North Carolina can’t follow it’s own laws
Our "elected" governor, Bev Purdue, plans her next move to desecrate our state
It’s funny how we depend on the government to ensure our laws are upheld. Then they go ahead and do something that breaks their own laws. Aggravating.
So here’s the deal. Anyone in North Carolina has to have heard that they are doing a statewide .5% pay cut for teachers. In Charlotte – the only place I can speak of – they are lowering every one’s wage by .5%, due to state and local decreases. So even if the money for your job doesn’t come out of the particular coffers affected, you still take a pay cut, in order to be more “equitable.” Hah.
Now cutting teachers salary is not illegal. Maybe not the brightest thing, given that NC teachers are some of the lowest paid in the country to begin with, but definitely not illegal. What IS illegal is the pay cut is RETROACTIVE. So whatever an employee earned for the ENTIRE school year, they will have to pay back the .5% overage.
This isn’t a “whoops, we realized that an accounting error.” And I dig a little bit of digging too, and snagged this right off the NC Department of Labor website.
An employer can change its wage agreement with an employee at any time, regardless of what the original wage agreement was and without the employee’s permission. There are certain requirements that an employer must meet pursuant to the N.C. Wage and Hour Act (WHA) to make changes in its wage agreements, including the reduction of an employee’s pay or wage benefits:
1) An employer must notify its employees in writing at least 24 hours prior to any changes in its wage agreements that result in the reduction in pay or wage benefits, pursuant to N.C.G.S. §95-25.13(3).
2) An employer cannot make changes in pay or wage benefits that result in the retroactive reduction of wages or wage benefits that are already earned. In other words, the reduction in wages cannot take away pay or wage benefits that have already been earned up to the time of the notification. Any reduction in pay or wage benefits must be prospective from the time of notification. An employer may, however, retroactively increase an employee’s pay or wage benefits without prior notification.
And for good measure, I read through the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act, and the only exemptions not applicable to this issue. But what’s frightening even more, it states that for teachers, who only have one more pay period, that everything over will be taken out for that period. Have a nice summer, don’t let the door hit you on the way out! And for those who will owe more than they make that period? Hah, even more due negligence. If the amount is negative, depending on what factors made that be, then you will either owe them nothing, or will owe the difference. What I like is they will garnish your wage to zero, which that too is against the law (can’t garnish once it goes below minimum wage level, can’t garnish for any overtime pay as well).
What a lovely state we live in. We get tight on money, so instead of tightening up the funds of those bastards in Raleigh, they have big expensive lunches to discuss how to save money, and they decide to do it on the backs of North Carolina’s already underpaid teachers. I’m beginning to think Bev Perdue hates children, even though I was shocked to learn she has a couple of her own, although I think they are a bit grown now. We got ourselves a woman governor who doesn’t think like a woman. What’s the appeal in that. Say hello to Mike Easley Jr., we just call him “Bev” for short.
Upgrade to Energy Star
Even though I’m still looking for a job, things still need to get done. One major issue I have had with my home is a chimney chase that is completed rotted out. In fact, I think the only reason it still stands is because its the only thing it knows how to do. Not only is this an obvious issue, there is another problem from it too: animals can easily get in and out of the house. Not a good situation to be in. After finally being rid of a pesky rat, and my in-laws coming, the time has come to take the shot in the gut and pay to fix it.
I had a few companies check it out, and the range is $3,000-$5,000 to fix it. No thanks. So then I started looking at how much material it would require, and started realizing how little it actually cost. Well, of course, having $3,000 setting on my mind for a while, I figured I’d check and see how much it would cost to redo the whole backside of the house. Sadly, it cost about the same as the low estimate for just my chimney chase.
So here I am today, T minus two weeks away from beginning. I finally went and bought my materials today. The usual stuff, like 32 OSB sheathing boards, 79 James Hardie Fiber Cement Lap Siding boards, nails, caulk, etc. But then there was the not so usual, but definitely worth it stuff, like the 2 LoE/Argon double strength glass Energy Star windows, the LoE Energy Star patio door, and the 20 Owen’s Corning Foamular Panels, which adds another R-3 to my walls, insulates even where the studs are, and provides an additional moisture barrier.
Once this projects starts I’ll keep you posted with pictures and how-to’s.
Linux: a new generation
Linux got scrappy. Image by lewing@isc.tamu.edu
I’ve never been one of those googly eyed Linux fanatics. My experiences with Linux generally were not great. All of the hardware incompatibility, backwards engineering drivers to work, patch jobs to the kernel. Way too much work for me just to compute. Then Windows emulators back then were crap too, so application access was cut extremely short.
These aren’t those days anymore. After a multiyear haitus from the family of operating systems, I decided to play around with some different Linux installs on an old laptop I have. Supposed to bring it back to life. Hah! I thought. Maybe the joke is on me.
My hardware is an old IBM T-40, 1.4Ghz Pentium M processor, 512MB ram, 14.1 LCD screen, 40 GB hard drive, DVD-ROM. Nothing fancy, but I’m a fan of the robust T-40’s, they just take a beating and keep going. My old work laptop was a T-40, so when I found this one at a yard sale, I had to get it.
At first I loaded Windows XP Professional on it, and it handled it admirably. But after a lot of thought, I wiped the slate clean and decided to try some of the alternative OS’s out there. Specifically, free one’s. I wanted to see if these systems could not only speed up my system, but if they were also user friendly enough for your typical enduser.
My first install was Puppy Linux, an extremely lightweight and portable linux operating system. So lightweight in fact, that it can just run completely off the RAM. My hats off to the developers, it was easy to use, provided many features, and gave this computer a new lease on life.
My next install was Mandriva 2009. Before you read further, I should note that I installed 2009.0, instead of the 2009.1, which should explain away a number of the faults. WHy do I note this? My experience with Mandriva was horrible. I kep having issues with the X server locking up, crashing, failing to restore after going into command prompt mode. I had problems with a number of the extra KDE plugins, and KDE wallet just would not work. Mandriva 2009 is running off of the new KDE 4, and from what I’ve read, 2009.1 has fixed a number of bugs, but it still is buggy. I would definitely wait out for further releases before working with this particular flavor. So sad, given my only positive experience with Linux in the past was Mandrake, an ancestor of Mandriva.
After my debacle with Mandriva, I installed Ubuntu 9.04. I’ve been very impressed. Ubuntu 9.04 has been maybe the most user-friendly version of Linux I have tried. It reminds me of a lot of the positives from Windows, making my transition to Linux easier. Instead of having to log in as a root account with a separate password, it prompts for your password in order to make root level system changes. It boots quick, runs solid. My only quip is it is not as lightweight as something like PuppyLinux, and it gets bogged down running under my normal loads. Regardless, it has been very stable, and has taken a beating so far.
What’s next? Well, I’m planning on giving Kubuntu 9.04 a shot (heard it is a bit lighter than Ubuntu), followed by DreamLinux. Some have made suggestions of different flavors to try, and I may give them a shot.
Regardless, Linux has come a long way since those more painful days. Linux has always been plauded with its ruggedness, and I’m glad to see it has maintained that while becoming more user-friendly. There is still more work to be done, but as long as we have developers who are willing to work only for the greater good, then we should see nothing but great things from the penquin.
So would I recommend Linux now? Yes, to those with at least moderate computer know how, or to someone who has never been exposed to Windows. I’d still recommend it for personal use, since businesses need a level of support that is still absent from OpenSource software.
Graduation and Acceptance
What a day. At 7PM, I was at my graduation ceremony at CPCC. Although I won’t technically graduate until this summer, since I’m a summer graduate I could attend. I’ve never been to my own graduation ceremony before, so it was finally a tangible taste after all those years of hard work. It was also nice graduating with honors (Mu Alpha Theta, Phi Theta Kappa, 3.7-3.99 GPA), at one point being one of only a couple of students standing to show off their honors (I’m a member of Mu Alpha Theta, a national mathematics honor society, and we are a rare breed apparently). I’ll tell you what though, it’s a pain keeping all of those cords and the stole in place.
The commencement ceremonies were nice, the guest speaker may have been a bit better ( she had occasional fits of verbal diarrhea), and it was a relief to finally see something tangible for all of my hard work. Now that I am past that, I can focus on my final course and be over and done with (oh yea, and getting that CPCC accounting issue resolved).
But the day only got better. After a wonderful after graduation dinner with my daughter – or as she would say, we had a date – we got home and I got her to bed, and I started putting everything up. Then I remembered a conversation from earlier in the day with a lady from UNCC. They had a few questions regarding some of the answers on my application (yes, I was a bit of a hellraiser in highschool, but I wasn’t that bad.. they just needed to know that), then let me know I could go online the next day and check my status. So I checked it.
I GOT ACCEPTED! So now the day ends on an even better note. Starting this fall, I will be somewhere in the area of a Sophomore/Junior at UNCC (depends on how all of the credits transfer over). Another 2-3 more years, plus another 2 if I can do an accelerated master’s program, and I’ll be at the mark I’m aiming for. Wow. Will I ever get a break? Sure, when I die.
Was there a point to this post other than to brag? No, not really. I’m just really… stoked… about the events of today. It’s nice to know that I have written this current chapter in life to be a good one, and I now have direction of where I am going to go for the next chapter. Tomorrow is my day.
Funny scams
Ok, once again I get another one of those funny scams. You know the kind “Hi, My name is blah blah, I’m with the government of some obscure african county, we need to send off millions of dollars, what is your account number.” I will admit they are getting a letter better (spelling issues are getting better at least), and the stories are getting, well, funnier. So now I include the one I most recently received.
WORLD BANK GROUP AND UNITED NATION ORGANIZATION OFFICIAL CONTRACT PAYMENT UNIT.
Our Ref: UNO /SNT/CTB
RELEASE CODE No: 0763
Attn: Beneficiary
U.S.A Government, World Bank And United Nations Organization Official Has Approved To Pay You Part Payment Of Your Inheritance Fund And Lottery/Award Winning Payment Valued Of 8.3m.
The British Prime Minister in conjunction with U.S.A GOVERNMENT, WORLD BANK AND UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATION do hereby give this irrevocable approval order with This Release Code: GNC/3480/02/09 In Your Favor For Your Contract Entitlement And Your Inheritance Fund Which You Have Not Received Yet, Now It Was Approved By The World Bank, That Your Contract/Inheritance Fund should be released through UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATION. So You Are Advised To Present Any Of Your Choice, On How You Want To Receive Your Fund, Either By BANK DRAFT OR BY ATM CARD OR WIRE TRANSFER, So In Regards To The Transfer You Can Provide Any Of Your BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS For The Transfer Of Your Fund With Out Delay. I Am Contacting You In Regards To The Instruction Given By United Nations, Please I Will Urge You To Try And Indicate On How You Want Your Fund To Be Released To You From The Three Options Above.
As a matter of fact, you are required to Deal and Communicate only with MR. CLEM WATFORD , HEAD OF TELEX DEPT. OF CITIBANK GROUP UNITED KINGDOM, with the help of monitory team from the CITIBANK OF NEW YORK which is our official remitting bank, Committee On Foreign Payment Matters in United Nations, has look up to make sure you receive your Fund. So reply this e-mail by attention your to: MR . CLEM WATFORD or call Direct Citibank at unn.org@gmail.com OR CALL +447024060926 FAX+448704952404. For immediate release of your contract/inheritance/Award Winning claim be informed that you are not allowed to correspond with any person or office anymore, you are required to send bellow information for your transfer.
1) YOUR FULL NAME:
2) ADDRESS, CITY, STATE AND COUNTRY:
3) PERSONAL CELL PHONE, FAX AND MOBILE :
4) COMPANY NAME (IF ANY) POSITION AND ADDRESS:
5) BANK NAME:
6) BANK ADDRESS:
7) ACCOUNT NUMBER:
ROUTING NUMBER OR SWIFT CODE NO:
9) OCCUPATION, AGE AND MARITAL STATUS:
10) COPY OF YOUR INT’L PASSPORT/DRIVERS LICENSE:
11) E-MAIL ADDRESS
Note: Your Personal Contact/Communication sign With Citibank Is CITI909 , You Are Advice To Send Your Full Banking Information To The Citibank London, Telex Dept Headed By Mr. Clems Watford And Make Sure You Speak With Him or email him , With Your New Payment Code For The Release Of Your Payment And Send To Him All Your Banking Information Now.
Best Regards
Chairman Committee On Foreign Contract And Inheritance fund Payment Notification from United Nations And USA Government.
Sir. Eric Ben.
CC. Citibank Group London
The part in bold is quite amuzing as well. If everything is on the level, then these things are already known. What was I, the random email address out the hat?! Too funny. Please they ask for my personal cell phone, and my mobile number. Whatever that is about. Hah!
CPCC Cashier Scam
Students beware.
A little history. Last spring, I was on financial aid, and taking 3 courses – Calculus 2 (4 credits), Physics 251 (4 credits), and orienteering (1 credit). I was also working on the first project at my last job. When I signed up for the job, I agreed to occasional day trips, but a monthinto the semester, the requirements changed. I was to go to Greensboro (and shortly enough, travel around the country), and to be up there the whole week for quite some time. I wasn’t happy, but I worked with my Calculus and Physics professors, and came to a resolution. Orienteering didn’t matter, it was a weekend class for 2 weeks. My second weekend for the class came after my first few days in Greensboro (anyone who knew me then should remember I had the flu, running a 103 degree fever…).
The next week, I tried the arrangement, but realized the only person I was cheating was myself, so, against my principles, I withdrew. Prior to withdrawing, I spoke with financial aid, and they said I wouldn’t have to pay anything back, which helped seal that fateful decision.
Well, apparently you can’t trust everything your told, even by a college official that specializes in that particular field. After returning from my nationwide tour, installing equipment for the US Trust transition, I registered for a summer course. Unfortunately, I couldn’t register. The system showed I owed the school $819.
So I went up to the school, spoke with financial aid, apparently the person I spoke to forgot some, uh, important stuff. Thanks guy! Then I go to the cashier’s office. I admitted that fine, whatever, I owe the college money. Tried to set up a payment plan, since $819 is a large chunk to swallow, especially when your told that you would owe $819 less! Oh, they would, but they wouldn’t let me register until it was paid. According to the supervisor I dealt with, that was financial aid, not the cashier’s office. Talk about accountability. “You’re a representative of the college.” Yea yea, he was a boneheaded jerk. Sure, I know there are people who try to scam their way through, but given I had never owed the college anything (I always paid my tuition, that was only my second semester on financial aid), and the fact that at the time I had a 3.7 GPA. Ok, whatever, he’s a jerk. I ended up paying for it on my credit card (shooting it back to the limit, but hey, I got my financing), and was told that I owed no more money to the college.
Fast forward a year. Today is May 11th, 2009. I just took my 2 finals today (Calculus 2 and Physics 251, only a year later), and after my first exam, I went to the graduation office. I had some concerns about what showed up on my program evaluation, and I wanted to ensure that I would get to walk Thursday and I would have no issues with getting my degree in July.
One of the issues was that it showed that I had no PE class, yet when I check my transcript on CPCC’s MyCollege, it shows I passed it with an A. I noticed that on her system it showed a status “NP,” and she had to call someone to find out what it meant. Means Non-Payment (which was my guess). But hey! I paid this thing a year ago!
So once again, I trudge up to the cashier’s office. After standing around for about 15 or 20, they finally showed me where, according to their system, I didn’t pay it. Here’s how:
- 11/9/07 - I registered - $526.50+
- 1/2/08 – I bought books, supplies, and a new calculator – $352.22+ , new balance – $878.72+
- 2/7/08 – Federal Pell Grant payment pf $472.00, new balance of $406.72+
- 2/7/08 – NC Community College Grant payment of $337.00, new balance of $69.72+
- 2/7/08 – NC Education Lottery Scholarship payment of $310.00, new balance of $240.28-
- 2/8/08 – Financial Aid Refund of $240.28 dispersed, new balance – $0
- 2/21/08 – Dropped Calculus and Physics, account credited then recharged $526.50, balance still $0
- 3/24/08 – Federal Pell Grant charge-back of $272.00, new balance $272.00+
- 3/24/08 – NC Community College Grant charge-back of $337.00, new balance of $609.00+
- 3/24/09 – NC Education Lottery Scholarship charge-back of $310(including refunded amount), new balance $919.00+
Apparently, this is the amount that I should have been charged for, and had I been charged that at the time of payment, I would have paid it. When you want my money, best to ask me while my wallet is open. However, check out the next bit of, umm, curious accounting that I have yet to understand the purpose:
- 3/25/08 – Account credited $526.50 (price of tuition), new balance $392.50+
- 3/25/08 – Account now charged $426.50 (price of Calculus and Physics), new balance $819.00+
- 5/13/2008 – Payment of $819.00, new balance $0
For some ungodly reason, they dropped my PED class. Why? I don’t know. I had already completed it (0ver a monthbefore), and had a grade associated with it (A, the easiest A ever). That is a financial obligation, yet they arbitrarily didn’t include it. The only thing I can assume is a sick joke, but irregardless, at this point, I will not pay it. If they wanted the money for it, they should’ve asked then. They didn’t. They told me they would not allow me to register if I did not pay my financial obligations to the college, so I paid. I’ve now registered for my 4th straight semester, yet they say I didn’t pay for a completed class,which is a financial obligation.
In fact, from the Students’ Rights and Responsibilities, Code of Conduct, and Disciplinary Procedures section of the CPCC Student Handbook, section V (Sanctions), number 6
At the time I paid the $819, I was informed that all financial obligations are met. Now they say I didn’t pay for a class, which was financial obligation at the time I paid. As I see it, they have forfeited their right to make that claim, given that the policies explicitly state that I would be unable to register for further classes. By the fact that I made payment and have continued my studies at the college, that explicit statement also means that I have no financial obligations with the college (I have already paid the summer tuition, so I owe $0).
So sorry Charlie, don’t come to be and cry about spilled milk. The college (or as that jerk in cashiering would state, “the cashier’s office”) informed me at the time I made that payment that I was paying my financial obligations to the college. So the cashier’s office can now fix their mistake, and eat their $100. Because I will graduate this summer, and I will not pay a financial obligation that was resolved a year ago. Paying an extra $100 then might have hurt, but now it is outrageous, and will not be tolerated. Even if I were still working, I’d still tell them no.
So where’s the scam? Make sure that when making payments to the college, insure that your full payment is covering everything it is intended too. The cashiering department, including the supervisors I have had experience with, will not get you anywhere, even when you have a valid claim. The department cares little of fault, and through experience claims allegiance to any other part of the college.
Tomorrow I am going up there to speak to the supervisor, or the supervisor’s supervisor, or God knows who else. If I have to make an appeal I will. But don’t hold it against me to try and get Action 9 involved. The last thing we need in a bad economy is for public colleges and universities to screw around with their students on financial matters.
I’ll post an update tomorrow with whatever I got out of my meeting.
Ohio private school student suspended for going to prom
In one of the most pathetic violations of constitutional rights, along with smacking down basic education rights of every American student (in the name of God have you), a senior from Heritage Christian School in northwest Ohio was suspended after attending his girlfriend’s prom. Tyler Frost, a senior from the private, fundamentalist baptist school, went to prom with his girlfriend, a public school student.
So why was he suspended? He violated the school’s policies on dancing, rock music, hand-holding, and kissing. In fact, if it turns out he drank or had sex, he could be expelled. Woah. Guess they would’ve kicked me out before I even attended, although it would’ve been fun being caught screwing the Principal’s daughter on his desk, while school was in session ;-D
But this takes everyone into a precarious position. Just how much authority does a school have to enforce specific policies outside of it’s campus? Even further, how much can religion be contorted into making such decisions? While I have no law degree, I will look at a few things. If I’m wrong, let me know.
First off, what ever happened to the first amendment? I got to reading a landmark decision ( Tinker vs. Des Moines School District, 1969 ) regarding a school’s right to infringe upon the first amendment rights’ of its students. This case came about because the school system - afraid of controversy – suspended 5 students for wearing black armbands, which signified their objections against the hostilities in Vietnam. They were told they could not come back until they did not wear the armbands. It was during the holiday season, and they planned to wear them until New Year’s. They returned after New Years. Me, I’m proud of those students.
Even though this case is in regards to a public school system, it is still in effect regarding private schools, as has been shown in following cases.
Basically it comes down to this. School’s can implement their rules loco parentis (in place of a parent). Basically, they can implement them on campus or at places the school operates (i.e. school rules apply on a field trip). Although not allowing dancing and hand-holding on campus may seem to infringe upon the students rights, it is part of the prevailing religion, plus it has its place in disrupting the other students in a significant fashion. Regardless of how strange and backward-ass christian it is, we’ll leave it at that.
I’m going to highlight a couple of key points from that landmark decision that I see fit in with this situation.
As we have discussed, the record does not demonstrate any facts which might reasonably have led school authorities to forecast substantial disruption of or material interference with school activities, and no disturbances or disorders on the school premises in fact occurred. These petitioners merely went about their ordained rounds in school… They neither interrupted school activities nor sought to intrude in the school affairs or the lives of others. They caused discussion outside of the classrooms, but no interference with work and no disorder. In the circumstances, our Constitution does not permit officials of the State to deny their form of expression.
and West Virginia vs. Barnett (quoted in the opinion)
“The Fourteenth Amendment, as now applied to the States, protects the citizen against the State itself and all of its creatures–Boards of Education not excepted. These have, of course, important, delicate, and highly discretionary functions, but none that they may not perform within the limits of the Bill of Rights. That they are educating the young for citizenship is reason for scrupulous protection of Constitutional freedoms of the individual, if we are not to strangle the free mind at its source and teach youth to discount important principles of our government as mere platitudes.” 319 U.S., at 637.
Basically, they perverting this students Constitutional rights in the name of their religion.
What makes this tricky, however, is the form the student had to sign at the beginning of the year, consenting to the school’s policies. Given that this is a private school, his attendance is a privilege, not a right. However, I doubt that that consent will hold much water, given that it violates his first amendment rights’.
How I have been reading about how a students rights’ at private institutions are subject to contract law. However, it has also been shown that a student in a private institution is still protected under constitutional rights, irregardless. Lest we forget that these schools must still be accredited by the proper authorities (in this case, the Ohio State Board of Education), to ensure that all students receive a proper education.
Either way, that school is subjecting themselves to a potentially nasty lawsuit; don’t be surprised if the ACLU gets involved. Just remember that when it comes down to it, this is still a school, and as a school, they have responsibilities to the students, the parents, and the community. To deny a student his education and delay his graduation for actions far away from the institution, which caused no serious disruption to the school, is a gross indulgence in the name of contract law and of God. This school is opening its pockets to indoctrinate students with narrow and perverse interpretations of the bible, while holding them to arbitrary and natural rights’ infringing rules, that serve no purpose towards the greater good of their education, which is the PRIMARY reason why parents are paying for it in the first place. They are denying students of their constitutional rights, while hiding behind the veil of the constition. They serve almost no greater purpose for this country whatsoever, but to teach students to be submissive to a singular line of thought. Legal dictatorship, and parents are paying for it.
This is why I, personally, would never send my child to a school such as that. No principal would want to meet me after finding out my daughter was suspended a few weeks from graduation for such a reason. Plus I wouldn’t give me money to support such an institution either. It is this same dogged narrow-mindedness that fuels the flame of hate all around the world.
For more information on Heritage Christian School in Finlay, Ohio, please visit http://www.heritagefindlay.org/. While you are at it, why don’t you contact this school and let em know what you think. I have it on my to do list on Tuesday.
For one final thought, maybe they need to take a look around. Every other Heritage Christian School in Ohio that I came across, they quickly point out that they are NOT that school. No one wants to be associated with such rubble. Maybe they consider themselves a city upon a hill, but maybe need to realize that they just called out volunteers to be shot by firing squad, and they were the only ones who didn’t step back.
Read the full article on ABCNEWS.com. More on this to come.
SuperNews!
I just had to put this one up
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