that the fictitious 'Philippe Chow' (played by Defendant Chau) was 'Chef Chow' of the famous Mr. Chow restaurants, or that he was the son or brother of the real Mr. Chow," the suit reads.

It claims that Morfogen has a pattern of trading on the name and profile of well-established restaurants and has been sued for the practice before. Morfogen opened a restaurant in New York City called "Sea Grill of the Aegean" and was sued by the owners of Rockefeller Center's "Sea Grill" in 1997.

He admitted to TheWrap that he settled the case and agreed to take Grill out of the restaurant's name.
"They paid us to change the name and we settled," Morfogen told TheWrap.

Mr. Chow has six locations in Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, Las Vegas, and London. The original eatery opened in London in 1968, with the Beverly Hills outpost following in 1974.

Philippe Chow launched in 2005 and has established outposts in West Hollywood, Boca Raton, Fla., Miami Beach, New York City, Jericho, N.Y., and Mexico City.

EEOC Files Age Discrimination Suit Against Texas Roadhouse

To contact us Click HERE
BOSTON – Texas Roadhouse, a national, Kentucky-based restaurant chain, has engaged in a nationwide pattern or practice of age discrimination in hiring hourly, “front of the house” employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

The EEOC’s lawsuit, Civil Action No. 1:11-cv-11732-DJC, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleged that since at least 2007, Texas Roadhouse has been discriminating against a class of applicants for “front of the house” and other public, visible positions, such as servers, hosts, and bartenders, by failing to hire them because of their age, 40 years and older.

“The number of age discrimination charges filed with the EEOC has risen significantly over the years, which prompted the Commission to conduct a meeting on the subject last December” said Jacqueline A. Berrien, Chair of the EEOC. “Denying jobs to qualified applicants who are over 40 years old on account of their age is illegal, and as we heard during the Commission meeting, it can have devastating consequences for older workers and their families.”

The EEOC alleged that Texas Roadhouse has hired significantly few “front of the house” employees 40 or older in age. In addition, Texas Roadhouse allegedly instructed its managers to hire younger job applicants. For example, Texas Roadhouse emphasized youth when training managers about hiring employees for its restaurants. All of the images of employees in its training and employment manuals are of young people.

“It is important in this difficult economic climate that we redouble our nation’s commitment to the principle of nondiscrimination in the workplace,” said P. David Lopez, General Counsel of the EEOC. “As a national law enforcement agency, the EEOC will vigorously protect the rights of job applicants to ensure that hiring decisions are based on abilities, not age.”

The Commission also alleged that Texas Roadhouse’s hiring officials have told older unsuccessful applicants across the nation that “there are younger people here who can grow with the company;” “you seem older to be applying for this job” and “do you think you would fit in?” Officials also said that the restaurant was “a younger set environment;” “we are looking for people on the younger side... but you have a lot of experience;” and “how do you feel about working with younger people?”

Age discrimination violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The agency seeks monetary relief for all applicants denied employment because of their age, the adoption of strong policies and procedures to remedy and prevent age discrimination by Texas Roadhouse, training on discrimination for its managers and employees, and more.

“Restaurants may not refuse to consider older workers as applicants merely because of their age,” said Elizabeth Grossman, Regional Attorney for the New York District Office.

“Applicants rarely know that they have been denied a job because of their age,” added Mark Penzel, Senior Trial Attorney in EEOC’s Boston Office. “When the Commission uncovers such evidence, it will act aggressively to remedy the violation.”

Individuals who believe they may have been denied a position at Texas Roadhouse because of their age or who have any information that would be helpful to the EEOC’s suit against Texas Roadhouse should contact the EEOC toll free at             (855) 556-1129 or by e-mail at texasroadhouse.lawsuit@eeoc.gov or contact the Law Office of Lowell J. Kuvin at (305) 358-6800 or email at lowell@kuvinlaw.com.

Fighting Over "Discriminatory" Business Practices; Who Can Best Objectify Women? Hooters, Twin Peaks?

To contact us Click HERE
WASHINGTON -- Hooters, the restaurant chain famous for its scantily clad Hooters Girls, sued the partner of an upstart rival in Georgia federal court this week, accusing the company developing Twin Peaks restaurants and a former Hooters executive of stealing trade secrets in their bid to take on the “delightfully tacky yet unrefined” restaurant chain.

In their lawsuit, Hooters claims that Joseph Hummel, former Hooters vice president, jumped ship to help develop the similarly themed Twin Peaks restaurants (motto: “Eats, Drinks, Scenic Views”) in July and took “sensitive business information” with him. The alleged trade secrets apparently involve more than just skimpy waitress outfits. According to the suit, in the weeks leading up to his departure to Twin Peaks development partner La Cima Restaurants, Hummel downloaded and emailed to his private account a “substantial volume” of Hooters documents, including plans related to management, recruitment, distribution and sales.

Although Hooters has more than 400 locations throughout the country, the two so-called breastaurant companies could soon have a rivalry in Georgia and other parts of the Southeast. According to the lawsuit, Hummel’s departure coincided with a number of other high-ranking defections from Hooters to La Cima, including former Hooters CEO Coby Brooks. Hummel is now chief operating officer at La Cima, which, like Hooters, is based in Atlanta.



A lawyer for Hooters referred questions to a Hooters spokesman, who could not be reached. A lawyer for La Cima did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Twin Peaks currently has 15 restaurants in five states, but last month it announced plans to open 35 franchises throughout the Southeast over the course of the next decade. Judging from the company’s website, the restaurants share many similarities with the better-known Hooters -- namely, chicken wings in the fryer, Ultimate Fighting Championship fights on the big screen, and precious little clothing on the servers. But whereas Hooters waitresses don the trademark white tank tops and orange short shorts, Twin Peaks servers tend to wear a mountain-themed ensemble of flannel bikini-like tops paired with tan hiker shorts.

In the lawsuit, Hooters says their “iconic” Hooters Girls are the “cornerstone of the [Hooters] concept,” and notes that “Twin Peaks directly competes with [Hooters] in the market of casual dining restaurants with an all female waitstaff.” Hummel recently told the Atlanta Business Chronicle that within the next seven years Twin Peaks expects to launch as many as seven franchises in the Atlanta area, going head to head with Hooters at its core. He also said the chain would differentiate itself from its competitor, saying Twin Peaks “brings a different feel, a different makeup of food.”

In their efforts to expand, Twin Peaks has apparently had a hard time avoiding lawsuits with other restaurants whose names play on breasts. In 2009, the chain’s parent company sued a competitor called Grand Tetons LLC in federal court in Texas, claiming that the company’s plans to open a restaurant in Arkansas called Northern Exposure infringed on Twin Peaks’ “trade dress.”

Have you worked at a Hooters before? If so, we'd like to hear about your experiences. Email lowell@kuvinlaw.com

Banker's One Percent Tip (1%) On $133.54 Check; "Get A Real Job"

To contact us Click HERE


(LAIST) In the food service industry, bad tippers sometimes live on in infamy. Entire books have been written about the plight of the waiter or waitress who gets left pennies that don't come near the standard 15-20% tip that is typical on a dining check.

One diner at a Newport Beach restaurant, however, used a recent $133.54 tab to express his disdain for his server's line of work by leaving a 1% tip and a note: "GET A REAL JOB."

According to the anonymous blogger of a just-launched site called Future Ex-Banker, his boss at a very large corporate bank hates hearing about the "99%" represented by the Occupy movement and shows his hatred by tipping a measly 1%.

To illustrate this, Future Ex-Banker posted a photo of a recent receipt from True Food Kitchen in Newport Beach showing his boss' meager tip and "advice" for a server named Breanna.

The blogger writes: "Mention the “99%” in my boss’ presence and feel his wrath. So proudly does he wear his 1% badge of honor that he tips exactly 1% every time he feels the server doesn’t sufficiently bow down to his Holiness. Oh, and he always makes sure to include a “tip” of his own."

A hostess who picked up the phone at True Food Kitchen said she had heard about the receipt, but she wouldn't say whether it was real or whether the workers remembered a customer like this.

"I am aware, but we have no statement on the issue," she said. "I'm not sure if it's a fake or not."

She did, however, confirm that the restaurant employs a waitress named Breanna, who is listed on the receipt.

Here is a pdf of the Blog from Future Ex Banker: Future Ex Banker Blog

Minnesota Waitress Sues After Police Seize $12,000 'Tip'

To contact us Click HERE

Stacy Knutson, a struggling Minnesota waitress and mother of five, says she was searching for a "miracle" to help her family with financial problems.

But that "miracle" quickly came and went after police seized a $12,000 tip that was left at her table. Knutson filed a lawsuit in Clay County District Court stating that the money is rightfully hers. Police argue it is drug money.

Knutson was working at the Fryn' Pan in Moorhead, Minn., when, according to her attorney, Craig Richie, a woman left a to-go box from another restaurant on the table. Knutson followed the woman to her car to return the box to her.

"No I am good, you keep it," the woman said, according to the lawsuit.

Knutson did not know the woman and has not seen her since, Richie said. Knutson thought it was "strange" that the woman told her to keep it but she took it inside. The box felt too heavy to be leftovers, Ritchie said, so she opened it -- only to find bundles of cash wrapped in rubber bands.

"Even though I desperately needed the money as my husband and I have five children, I feel I did the right thing by calling the Moorhead Police," Knutson said in the lawsuit.

Police seized the money and originally told Knutson that if no one claimed it after 60 days, it was hers. She was later told 90 days, Richie said. When 90 days passed, Knutson was still without the $12,000.
Police told Knutson the money was being held as "drug money" and she would receive a $1,000 reward instead, the lawsuit states. Lt. Tory Jacobson of the Moorhead police said he could not disclose much information about the case because it is an ongoing investigation.

"With turning this money over to us, we initiated an investigation to determine whose money this is," Jacobson told ABC News. "The result has been a narcotics investigation."

Police argue that the money had a strong odor of marijuana and therefore falls under a law that allows for forfeiture of the money because it was in the proximity of a controlled substance, the lawsuit states. But there were no drugs in the box and Richie said he believes this law is not being used correctly.

"Because it was in contact with drugs somewhere along the line, it's somehow drug money," Richie said. "This isn't drug money."

A police dog also performed a sniff test on the money and, according to the dog's handler, discovered an odor.

Two of Knutson's co-workers, along with her son Brandon, were at the Fryn' Pan the night she discovered the money. Her co-workers say they did not smell marijuana.

"I know the smell of marijuana," Nickolas Fronning, a line cook at the Fryn' Pan, said in an affidavit. "I can also assure you that there was no smell of marijuana on the bills or coming from the box."

There was nothing suspicious in the restaurant when the money was found, co-workers said. They don't why it was given to Knutson.

"She was just in the right place at the right time," Tracy Johnson, the assistant manager at the Fryn' Pan, told ABC News.

Knutson's family has had a long financial struggle. She has been a waitress at the Fryn' Pan for 18 years.
"We do everything we can to make ends meet, but often times everything is not covered," she said in the lawsuit.

Knutson's financial woes are well-known in her church, Richie said. She believes that perhaps someone from the church gave her the money through this woman but did not want to be identified.
"Somebody knew she really needed the money and she needed to be helped," Richie said.
Jacobson says it is up to the judge to decide who the money rightfully belongs to.

"The police department doesn't have a decision on either side," Jacobson said. "She did the right thing, we credit her with that. It's certainly not the police department against her. We're actually with her."
But Richie said he firmly believes this is not drug money and it rightfully belongs to Knutson.
"The only thing that smells bad about this is that it's unfair," Richie said. "So that's why we're doing something about it."

Lindsey Graham "more concerned than I was before" about Susan Rice.

To contact us Click HERE
And he "wouldn’t vote for anybody being nominated out of the Benghazi debacle until I had answers about what happened that I don’t have today."

Shouldn't Rice be better at conciliation if she's got what it takes to be Secretary of State?

CORRECTION: Originally, I'd attributed the quote in the headline to McCain, one of the 2 Senators at the meeting with Rice. (The other Senator was Ayotte.)

"Jake from ‘Two and a Half Men’ means nothing. He is a nonexistent character."

To contact us Click HERE
"If you watch ‘Two and a Half Men,’ please stop watching ‘Two and a Half Men.’ I’m on ‘Two and a Half Men’ and I don’t want to be on it."

Angus T. Jones denounces his own show, based on religion. Quit the show then, man. What kind of religion is this, where you blame people for consuming the "filth" — his word — in which you are deeply embedded? If you don't know you can walk away from the show, then I wonder whether you know you can walk away from the religion.

Suing the psychotherapists who offered to cure homosexuality.

To contact us Click HERE
The claim is consumer fraud.

The former clients said they were emotionally scarred by false promises of inner transformation and humiliating techniques that included stripping naked in front of the counselor and beating effigies of their mothers. They paid thousands of dollars in fees over time, they said, only to be told that the lack of change in their sexual feelings was their own fault....

Since the 1970s, when mainstream mental health associations stopped branding homosexuality as a disorder, a small network of renegade therapists, conservative religious leaders and self-identified “life coaches” has continued to argue that it is not inborn, but an aberration rooted in childhood trauma. Homosexuality is caused, these therapists say, by a stifling of normal masculine development, often by distant fathers and overbearing mothers or by early sexual abuse.

There's a lot of ineffective counseling out there. At what point do you call it consumer fraud and dole out damages to the patients who volunteered for it and emerged with new problems or the same problems/nonproblems they began with?

“The defendants peddled antigay pseudoscience, defaming gay people as loathsome and deranged,” said Sam Wolfe, a lawyer with the [Southern Poverty Law Center].

In the mental health (and religion) field, where does the science end and the pseudoscience begin? Freudian therapy is pseudoscience, isn't it? How about getting all the psychiatrists of the world to cough up all the fees they've collected over the decades?

Obviously, Wolfe begins with the position that the perceived problem is not a problem, and he has no sympathy for those who offer to cure the nonproblem and is uninhibited in his efforts to pump up hatred of those terrible bigots. Loathsome! Deranged!

We can find more civil, moderate, and non-litigious approaches to ending the pain caused by these misguided attempts at reorienting sexuality. I recommend more science, more conversation, more intelligence, more empathy... for everyone.

Chris Larson upsets Jon Erpenbach to become the Wisconsin Senate minority leader.

To contact us Click HERE
This is very intra-Wisconsin, but you may have seen Instapundit's item "DEMOCRATIC WHITE MALE SENATORS CONSPIRE to block a black woman’s committee chairmanship. In Wisconsin" ... which links to a somewhat abstruse Charlie Sykes piece about state senator Bob Wirch breaking "his promise to vote for Senator Jon Erpenbach" supposedly to get the seat that Lena Taylor would otherwise have on the joint finance committee. (She wouldn't continue as chairwoman, in any case, because her party is going into the minority.)  Taylor is black, and these are all Democrats interacting with each other, which gives the conservative Sykes an opportunity to inflict a little pain.

But Taylor is a specific person, not merely a member of a minority group, and there's some real detail to the power moves among these Wisconsin Senate Democrats. Though I live in the Wisconsin state capital, I don't obsess over the Wisconsin Senate, but here's Bruce Murphy at Urban Milwaukee providing some background on Larson, who's only been in the senate since 2010 (when he beat the incumbent Democrat (Jeff Plale) in the primary with 61% of the vote). Now, he's beaten long-term senator Jon Erpenbach to be minority leader. That's a big deal!

Adding... controversy to Erpenbach’s defeat was that a last minute switch by one legislator gave Larson his victory. Insiders have speculated that State Sen. Bob Wirch (D-Pleasant Prairie) changed his vote. Wirch declined to confirm this, but did tell Wispolitics he wanted an appointment to the joint finance committee. No sooner was Larson elected than he appointed Wirch to joint finance, along with Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse).

In giving Wirch the position, Larson dropped Milwaukee state Sen. Lena Taylor from joint finance. Taylor decried this, noting that its the first time in 30 years there was no African American on joint finance. Larson and Taylor have butted heads before. Taylor supported Plale against Larson and probably supported Erpenbach over Larson.

The two were also on opposite sides on legislative elections. Taylor supported Millie Coby against incumbent Sandy Pasch, Elizabeth Coggs against Nikiya Harris and Jason Fields against Mandela Barnes in the September primaries. All three of her candidates lost, all to candidates supported by Larson.

Then there is the question of Taylor’s effectiveness. A February 2009 Milwaukee Magazine ranking of all state legislators by Marc Eisen ranked Taylor as one of the ten worst legislators. With Republicans controlling both houses, they get 12 of 16 appointments to joint finance, so the outnumbered Democrats need very strong choices. Larson gets only two appointments, and his two picks, Wirch and Shilling, both have more than a dozen years experience in the legislature.

Boldface added. Lena Taylor is not Generic Black Woman. She is (apparently) a bad legislator and she's been opposed to Larson politically, repeatedly. So now she's on the outs and she's trying to play the race card. Some conservatives think it's too fun not to play.

For Mother's Day

To contact us Click HERE
I posted this prayer last year for Mother's Day and like it so much I decided to post it again.

Wherever you are in your mothering journey, I wish you peace on Mother's Day.

Today we bless mothers who sat up all night with sick toddlers saying, "It's OK honey, Mommy's here.

Today we bless mothers who gave birth to babies they may never see. And the mothers who took those babies forever to be their own children.

Today we bless mothers who attended ball games, recitals, rehearsals, etc. etc. and said, "I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and meant it.

Today we bless mothers who show up for work with milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.

Today we bless mothers who put pinwheels, teddy bears, or flowers on children's graves.

Today we bless mothers whose children have gone astray, who haven't the words to reach them, and yet have never put them from their heart.

Today we bless new mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation. And today we bless mature mothers who are learning to let go.

Today we bless all mothers: working mothers, stay-at-home mothers, single mothers, and married mothers. We also bless all women in life giving and nurturing roles. We thank you. We honor you. We bless you. Amen.
- adapted from a prayer of Dan Bottorff

"The Humboldt Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research at Humboldt State University plans to sponsor scholarly lectures..."

To contact us Click HERE
"... and coordinate research among 11 faculty members from fields such as economics, geography, politics, psychology and sociology."

Is this bad?
	No. It's the likely/possible future. Get ready. Lots of economic prospects here.
	Yes. Until the feds end restrictions, decent institutions should treat it as off limits.
	Not sure. An institution takes a risk branding itself this way.
pollcode.com free polls

If DOMA is unconstitutional, what kind of past employee benefits will need to be paid?

To contact us Click HERE
Don't assume the effect of a new decision with be only prospective. Consider this report of a ruling by the Judicial Council of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals:

... Christopher Nathan, 39, of San Francisco, a law clerk for U.S. Magistrate Maria Elena James, sought [health insurance] coverage for his spouse, Thomas Alexander, 40.... [H]e was turned down by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts because the 1996 law bars federal recognition of same-sex unions.

In April, Chief U.S. District Judge James Ware said the denial violated the federal court's rules against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender, and ordered the court to reimburse Nathan for the costs of buying private insurance.

The Judicial Council, the final authority in the administrative review process, went a step further in this week's order and said DOMA has been held unconstitutional by a San Francisco federal judge in another employee's case. The three-judge panel ordered the court [that is, his employer] to determine how much it owes Nathan and then pay him within 10 days.

"Time honors Sandra Fluke as 'Person of the Year' finalist."

To contact us Click HERE
That's the Breitbart headline for an item that begins "Just when you think Time magazine can’t make any more of a mockery of itself...." But there are 40 individuals on Time's "Who Should Be TIME's Person of the Year 2012?" which gives readers a chance to vote. Included on this list are many minor newsworthy figures and many whose contributions were not clearly positive. Bashar Assad and Kim Jong Un are on the list — "honored." Nice by not really world-changing figures like gymnast Gabrielle Douglas are included.  The click-through gallery is in alphabetical order, and the first picture that hits you is a conservative old white guy, Sheldon Adelson. Now, he's not presented in a positive light:

In the post-Citizens United era, Sheldon Adelson became the public face of what critics cast as a plutocrat class trying to buy U.S. elections. But it's not clear how much the conservative casino magnate got for his money — other than a heap of bad press.

Time's perspective is obviously liberal, but within that perspective, it's quite a concession to say that Citizens United hasn't been a horror show.

Anyway, Time made an effort to amass an interesting list of people who made the news for different reasons or who represent different cultural and demographic sectors. There's E.L. James and Jay-Z and Psy. Did they "influence the news" (Time's stated standard)? The real problem here is that it seems that Barack Obama is the necessary choice for 2012, and that's simply too boring.

And in fact, he is not winning in the readers poll. The readers have decisively chosen Malala Yousafzai. She has the least negative votes ("no way") and is coming in 3d on positive votes ("definitely"). Ahead of her on the positive list are Mohamed Morsy and — I guess the vote-for-the-worst crowd is out in force — Kim Jong Un. Malala Yousafzai is the face in the gallery that makes your heart zing. I clicked through the whole thing without feeling like hitting a definitely/no way button until I got to her. I still didn't vote, of course. (My female heart is well-defended against the outreached arms of commercial media.)

Sandra Fluke's no votes far exceed yes votes —  24,809/9,356  — but I would guess that outrage from the Breitbart crowd will now skew the vote. I don't know which way, but for Time, traffic is traffic and it will experience a nice boost from the inclusion of Fluke. The "Person of the Year" event — and this post gets my "annual nonsense" tag — is a nice commercial gambit for Time. So:

Who made a mockery of itself?
	Time
	Breitbart.com
	Both
	Neither
pollcode.com free polls

"'Black dog' is a powerfully expressive metaphor" for depression "that appears to require no explanation."

To contact us Click HERE
"The combination of ‘blackness’ with the negative connotations of ‘dog’, noun and verb, seems an eminently apt description of depression: an ever-present companion, lurking in the shadows just out of sight, growling, vaguely menacing, always on the alert; sinister and unpredictable, capable of overwhelming you at any moment. Further, the ‘dark hound’ is an archetypal object of fear, with a long tradition in folklore and myth. Black dogs in dreams are interpreted negatively, often representing death; from all over the world come tales of nightmares caused by oppressive black dogs crushing the sleeper’s chest."

The first paragraph in the essay that won a competition — by the Black Dog Institute — on the theme of "the history of the term ‘black dog’ as a description for depression." Like many, I traced the metaphor to Winston Churchill, but he was a late entry in a long tradition.

The topic came up this morning at Meadhouse, which is brightened this morning — and many mornings — by the presence of Zeus, the neighbors' black Labrador Retriever. I've heard that there's prejudice against black dogs. They're least likely to be chosen from amongst the abandoned shelter dogs, most likely to get put down. Ah, yes: black dog syndrome. Some people jump to the conclusion that it's racist. But it seems more likely that people experience the black dog metaphorically. It's deptression.

(Another really practical explanation is that black dogs don't photograph well, so it's harder for shelters to interest people in their black dogs. But since people love to photograph their dogs, maybe you should prefer a dog that photographs well.)

Recycling your turkey-frying oil in Madison, Wisconsin for the greater good of America and the world.

To contact us Click HERE
A City of Madison news release:

"We know that there are many people who have lots of oil left over after frying their Thanksgiving turkey," Madison recycling coordinator George Dreckmann said. "We are very excited to be able to offer them a chance to turn that old cooking oil into fuel for cars and trucks in our area."

Dreckmann — a euonym! The Oxford English Dictionary defines "dreck" — from Yiddish drek (German dreck) filth, dregs, dung — as "Rubbish, trash, worthless debris":

1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. 491 Farewell. Fare thee well. Dreck!
1947 Horizon Feb. 90 The anonymous countryside littered with heterogeneous dreck.
1965 E. Lacy Double Trouble v. 58 Drek your dolls are!.. I wouldn't stick my customers with such junk!...

Back to the press release:

"Every year thousands of gallons of old cooking oil is tossed in the landfill or flushed down the drain. Since we began our cooking oil program we have recovered over thousands [sic] of cooking oil" Dreckmann said. "Now we can recover this resource and use it to reduce our reliance on foreign oil and cut air pollution."

Cooking oil must be brought to the 1501 W. Badger Rd. or 4602 Sycamore Av....

So hundreds/thousands of citizens with their gallon jugs of used oil will get in their cars and drive to the oil collection site and then various unseen processes will be applied to convert that stuff into something useful. Is there a net benefit to the environment and to the American economy? I don't know, but think how wonderful it is that the nice people of Madison can feel good about themselves (after they went ahead and deep-fried the turkey instead of just roasting it).

Oh, Althouse, why are you so cynical?!  I'm sorry. Let me paint a different picture. The turkey-frying Madisonian hangs gallon jugs of used oil on his handlebars and bikes down South Park Street to Badger Road.

I Quit my Old Job and Now I was Laid Off From my New Job - am I Eligible For Unemployment in Pennsylvania?

To contact us Click HERE
Yes, in some cases.

In order to evaluate this situation, one must understand several terms and principles common to PA unemployment law.

First, if you had a job offer in hand from the new prospective employer when you quit your job, then you are deemed to have quit with anecessitous and compelling reason and would be eligible for unemployment benefits.

If you did not have an offer of employmenmt from the new employer in hand when you quit, you may need to prove that you had necessitous and compelling reason to quit the old job UNLESS you earned 6x your weekly benefit rate from your new job before you were laid off from your new job.

Under either of the above scenarios, your old employer may try to fight your claim by filing for Relief From Charges.  To understand whether you need to fight that, you need to understand how your  Base Year earnings are calculated.

In short order, though, if  you earned more than 6x your weekly benefit rate from your new job, you need not worry about fighting the request for Relief from Charges filed by your old employer.  If you did not, then you will have to fight your old employer by attending an Unemployment Hearing and proving you had a necessitous and compelling reason for quitting your old job.

More Questions about Pennsylvania Unemployment ?aw? Click Here to read our answers to your most FAQs.

What is a Necessitous and Compelling Reason for Quitting my Job Under Pennsylvania Unemployment Law?

To contact us Click HERE
YOU MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR UNEMPLOYMENT IN PA IF YOU QUIT YOUR JOB

If you quit your job, you may be eligible for PA unemployment benefits if you had a necessitous and compelling reason to quit.  Here are some of the most common examples of a necessitous and compelling reason to quit your job:
 
1) demotion (typically with resultant significant reduction in earnings);

2) transfer to a different job location that creates a hardship (likely the job will have to be more than 50 miles away);

3) significant change in work hours resulting in significant hardship (think: working overnights, or having to get new child care);

4) significant (negative) change in compensation (think:  more than 25%);

5) significant change in job responsibilities (must be a demeaning-type change);

6) a geographic change by your spouse for a new job that requires you to quit so that you may move along with him/her;

7) a job offer from a different employer (you must have the offer in hand before you quit your job);
and,

8) persistent and significant mistreatment by a boss or employee that continues despite you bringing the issue to the attention of management (this is the most common reason for quitting -most people refer to this as a "hostile work environment;" it is also the most difficult situation to deal with when seeking unemployment).

Other questions concerning PA Unemployment Law?  Click Here to jump to our answers to your FAQs.

Franklin & Marshall Women's Lacrosse Coaches' Press Release re: Hazing Incident

To contact us Click HERE
Lauren Paul Fired; Caitlin Powderly and Lidia Sanza Placed on Indefinite Leave in F & M Lacrosse Scandal

John A. Gallagher, Esquire has been retained to represent these coaches.  Here is a Press Release on behalf of the coaches:

Neither F &M woman’s lacrosse Head Coach Lauren Paul, nor her Assistant Coaches, Caitlin  Powderly and Lidia Sanza, had knowledge of or involvement in the March 11, 2011 incident giving rise to their present circumstances, and do not condone hazing in any form.  If they had known that hazing occurred in March 2011, if it occurred, they would have taken corrective action. 

The facts of this matter are important for the public to understand.
In early February 2012, Coach Paul made cuts from her team in the ordinary course.  Soon after, the parents of one of the cut players registered a complaint about a student-led event in March 2011, eleven months prior.  This incident, about which no details have been released to Ms. Paul or her assistants, has since been categorized as “hazing.”  It is unknown whether the parents in question made any sort of threats to the college.
After hearing of the March 2011 event in mid-February 2012, the administration took virtually no steps to investigate same until April 6th, 2012.  It is unknown what action the complaining parents, or their lawyer, took during this period of inactivity.
F&M thereafter began an “investigation” wherein the student-athletes were instructed not to speak with their parents, and told they did not need to seek representation of any kind.  This investigation was procedurally flawed in many significant respects. 
Although F & M fired Ms. Paul, placed her assistants on leave of absence (a particularly curious decision where Ms. Sanza is concerned, since she wasn’t even coaching F & M in March 2011) and suspended 11 student athletes from the team on April 17, the investigation was on that date still ongoing.
It appears that F & M elected to release news of these sanctions to the public on April 18, 2012.  It is unknown if this release was made solely at the election of F & M, or to satisfy the demands of third-parties. The initial press releases were accompanied by statements from F & M that sought to blame Ms. Paul, and her assistants, for the March 2011 events.
The college acknowledged in writing that, as of Friday, April 20, 2012, the investigation was still ongoing. Why F & M chose to fire Ms. Paul, and to zealously publish the news of such firing, while its investigation was still ongoing, is a matter that only F & M and its lawyers can answer.
Earlier this week, and having completed its investigation, F & M decided to invite the 11 suspended players back on to the team.  None of the suspended players were suspended or expelled from the college. Interestingly, the suspended players have rejected the college’s invitation to rejoin the team. 
Ms. Paul understands that F & M takes its Student Code of Conduct very seriously, and that it enforces same vigorously when students have engaged in violations that threaten the mental or physical safety of its students.  The decision to reinstate the suspended players, coupled with the absence of any meaningful student discipline being pursued or carried out, particularly when viewed through the prism of F & M’s stated principles where student well-being is concerned, clearly suggest that whatever occurred in March 2011 did not constitute “hazing.”
Ms. Paul's goal moving forward is to have a fulfilling and rewarding career. Ms. Powderly and Ms. Sanza share that ideal. While the coaches believe the actions taken against them were rash and wholly unwarranted, they understand that F & M, having published the reports concerning same, is unlikely to change its mind at this time.  Consequently, they are presently considering their vocational and legal options. 

Join the Petition Seeking Reinstatement of Coach Lauren Paul
There is a strong grass roots campaign advocating the rescission of the termination of Ms. Paul, and her reinstatement as F & M Head Coach.  Please Click Here to sign a Petition supporting this important cause in the name of what is just and right.

Footnote: The remaining members of the F & M lacrosse team elected on Friday April 27 not to play in the Centennial Conference tournament, thereby foregoing a near surefire NCAAA tournament bid for the 10th ranked Diplomats. These student athletes are a credit to themselves, their parents and families, and to Coach Paul and her staff.

Joe Paterno Used E-Mail - Sandi Segursky's E-Mail

To contact us Click HERE
Recently, the attorney for the Paterno family said that Joe Paterno never used e-mail.  But, he did.

A recent report indicates that, while dealing with a 2007 controversey involving player misconduct, Mr. Paterno utilized the e-mail account of his assistant, Sandi Segursky. 

This new additional information that shows just how crafty PSU officials were - and how little they can be trusted.  More sophisticated than you would imagine, in fact.

For example, the 2001 e-mail exchanges between PSU President Gram Spanier, Athletic Director Tim Curly and Vice President Schultz, wherein they discuss what to do about Monster Sandusky after he was seen molesting a boty in the shower by then grad assistant Mike McQueary are notable because:  1) they never used Sandusky's name (calling him "the subject" or "the person"; 2) they never used the name of Sandusky's charity, the Second Mile; and, 3)  they never used the word children (calling them "guests").

They also reported intially that the shower incident took place in March 2002.  It wasn't until Louis Freeh stepped in that it was recently revealed that the incident took place in February 2001.

They clearly engaged in all of these tactics to avoid detection but, in the end, Louis Freeh was smarter than they were.

Joe Paterno's New Ranking - All-Time Wins

To contact us Click HERE
Having had 111 wins wiped out by the NCAA (all wins from 1998 through 2011 vacated by NCAA on July 23, 2012), the new rankings for the all-time winningest coaches in NCAA Division I college football history look like this:

The New Leader - Bobby Bowden 377

JoePa Never Could Beat Bear Bryant - 323

Pop Warner (not Curt) - 319

Amos Alonzo Stagg - 314

On the Day He Set the New Record with Win 409 - Now at 298

"Power-hungry Bay State Democrats — eyeing another potential Senate opening if U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry joins the Obama Cabinet..."

To contact us Click HERE
"... are quietly discussing reinstating a 2004 law that would let Gov. Deval Patrick appoint a permanent replacement to help keep the seat under party control until at least 2014."

... The move comes eight years after Democratic lawmakers stripped then-Gov. Mitt Romney of his appointment powers in an effort to keep Republicans out of the office, and three years after they changed the law again to let Patrick appoint a temporary replacement.

"We write ethically when, as a matter of principle, we would trade places with our intended readers..."

To contact us Click HERE
"... and experience the consequences they do after they read our writing...."

Those who write in ways that seem dense and convoluted rarely think they do....

The ethics of writing are clearer when writers knowingly use language not to further their readers’ interests but to disguise their own....

A more complicated ethical issue is how we should respond to those who know they write in a complex style, but claim they must, because they are breaking new intellectual ground. Are they right, or is that self-serving rationalization? This is a vexing question, not just because we can settle it only case-by-case, but because we may not be able to settle some cases at all, at least not to everyone’s satisfaction.

Joseph M. Williams, "Style: The Basics of Clarity and Grace."

This makes me think about legal opinions, but there is so much more. Imagine if, whenever we wrote, we thought about ethics.

"He doesn't like living in NYC and says he would love to move west, but people in New York seem to believe that it is the only place to get a job."

To contact us Click HERE
A mother asks an economist — Dan Ariely — for advice, and what she gets contains some helpful general concepts for all sorts of decisionmakers:

I suspect your son is suffering from two decision biases. One, the status quo bias, has to do with our tendency to take our current situation as our reference point and to see any change as negative (or at least difficult) and with a high potential for regret. The second, the unchangeability bias, is the idea that when we face large decisions that seem to be immutable (getting married, having kids, moving to a distant place), the permanence of these decisions makes them seem even larger and more frightening. With these two biases combined, it's only natural that your son is apprehensive about moving West....

The the status quo bias and the unchangeability bias... that slots right into my own thinking about a couple major life decisions.

(The link goes to the Wall Street Journal, and here's an alternate link to the same item on Ariely's blog. It's a hassle not to be able to get useful links from the WSJ going to articles that I'm able to see as a subscriber. It makes having a subscription partly a disadvantage. I can find things I want to show you, but I can't easily tell if you'll be able to see them. A NYT subscription doesn't work like that.)

"It is obvious that none of you has the faintest notion of the bitter disappointment each of you has in your own way dished out to us."

To contact us Click HERE
A father writes to his adult children:

We are seeing the miserable death throes of the fourth of your collective marriages at the same time we see the advent of a fifth.

We are constantly regaled with chapter and verse of the happy, successful lives of the families of our friends and relatives and being asked of news of our own children and grandchildren. I wonder if you realise how we feel — we have nothing to say which reflects any credit on you or us....

Fulfilling careers based on your educations would have helped — but as yet none of you is what I would confidently term properly self-supporting....

None of you has done yourself, or given to us, the basic courtesy to ask us what we think while there was still time finally to think things through. The predictable result has been a decade of deep unhappiness over the fates of our grandchildren. If it wasn't for them, Mum and I would not be too concerned, as each of you consciously, and with eyes wide open, crashes from one cock-up to the next. It makes us weak that so many of these events are copulation-driven, and then helplessly to see these lovely little people being so woefully let down by you, their parents....

More at the link, plus this story about the man (Nick Crews), the kids that have disappointed him, how his email got shared with the world, and the world's response (embrace!).

Crews has been swamped with encouraging messages from friends and former colleagues. “They’re saying, ‘I feel exactly the same about my children.’ Or, ‘You’ve said what I wish I’d said a long time ago.’”...

“I bought into the fashionable philosophy of not interfering; letting the children find themselves. When they were getting into trouble — at school, or later with their relationships — I would just bite my lip and tell myself, ‘Don’t butt in, it’s their lives.’”...

"I was trying to express my frustration at these wonderful grown-ups who had yet to make the best of what they had. They have read the criticism, but not seen the enduring love through the lines.”

He pauses: “I haven’t done well as a father, have I?”

Via Walter Russell Mead, via Instapundit.

Labor laws 101: Correct way of posting notices for employees’ protection

To contact us Click HERE


Companies post information on employees’ bulletin boardsoften. Employees don’t really pay attention to them so much though. Either theybriefly read them or simply walk pass them. Reality is they should read thesenotices from time to time regarding important labor laws.
Most of these labor laws postings are overlooked but theyare apparently mandated for obvious display by the federal and stategovernments. They require their contact numbers, content and details printed onthe posters so employees can contact them directly if there are any concerns orcomplaints. These pinpoint basically the protection of the employees working indifferent companies.
Labor Laws 101
There are several state and federal laws that states severalrequirements and prohibitions on companies. Employers are responsible to postvarious government labor laws notices in the workplace. There are severalcompanies who neglect to do so. The bulletin boards posts information regardingemployees’ rights under labor laws. They provide information on how to reportany incidents related to discrimination, issues with wage and other hourviolations that infringe the rights of the employees to the government.
These posters state information for employees on how tobring legal action against companies. The federal Fair Labor Standards Actrequires all employers to post federal minimum wage poster in an area usuallyvisited by employees. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHAregulations distinctively oblige employers and business owners to post afederal safety and health poster in the workplace.
Take note that there are several penalties if companies failto comply with government labor laws. Fines may range from $110 to $10,000.Companies who don't post these required notices or post old notices could bepunished with a fine up to $17,000.
Steps to follow for proper posting
·        Contact a private company whospecializes in labor law posters.These firms will do the research for the company. They will collect allrequired notices. They usually charge around $30 or more for posters but mostbusinesses are willing to pay this amount to research that takes a lot of time.
·        Post on visible locations of theoffice where all employees can read the notices all the time such as whereemployees time in or in their lunch areas. Also building lobbies or applicantareas are good options.
·     Always be updated with postings.Usually, agencies revised these types of posters often and states if the lawchanges, minimum wage increases, new court decisions and if there are some newprocedural requirements. 
·        Since the government has noobligation to notify them once they issue an updated version, stay updated byfrequently checking government websites or contact agencies directly to inquireregarding new postings.
·        Take note that these posters cannotbe changed, stolen or even defaced. It is better to laminate them or put themin glass cases to avoid the following.