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The masses will believe anything you tell them…

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

We’ve all seen the Lifelock commercials featuring CEO Todd Davis and his social security number. He claims that his company will protect you from identity theft and also remove you from junk mail lists. And if someone were to happen to still steal your identity, they have a $1,000,000 guarantee. It’s “so good” that topconsumerreviews.com states:

If you are concerned about identity theft, LifeLock will put your mind at ease. By taking the steps necessary to protect your identity, LifeLock provides a strong defense against identity thieves.

As part of their identity theft “prevention” they provide the following services:

      Send fraud alert notification to the credit bereaus- This places an Initial Security Alert on your credit report for 90 days. When potential creditors process a credit application to your name, they are required to verify your identification (usually by calling over a phone number) before approving your application. After that alert expires, they send in another alert to continue for another 90 days. This is something you can do entirely on your own for free.
      Opt-Out from junk mail lists and pre-approved credit card offers- This basically takes your name and address off of mailing lists that companies buy to send their advertisements to. This is something you can also do entirely on your own for free.
      Order free credit reports-Remember the bad lip syncing on the free credit report commercial? You can obtain your free credit report once every 12 months entirely on your own for free
      Notification of lost wallets-They will basically call every company that has a card in your wallet, call your bank for checks you have, and call the appropriate government office for replacement drivers licenses and social security cards to have what was in your wallet deactivated and to have new ones sent. This doesn’t include cash, photos or “other monies,” so really, you would be in the same situation you would have been in without the service. You can do all of this entirely on your own by calling the appropriate institution yourself. All you pay is whatever the independent institutions charge for such replacements, and you would have paid this had Lifelock assisted you with this too.
      Monitor “known criminal websites” that sell or trade personal information-Any idiot can accomplish this by searching entirely on your own for free
      Monitors national “address databases” for change of address requests-Too bad the USPS already thought of that one.

A little bit of independent research shows that this company is hell-bent on getting your money to do something you are easily capable of doing yourself. Oh, and the $1 million dollar guarantee? You don’t get any money back if someone steals your identity without your knowledge, they agree to spend up to $1 million dollars to “pay professionals to assist in restoring any such loss or recover such expenses, as required, provided however that the maximum limit of our Service Guarantee is $1 (one) million per lifetime for all incidents in the aggregate.” Yet another example of a conveniently worded advertising point that implys one thing, but really means another. You don’t actually get any money from them, you have to hope that their hired professionals, that they choose, will help you go through legal methods to get it back.

Congrats Todd! Your company helps supplant the lack of proactivity in the United States! Once again, we can pay someone else to take care of it, and even then it’s entirely something anybody could do themselves, mostly for free. And you don’t even give as thorough of a protection as you imply, you only “protect” against credit card fraud. I welcome you and your company to the Bullshit Corporation List!

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The Search for 6py7

Saturday, November 8, 2008

As with most everybody right now, there are times when we have to hold off on buying something that we really can survive without. I was debating not even renewing the hosting account and letting 6py7 fade away. I haven’t been updating it at all in recent history, but there have been a lot of things I wanted to talk about. It is amazing when you start to budget your money a little carefully, you also free up money to pay for random things like this.

A few things I wanted to write about but never did:
The Poopsmith broke his vow of silence for Strong Bad’s 200th email. There was an amazing election day. We have a fresh new outlook on the political landscape of the United States, and I am looking forward to the day when I can say I am proud of this country again. Not only did Petter’s group shit on their employees, it turns out their CEO, Tom Petters, is a crook.

And now the obligatory update on my life:
I’m registered for my last semester of college. I am ready for it to come, and at the same time I am also wanting to get the most out of every moment left. Real life is drastically approaching, and while I am a little apprehensive, I am mostly excited for what is ahead. The trick is to make sure I am doing everything I can now to make sure I get there with some momentum.

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I am sick of instructors that don’t get it

Saturday, September 20, 2008

I am taking an Intro. to Visual Communication this semester. This class is heavily based on Photoshop and taking pictures so far, so it is very computer-based. The problem? The instructor is clueless. A good portion of the class is handled through D2L, including the quizzes, however we complete those in-class. In her infinite wisdom last monday, her workstation wouldn’t log into the network. Nevermind the 20 students in the class who have successfully logged on, but she insisted that she go to her office on the other end of the building to activate the quiz. We had a group discussion about the quiz content, then were told we were going to take the quiz. She leaves the room with no further instruction. Suddenly a quiz is available, and for the most part we are waiting for her to return since we realized at this point we have already wasted a significant amount of time in a class that meets 1 day a week. She eventually comes back, we take the quiz, end of story. Right?

I log onto D2L and find this posted:

Because I was surprised to find that all of you took the quiz without my permission or instructions, and when I wasn’t in the room, and when some of you had books and notebooks open during the quiz, I averaged the results (17) and gave everyone who scored above the average a 17. Those who scored below kept their grade. The other option was to give everyone a zero. I chose to compromise.

Why is this a surprise? We take quizzes on D2L all the time. Your instructions were considerably vague, in fact completely lacking, as to when we should take the quiz. We see a quiz open up, and you are gone for at least another 10 minutes. If you didn’t want us to take the quiz “without [your] permission or instructions,” then common-sense dictates that you COMMUNICATE that. You can’t blame unexpected results on students when you have vague and non-existent communication about procedures.

This is only speaking for the people in my immediate vicinity, but I observed no one with an open book, and no one that started the quiz early. If someone was cheating, you need to address that with that specific student, not by reducing peoples’ legitimate grades.

You “chose to compromise?” What the hell is that supposed to mean? It would be one very clear-cut case if you gave the class very clear instructions along the lines of “Please do not begin the quiz until I return.” I don’t remember that happening.

This also coming from the teacher that stated I couldn’t use my camera because Sony’s memory cards are “proprietary.” She was under the impression that there was no way for me to plug my memory card in a card reader and upload my pictures. I guess the one problem with that is I work with digital photos all the time, and we have card readers for Sony memory sticks that are publicly available. The card itself may be proprietary, however there are still card readers available. Imagine my surprise when I plugged my card in the “Memory Stick” slot on the school’s card reader, and my pictures uploaded without a hitch.

In the loving tradition of my ed. classes before I dropped music ed., the following Wisconsin Teaching Standards apply to this:
1. Teachers know the subjects they are teaching. - The lack of knowledge about Memory Stick technology demonstrates the instructor is not knowledgeable of current technologies and their applied use.
6. Teachers communicate well. - As pointed out above, the instructor did not communicate expectations regarding the quiz about to be taken, which led to confusion on the part of the students regarding if her presence in the classroom was required before the quiz was to begin. Also, she chose not to identify this issue verbally in class right after it happened to prevent future instances, instead she posted the above quote electronically after class was over.
9. Teachers are able to evaluate themselves. - The instructor obviously had time to consider the situation when she posted the above message, but she makes no references to her actions in the situation. No one side is 100% at fault, however, she is trying to place 100% of the blame on the students. She is not evaluating her role in the situation, and what she could have done better to prevent it.

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Petters Group Worldwide doesn’t give a shit about its employees

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

In the wake of Wal-Mart’s recent labor issues in Minnesota, I am wondering how this is going to play out. Basically, Petters Group Worldwide (who owns Polaroid and a large part of Sun Country Airlines) acquired Metropolitan Media Group. About 50 workers were laid off, and at the same time they were told that they were not going to get the back pay or accrued vacation that they were supposed to get. Nobody in the corporate world seems to care.

In a FAQ given to laid-off employees, one question was “What about my pay?” The response was simply “MMG does not have the resources to make any further payments.” Are you kidding me?

I have no respect for any corporation that shits on its workers like this. If you need to lay people off, fine. That is undesirable, but it is a fact of life. However, don’t fuck them out of money that they earned and deserve.

It appears that the Minnesota Department of Labor is investigating according to a comment on the article. I say good. Andrea Miller, a spokesperson for Petters, has stated that paying the back pay and vacation was just something they couldn’t do under their current business plan. So basically, screwing people out of money is something acceptable in the corporate world if you have a business plan.

From the Cornerstones and Values page at Petter’s website, they state that integrity is one of their core values.

An invitation to an open and frank dialogue based on trust, commitment and truth. We confront problems directly and with respect and we do not misrepresent ourselves for personal gain or protection.

Way to stand up to your promises.

Petters, and every company it owns (which now includes Metropolitan Media Group) has earned a spot on my newly created Bullshit Corporation List. I can only hope for a quick resolution to this so the people affected can get what they earned.

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Star Tribune gives Wal-Mart some free press…

Saturday, July 19, 2008

I was astounded today to read in the Star Tribune that one of their columnists, Katherine Kersten, has basically given Wal-Mart some free advertising. The court system has well established that Wal-Mart needs significant improvement in their labor and ethics practices. However Kersten is trying to “remind” us why the company is really “benefiting” the economy.

Here are some of the statistics she provides for us:

The average wage for regular, full-time hourly Wal-Mart associates in our state is $11.30, according to Wal-Mart’s website, and employees are eligible for performance-based bonuses.

Let’s get one thing straight: there is no such thing as full-time in retail. Unless you are a department manager, you start around the $7-$8.50 depending on the location, and you are lucky to get 40 hours a week. Even then, you are not considered full-time, as in retail hours are not guaranteed. Did she ever think to actually ask a Wal-Mart employee at the pee-on level what their thoughts and experiences are? Of course not! This is the statistic taken directly from Wal-Mart’s website. Note that the average full-time wage is $11.30, not the average wage for all employees. Many retail employees work part-time.

Two-thirds of store managers were once hourly workers, according to the company.

This doesn’t mean two-thirds of all workers get promoted, it simply means that out of the people in management positions, one-third was hired from outside the company. This is a pretty meaningless statistic.

Its efficiencies sprang not from beating down workers…

I’ve heard stories from within a certain Wal-Mart that would have 2-3 workers to work out the freight from an entire truck. It is a commonly known fact in retail anywhere that retailers will get the fewest amount of people to do the most amount of work. It’s the sheer economics of it, if someone quits their job due to being disgruntled, there will be at least 5 people who have already applied and can be hired to fill the position, especially with the current economic state. And with as many labor law violations that company has had, I think it is safe to say that its efficiencies have indeed sprang from beating down workers. If a company’s employees are working off the clock to meet productivity standards, they are being taken advantage of.

Interestingly, the folks who hate Wal-Mart are often the sort who usually make a big deal about how much they care for low-income people. They make a mistake when they turn a blind eye on the achievements of this powerhouse for the poor.

What has this company achieved? The independent businesses that made every town so unique are now becoming a thing of the past. Competition is being minimized. Several manufacturing jobs have been outsourced simply because companies need to cut costs at the demand of Wal-Mart so they can sell at an even lower price. Workers are having their rights abused so the company can spend the bare minimum on payroll yet still meet productivity.

Wal-Mart is not a good company.

I have no idea why somebody would write an article like that with no independent information sources. All the information presented by Katherine was conveniently-worded propaganda that Wal-Mart wants you too look at and feel good about, or it was by an economist that sees this country as nothing but a bunch of numbers. A company that has abused the rights of its workers to the extent that it Wal-Mart has is not a good company. The sad thing is that low prices make 90% of this country ignorantly turn the other way.

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Always low prices, and even lower morals.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

It never fails to amaze me how people continue to flock in groves to Wal-Mart, despite several notable workers-rights violations against the company and for it’s aggressive strategy to convince product manufacturers to outsource their manufacturing just so Wal-Mart can sell it at a low price. Countless communities invite them into their town actually believing that being home to a Wal-Mart is ultimately a good thing for the welfare of its citizens. People fail to realize that as consumers we have a choice where our money goes, and that what might be cheap will probably cost you or society big-time in the long run.

In Minnesota yesterday a judge ruled in a Dakota County court that Wal-Mart committed over 2 million labor law violations from September of 1998 through January of 2004. Even worse is the fact that an internal company audit showed that the company had tens of thousands of violations in the time frame of just one week, and they didn’t do anything about it. During the opening statements attorney Justin Perl showed a video of a shareholder meeting in which a human resources vice predisent states “We know we do some things we probably shouldn’t do . . .”

The company is well aware of it’s practices, and it practically relies on them to maintain its bottom line. Of course they will never admit to such, and company spokesperson Daphne Moore tries to convince us otherwise by stating “Our policies are to pay every associate for every hour worked and make rest and meal breaks available for our associates. … Any manager who violates that policy is subject to discipline up to and including termination.”

So, if they truly have such a policy (and I’m sure it’s printed somewhere), then why are there so many notable labor cases against Wal-Mart in recent history? This isn’t the first, its one of 70 lawsuits nationwide that accuses Wal-Mart of forcing employees to work off the clock or miss breaks. In California in 2005, Wal-Mart lost a $172 million case for making employees miss meal breaks. In Pennsylvania in 2006 Wal-Mart lost another case for $78 million for making employees work off the clock and miss their breaks. That was later increased by a judge to $188 million in 2007.

Here is the exciting part of the Minnesota case. The judge ordered that the 56,000 members of the class action lawsuit were entitled to $3.6 million for breaks that they were entitled to according to the company’s employee handbook. He also ordered that Wal-Mart owed $1.6 million for 4.4 million violations of shorting employees on their 15 minute breaks. Wal-mart also broke state law by deducting minutes from workers pay when they went over their breaks for a few minutes. Under state law, this can not be done unless the break period is over 20 minutes. The judge found that this violation happened 1.5 million times, and can carry a civil penalty of $1000 per violation. He also found that Wal-Mart broke state law by failing to provide 73,864 meal breaks, and each of those violations could also carry a civil penalty of $1000 per violation. The civil penalties will be decided by jury in an October trial, where Wal-Mart could be required to pay up to $2 billion in labor law violations. In addition to that, the judge ruled that workers were not paid for 69,710 training shifts, and there were no records kept for 325,188 shifts (about 13 percent of all shifts).

The fact that this continues to happen and people still ignorantly buy cartloads full of low priced merchandise from this company is appalling. If you shop there, you are supporting their anti-labor law mentality. Low prices should not come at the expense of retail workers’ rights.

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Do you know what’s exciting about toast?

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Last December I, in my inebriated state, decided to add some excitement to the Wikipedia article about toast. Apparently this was not a quality addition to the academia surrounding toast, as it was taken down within a minute. The good news? Not only have I attempted such a prestigious contribution, many others have as well. All of these contributions took place during the month of December.

Some people make a small addition or change:
toast is my shit that is put in the toaster and u smell
You know what they say, “All toasters, toast toast!”
Toast is a plant that comes from New Jersey and has its own gravitational pull.
I had sex with your daught.
to do this first fill your bahtub with hot water and plug in. Step in the water and hold the toaster. If you smell something burning its the toast not your skin. Then put jem and jelly on it. To improve put the left hairy nipple of the raccon on the bread and enjoy.
Toast was invented by a famous hippo impressionist, named Clare Joslin in 1752. She uncovered the secrets to browning the bread when she was wallowing in the muddy marshes of South Africa.
Toast is yummy in my tummy and on plates.

And others replace the entire article with a profound statement:
toast is what i usally have 4 breackfast and i like pie
yummm greenway loves toast his imaginary freinds do 2
TOM COYLE ENJOYS TOAST!
TOAST TASTES GOOD WITH POOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP SMEERED ON IT

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Next time you see a cop car speeding with no lights on…

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Just some food for thought from Minnesota Statue 169.17:

169.17 EMERGENCY VEHICLE.
The speed limitations set forth in sections 169.14 to 169.17 do not apply to an authorized emergency vehicle responding to an emergency call. Drivers of all emergency vehicles shall sound an audible signal by siren and display at least one lighted red light to the front, except that law enforcement vehicles shall sound an audible signal by siren or display at least one lighted red light to the front. This provision does not relieve the driver of an authorized emergency vehicle from the duty to drive with due regard for the safety of persons using the street, nor does it protect the driver of an authorized emergency vehicle from the consequence of a reckless disregard of the safety of others.

Think about that and what it means. When is the last time you were driving on the interstate or even a road and you saw a police car go speeding by you, except with no lights or sirens activated. Now normally I wouldn’t care about this, as I speed all the time. However, when it’s the same people who are increasingly sitting in conspicuous places to enforce speed limits, I have a problem with it. According to this statue, if a police vehicle speeds without a siren or one red light on the front of the vehicle activated, their speed is not protected by this statue, and they are illegally speeding. They should be subject to the same speeding tickets, fines, and insurance reporting that the rest of us are.

Now what can be done about this? I don’t think it’s very likely that a fellow officer will issue a ticket. I can tell you I will be reporting what I see here and filing written complaints with the appropriate law enforcement agencies. The same laws regarding speed need to apply to those enforcing them.

After digging a little more, this may fall under Minnesota Statue 609.43:

609.43 MISCONDUCT OF PUBLIC OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE.
A public officer or employee who does any of the following, for which no other sentence is specifically provided by law, may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than one year or to payment of a fine of not more than $3,000, or both:
(1) intentionally fails or refuses to perform a known mandatory, nondiscretionary, ministerial duty of the office or employment within the time or in the manner required by law; or
(2) in the capacity of such officer or employee, does an act knowing it is in excess of lawful authority or knowing it is forbidden by law to be done in that capacity; or
(3) under pretense or color of official authority intentionally and unlawfully injures another in the other’s person, property, or rights; or
(4) in the capacity of such officer or employee, makes a return, certificate, official report, or other like document having knowledge it is false in any material respect.

So, by definition, any officer who speeds illegally (presumably while on duty) has done an act knowing it is not lawful, so they are subject to up to a year in jail or up to a $3000 fine. Who is realistically going to enforce this?

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One lucky winner will receive $10,000 of weed!

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

It’s against policy. In fact it’s completely illegal. It took one idiot to royally fuck things up.

Sadly its not the next upcoming action thriller. Its the Tokyo-Narita airport.

One unsuspecting soul will open their luggage to find over 5 ounces of marijuana that they didn’t order. Manpei Tanaka, head of customs at the airport, placed the bag in a random passenger’s luggage as an exercise for his drug dogs. The only problem ended up being that the dogs didn’t find it, and Mr. Tanaka didn’t remember which bag he put it in.

Someone is currently in possession of about $10,000 of weed that just appeared in their luggage. I wonder what the consolation prize is…

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6py7 2.0

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Back in its heyday 6py7 was a fun side project that I could kill some time here and there on. I’ve had it going in one form or another long since before blogging was mainstream (or even a word) and have a good majority of stuff backed up somewhere. With the continued evolution of web 2.0, 6py7 held to its old-school html roots for quite some time. Unfortunately it did not have proper spam protection, as the necessary upgrade cost money. I wasn’t about to invest money in this, so my other option was to upgrade to a new web 2.0 program that was free. It would give me so many more options to get what I write exposed, and spam no longer had the ability to crash the entire site because of its sheer volume. The drawbacks are that I lost everything from the past few years and I have a pretty boring design. CSS and XHTML are a whole new beast that I have yet to really care about. It will happen when it happens.

Now that I have a summer approaching where I’m not on the road constantly, I have the time to start exploring parts of my life I have ignored for years now simply because I didn’t have the time. I am going to invest more time in myself as a musician. I am going to hang out with friends I haven’t hung out with nearly enough in recent years. I want to bring this back to being something that has its own little corner in the world.

I’m still deciding how I want to take the direction of this. In the yesterdays 6py7 ripped on the legitimately lazy and stupid people this country produces. I’m not as pessimistic as I used to be, but I still am amazed at the dipshit factor in this country. I for the first time want to address how I feel about certain political issues, and post some of the music projects I will be working on.

Stay tuned….

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