One place I worked at, we had a smoking room that had a window into the parking lot. Everyday, the Executive VP of Finance would go in there at 4:25 in the afternoon. She kept tabs on those who dared to leave before 5 pm since our office was a 8 to 5 organization. She was old school in terms of pecking order. If you were not an executive, you were looked down on. She was very cheap as well. We had to dress in nice clothes everyday including Friday and if we traveled on Business even if it was on a Saturday or Sunday, you had to dress up as well. She came from one of the big accounting firms.
I got to work about 7am but I worked my butt off in that company and I left work at 4:30 pm. I got to work early and left earlier because I did not want to fight the traffic. This was in the early 1990's when flex time for most companies was an exotic concept. Traffic patterns have changed since flex time has become common.
I had a VP who measured into the office, and how late they were still working. He commented to me about that and I said "Or it could just be they are too disorganized to get the work done in an eight hour day."
A few months later he comes up to me and (I swear) tells me he has decided I was right. So he started a set of programs to get people to balance work/life. He encouraged people to take vacations, take weekends off, and get out of the office by 6PM.
Bingo ! You got to the point. Where I work at, we have flex time. I try to do my scehdule to where I work a 12 hour day on Monday, a 10 hour day on Tue, 8 on Wed, 6 on Thu and 4 on Friday. With flex time, I get in pretty early so I can leave mid-afternoon and do some things such as bike ride after work. A lot of times, it doesn't work out since our East Coast counterparts who live to work always have these last minute demands on Thu or Fri and expect us in Colorado to drop everything for their whims.
I work to live, not live to work ! Unfortunately, corporate America looks down on enjoying life which is supposedly reserved for the executives who are miserable anyway.
We're tied to this 40 hour work week (which is often much higher) that forces us into a schedule that minimizes our ability to have any serious daily enjoyment beyond the workplace.
Many of us commute. After an 8 hour day and a commute, doing the daily chores, there's little time to reflect, ponder, play a game of whatever with friends.
We've been pushed into complacency and we all sit back and take it. We're a society that by enlarge lives for the weekend. I really don't consider this an optimal solution by any stretch.
Where I work at, most meetings especially with our counterparts on the East Coast (Maryland near DC) are a waste of time. I attend a status meeting every two weeks. It should be a short meeting but it usually takes about 4 or 5 hours to go through. There are quite a few people who decide to go on and on to try to impress the high ups like the Program Manager. I unfortunately have to give status on the labs since I am a part of the lab team. My status takes about a minute or two. I get to the point, be done and get the hell out ! I got many things that need my time and I am not into playing politics.
Several times a month, some high level executives (VP level) come to our site and it seems they like to come on a Friday afternoon like 3 in the afternoon. I blow off those meetings since they are a BIG WASTE of time ! It is usually a big ego thing such as how wonderful they are to the company employees or to pat themselves on the back. I gone to one or two of those and I learned not to waste my time. Besides, I am usually out of the office by Noon on Friday.
Reminds me of the public school I went to - Carmel Clay Schools in Indiana. At that time, athletics was "king" and if you did not play sports, you were looked down even by the teachers. The punishments dished out were different between the jocks (slap on hand) and non-jocks (we will make an example out of you !). I happened to be a non-jock, so I experienced the heavy hand of authority. If you even dared to defen yourself from the "bully", you, not the bully experienced severe punishment and the bully got his hand slapped.
The shit doesn't change when going into the corporate world. Where I work at, our company is subcontracted to another (DoD contract usually pairs companies, one is prime and others are sub-contract). The manager I report to, I am not one of his favorites. The prime company files a formal complaint against me for something that happened on our own premises based on some minor technicality. I got called into his office and got an ass chewing to end all ass chewings ! One of his favored ones openly defies the prime's dress code at the prime's location (wears blue jeans, not dress pants). Nothing is done since he is the "fair haired" child. If he was not favored, he would be told to comply and "like it" in honor of Judge Smells from Caddyshack and have an ass chewing on top of that.
And, lo and behold, despite the fact that he was VICIOUSLY assulted, he was suspended for a week because he didn't want to die.
I worked for one company that looked down on motorcycles and muscle cars. I use to have a Mustang GT - bought it new in 1990 and since I did not drive a "responsible" type of car (according to executive's view), I was not allowed to drive the rental cars on business trips. They also had stupid dress code rules. We were expected to dress up at all times even if it was a business trip on weekends on your own time when you weren't going to meet with the client. The company is now out of business but since I have been working for over 15 years, I won't play these "games" anymore. I "played them" when I first started but didn't after the first few years.
Anal dress code rules are an indication that other stupid rules may also be in force, and stupid rules are symptomatic of a) an unpleasant and oppressive working environment and b) a company too bogged down by micromanagement by self-important, clueless bureaucrats to get anything interesting done. Show me a company which has a strict suit-and-tie policy but is otherwise an absolutely lovely and relaxed place to work, and I'll be very surprised.
Well put ! Where I work at, I wear blue jeans even though company policy says dress pants/khakis Mon to Thu. I am a lab "rat". I am the first person to do physical labor or to crawl on the floors doing cables in addition to being a Unix Sys Admin. I don't have piercings or tatoos. I am conservative such as short haircut. The only body "modification" I do is tanning bed a couple of times each week but nothing else.
I am one of those people who questions the rules and regulations such as inquiring what the purpose behind them. In my job, I don't interface with the customer, so therefore, why wear nice dress clothes. They are a pain to take care of such as ironing or dry clean. With my jeans, wash, throw into dryer and they are ready to be worn. With ironing, that takes time which I could use to do other things such as goofing off.
Same for long button shirts and dress pants. I love how companies, at least most here locally where I live, require you to dress in both of these, when it's 100 degrees outside. Yes, again naysayers will say "but inside it's not like that" yea, it is. Not every business chips in to keep the air conditioning at an acceptable level inside. So more often or not I'm there sitting in the cubicle, in some stuffy ass pair of dress slacks or khakis with a tie and dress shirt, about to burn to death cause I'm so hot. And no, for naysayers that will ask, I'm not excessively overweight or tall, I'm an average size medium height. When a 140 pound male that's 5'11 is sweating in a dress shirt, tie, and dress pants, then it's either too damn hot inside or they need to allow you to dress more comfortably.
If I had mod points, I would mark it insightful ! You hit it straight between the eyes ! I myself have been in corporate America for a quite a few years. I would like to get out. Nice bennies such as vacation but executive management looks down on taking vacation except for their own ranks. The two Columbine gunmen had parents worshipping at the altar of Corporate Society instead of spending time with their kids and knowing what they were up to !
In my job, we are so spread thin that it is almost impossible to take time off. I had to "pull teeth" just to get a week and a half off. Talking about corporate greed, one company I worked for, the executives were marketers and accountants had an unwritten rule that no one was to take time off during the Summer. That was an "executive privilege". I took time off anyway but always caught crap when I got back such as hearing words of some executive VP was upset I took a week off. This rule was anti-family. The person who favored this rule was a career woman who thought work was more important than family. Similar to Ms. Carly.
Here in Colorado Springs, it may take quite a while before you piss off everyone but there are some ways to accomplish the feat much more quickly such as a lawsuit against your former employer.
When I first moved to Colorado Springs, I worked for MCI as a contractor. My MCI manager was such an asshat that I got let go after 9 months. When I was looking for other jobs, the prospects seem good and then suddenly vanished not knowing he was badmouthing me. I called his house and decided to inquire on what kind of reference he will give me. He mentioned that I did not deserve a decent reference since I didn't fit into their culture and then he warned me that I was not to use anyone for a reference except for him and on top of that, he told me that he would personally see to it that I would not be able to get another job in town.
The thought crossed my mind of a lawsuit but however, that definitely causes you to get blacklisted beyond the geographical area you are in. I ignored his warning about not using anyone else for a reference and got another job within several weeks. He has been working in a different city for the last 6 years as nothing else but an Executive VP of a major financial company - Wachovia. To this day, I will not use him as a reference.
Recently, working in DoD, there was a person who was fired by the prime contractor. The company I work for is a sub to the prime. This person was caught many times getting into phone sex at a local Air Force Base during the day. He got fired from our company in California a few years back before he moved to Colorado Springs to work for the prime. He showed up one day and was met by one of the managers and company security and was given a box, packed his stuff and was escorted to his car. The manager and security person scraped his AFB stickers off his car/confiscated his badges and when he left, they drove behind him until he was off the base. This person now has a lawsuit filed against the company plus the two people who escorted him out. He had a decent chance to get a different job but that will be gone.
The original section 203 mandated that all states must join a compact known as the Driver License Agreement (DLA) which a given member state will share their database with other states and Canada/Mexico. That was removed in the final bill.
Today, there are a very few states that don't take any action on out of state violations (minor such as speeding). Most states, unfortunately, will assess points and even if they don't, they will still put the out of state violation on your record so your insurance company can increase your rates. There are only two states that will not put an out of state minor traffic offense on your record, it is Colorado and NY. However, NY will however, assess points for violations in Ontario and Quebec under a special agreement. Some states will assess points for Canadian traffic violations (OK, TX, CA, WV, VA, NY*, MI-special agreement w/ Ontario only) off the top of my head). States like MD, NV do not assess points but will post out of state violations on record.
The meat of dealing with motor vehicle violations in the final conference report is Section 202d 12 & 13. It basically requires states to keep track of all motor vehicle violations, suspensions, points. I don't know how far they will be required to do this such as only including moving violatgions or all violations such as out of state/country, equipment, parking, etc. Colorado where I live at, they only put pointable offenses on record where as non-pointable offenses are left out such as no front plate,seatbelt violations, etc.
I would prefer to keep it as a state function. If you think the state DMV is bad, a federal one would suck !
I do a lot of out of state traveling. I am licensed in Colorado and currently, Colorado does not penalize for out of state tickets (minor but will hammer you for DUI). In other words, no points, no record, no insurance increase. I do make myself aware of the other state's laws such as concerning tinted windows. Some states will apply their tint law to non-resident vehicles such as recently enacted in Georgia due to the GA Surpreme Court decision. Utah, California, Iowa, Virginia and Indiana are other states that apply their tint law to out of state vehicles. Other laws I have to concern myself with are lights. I have ECE code (European spec) headlamps on my Jeep and Toyota Truck. In some states, you are required to have US-DOT spec headlamps such as Illinois, Virginia for example. Colorado is silent, they just require headlamps. When I travel through some states, I am aware that I can get stopped and ticketed for violating their vehicle code such as vehicle equipment.
I have been a lifelong Republican, this Real ID Act is a big usurpation of state rights ! At least the mandate for states to join the Driver License Agreement was removed from the bill which would have forced states to share data not onlt betwen states but also Canada and Mexico. In 2006, I am going to vote Democrat because my Congressman refused to step in to change the bill but instead not only he voted for it but signed it. I think it is time for to have divided power and eventaully I would like to see third parties get into office like the Libertarians.
There is one thing I support of the Republicans is reducing taxation such as getting rid of the inheritance/estate tax which was designed to hurt the family owned business in favor of large corporations.
I read a survey recently that that the US is not in the top ten of the most free countries and New Zealand is rated at number 5. I am thinking of immigrating to NZ. One big downside of NZ is they have much more gun control.
An interesting item is I went to the Dayton Hamfest last year, there was one vendor selling a Car Chip that recorded details on your driving. I talked with the salesman and he even mentioned one company (he would not name) mandated this in private vehicles of their employees. If you didn't like it, you don't work for the company.
With the coming Driver License Agreement as sponsored by the AAMVA and the mandate for states to join it if the Real ID Act of 2005 passes combined with this technology, it would be very difficult to retain your driver's license or maintain reasonable insurance premiums especially if you travel alot by car like I do. Even a "law abiding" driver will get nailed here and there !
I will be doing a lot of traveling this Summer such as traveling from Colorado to California and to Indiana. In Indiana, the speed limits is pretty well 55 mph except for rural interstates. The 4 lane divided highways are 55 mph and I usually do 70 to 75 mph. Currently, Colorado takes no adverse action such as points for minor out of state offenses. Here in America, since our public transportation is non-existent, the motor vehicle is the only way to get around unlike Japan or Europe. Unfortunately, it is not practical since places of employment is spread around unlike many years ago where your job was located downtown in a given district.
To be decided in the Senate and the House/Senate Conference Committee is the Real ID Act of 2005 sponsored by F. James Sensenbrenner. This will be a backdoor defacto National ID through your driver's license. Included is a linked database known as the Driver License Agreement as sponsored by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. States will be required to sign it in order for given state driver's license to accepted when dealing with the Federal Gov't such as boarding an airplane or train.
Included in the Driver License Agreement is sharing information not only within the US but with Canada and Mexico (pg 4, item 11 in PDF Document). Required in the database is identity theft type of information such as your Social Security number. Also the Driver License Agreement as a side "benefit" requires your state to punish you with points for a traffic offense anywhere within North America. So a speeding ticket from a vacation in Cancun, Mexico or Montreal, Quebec, Canada will tarnish your home state driving record and as an insult to injury, your insurance goes up !
There is not much time left to defeat this legislation. It is attached to HR1268 - Emergency Appropriations for Iraq, Tsunami Relief. The Senate has removed it but the House will insist on the Real ID Act of 2005 in conference committee and we need to let our Senator's know that we are against this. Information to Contact Congress web link.
It is the same thing with the Real ID Act of 2005 legislation (HR418) by Sensenbrenner. Section 203 requires that states must participate in the Driver License Agreement (DLA). Also states will be required to keep information on personal information like social security numbers, addresses, and driving record items such as license suspensions, points (both redundant since it is done already) and all other violations (moving, non-moving/equipment, parking) and share them with ofhter jurisdictions. In addition, it would require states to punish their drivers for out of state and out of country infractions (Canada & Mexico so far).
Not known to many people is the data will be shared with Canada and Mexico as a start. Reference DLA at the AAMVA. Look on page 4, item 11 defining jurisdiction.The sharing of personal info like SS#'s would be a great bonanza for foreigners and US people alike to abuse such as identity theft.
The Senate so far has refused to pass the legislation so it was attached to the emergency funding for Iraq War and Tsunami Relief (HR1268) since it is a must pass legislation. The House will attempt to pigeon hole the Senate to pass this contrary to their reseversations for this piece of draconian legislation. It will come up for discussion in the second week of April when the Congress reconvenes from their Easter break.
In the 15 years I have been in the "Wonderful World of Work", I have seen a few things.
First, a guy that I know who works in the same DoD company as I do spends quite a bit of time in Maryland. He is a Colorado Resident. He has to do two different state tax returns. One for MD and the other for CO. He mentioned it is a pain to deal with.
Second, in the same company, a few of our people spend quite a bit of time working in California - job site at an Air Force base. They have to do a CO and a CA tax return. According to company rules, if you spend a cumulative number of days that is greater than 30, you have to pay tax to and do a return for the other state.
Third, over ten years ago, I worked in a company that was based in Indiana and when I was an IN resident at the time. We had several people who worked in NY for several months. A new plant was being built and they were installing the computer equipment such as serial and ethernet lines and hooking connections to the factory equipment. If I remember right, they never had to pay NY tax even though the cumulative time spent there was 3 or 4 months. If this happened today, this would be a different story epsecially if Corporate Legal had something to say about it and how cautious companies are to toe the line to cover their proverbial rear end compared to even 10 years ago.
Contact Congress and oppose this draconian bill ! Contact your Senators and ask them to strip this "HR418 - Real ID Act of 2005" from any bill it rides over on from the House, probably the Iraqi funding.
It even gets better. A part of this bill is the mandate that states join the "Driver License Agreement" (DLA) (PDF Document) as sponsored by the AAMVA. Not only will our driving records include personal info like SS# be available to cops within the US but also Canada and Mexico ! Also this means a traffic ticket anywhere within North America will go against your driving record at home which your insurance company will punish you for accordingly.
So, go on vacation to Cancun Mexico, get a ticket from some dickhead cop and since there are no due process rights there, get home and get boned again by your state DMV just because of him.
This DLA will be replacing the Driver License Compact (DLC) and Non-Resident Violator Compact (NRVC). The DLC is where your state will assess points for the out of state ticket or pull your license for the out of state DUI. The NRVC means that when you get ticketed for a violation in a different state, the cop does not have to take you to jail or make you post bond. He treats you like a resident. If you ignore the out of state ticket, the other state notifies your home DMV and your home DMV will pull your license until you take care of business in the other state.
The DLA will replace or supercede the DLC and NRVC and. The DLA will include provisions from the old compacts but however, it is more draconian. It also allows for the suspension/revokation of not only your drivers license from another state but also the suspension/revokation of your vehicle registration especially for something like ignoring the out of state parking ticket. Also, it limits due process rights such as you cannot challenge violations that are put on your record from a different state except for clerical errors. It benefits the DMV's and insurance companies.
The state I live in - Colorado participates in both compacts but however, the legislature put in limitations on the DLC to mention that points cannot be assessed for minor offenses such as speeding reported from other states. This was recognition that other states are known to abuse nonresidents for revenue enhancement, therefore, at least when the motorist gets home, he does not have to worry about home state punishement. In addition, since out of state violations are no points, they don't go on your record since another part of Colorado law does not allow zero points tickets to be recorded. The DLA would change all that.
I don't know if our legislature would be too keen to join the DLA but I can see them writing in some limitations such as not sharing all information with other states like SS#'s. However, the DLA does not allow for any exceptions. I hope our legislatures decides to skip the DLA but won't hold my breath. They already implemented most parts of the house bill anyway such as photo recognition, checking SS#, mag strip and 2 level bar code.
The only people I can see having a true complaint are the drivers who want to hide their tickets in one state from LEOs in another state.
About 13 years ago (~1991), there were a couple of Butler students who made fake ID's out of their dorm room. What they used was a large Illinois DL background with a hole to put your head through for the picture. One of the underage kids got caught with the fake DL at a bar and ended up ratting on the Butler students. The police raided the dorm room and then notified the Illinois Secretary of State (who administers motor vehicle functions) even though the crime has occured in Indiana. The IL SOS sent one of their police cars to Indiana to pickup those involved and took them back to IL to be prosecuted. The students were charged with felonies. They also faced charges in Indiana as well.
It is in the intelligence legislation that is being worked out. The House version (HR10) mandates that states must participate in a new compact called the "Driver License Agreement" (DLA) which will supercede the current "Driver Licence Compact" (DLC) and the "Non-Resident Violator Compact" (NRVC). This DLA would link state driver's license databases between the US States and Territories but unknown to many people, it will link databases to Canada and Mexico as well. This is being put forth by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) which is composed not only DMV officials but also police executives and insurance companies executives.
The DLA requires a state to assess points for a violation such as speeding in a different state/Canada/Mexico. It also requires all violations to be on your motor vehicle record regardless if there are points or not. Some states like Colorado (where I live at) only put pointable offenses on record. Offenses such as not have your front tag will not show on your record. Also Colorado does not assess points for out of state tickets except alcohol realted such as DUI.
The most insidious part of this DLA is cops in different states as well as Canada and Mexico will have access to your Social Security number. Can you say identity theft !
There is very little time to oppose this. Contact Congress. The House is hell bent on passing this and the Senate needs to be encouraged to get rid of the Driver's License provisions. It is best that the intelligence legislation dies.
This happened to a good friend of mine. Back in the Summer of 2002 when the Dot Com boom was just about busted, a friend of mine lost his job and ended up taking contracting gigs. He lived here in Colorado Springs and ended up doing gigs in Ft. Collins (2 hr drive) and in the Denver Tech Center (1 hr drive). Having a mortgage, wife and child, it was a lot for him. In November 2002, he ended up taking a job in Salinas area of California, not too far from the bay Area and its high cost of living. The house got sold, no equity left from it. He always talks about wanting to come back to Colorado but like most palces, the high tech job market is in the shitter. He had a clearance but it was already the past the 2 year mark of where it was easy to reinstate or resubmit paperwork.
Today, he is living near Santa Cruz in a small 1000 square foot house costing $2500 per month. He has two kids and pulling in $40k per year. He cannot even buy a house since even the junky houses are a half-million -> high mortgage payment.
With his situation, more than likely, if I lose my job here, I would have to move and leave Colorado even with the upside of have very little debt - car payment only and house is paid off. Washington DC is doing good but cost of living is awful.
There is legislation in the US Congress under the Intelligence Reform & 9/11 Recommendation Implementation Act which would implement a National ID through our driver's license. Here are the points:
Within 3 years, no federal agency such as the TSA shall not accept a state ID/DL unless it conforms to certain federal requirements such as collecion of SS#'s
States will be required to participate in the new compact known as the Driver License Agreement. (more on that later)
The bills are in conference committee
Information on this ID can be found at No National ID blog site
On the Driver License Agreement (DLA), it is a compact which has been worked on by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA). It will facilitate the exchange of driving records between states which includes and requires points to be assessed against your driving record for an out of state offense including offenses in Mexico and Canada.Most states do this already but a few select states will take action for a Canadian ticket but no states that I know would take action for a ticket from Mexico. The work on the DLA started in 1994, around the same time that NAFTA passed. Also with the DLA, your driving record would be available to Canadian and Mexican authorities including your SS#. A corrupt Mexican cop could use your SS# to get access to your credit and can estimate your net worth and "charge" his la morida (bribe) accordingly.
The DLA is much more draconian than the current Driver License Compact (DLC) that most states operate under today. It is written in such a way that when you get a ticket in a different state, you will be punished at home even if your home state has no equivalent offense. That cannot under happen under the DLC. An example is as an Indiana driver you get a ticket in Michigan for Careless Driving. Under the DLC concept, Indiana will not assess points for the careless driving but under the DLA concept, you will get some kind of point penalty and Indiana could bump it to reckless driving.
However, there is little time to
contact our "representatives" to express out objection to this.
I have been closely watching the US House on passage of HR10 as put forth by the House of Reps. They are proposing some draconian measures that states have to implement if their driver's licenses/ID cards are to be accepted when dealing with Federal agencies.
Buried in the measures is a requirement that states must participate in the Driver License Agreement (DLA). The DLA requires information to be exchanged between states on traffic violations and driver history records. It is also mandated that state must keep record of ALL violations and assess point penalties for out of state tickets as well. Canada and Mexico is included as well. More information can be found through Google. Some states like Colorado (where I live at) does not deal with an out of state ticket as long as it is taken care of (paid) and it is not a major violation like a DUI. I would hate to see that change.
There were attempts to take the driver license provisions out but unfortunately, they failed. I will check tomorrow when the information is up on the House web site.
If this option was offered, I would be more than happy to take a 25% cut in pay if I am allowed to take 3 months off each year such as during June, July, August. Too bad companies don't offer that option. It would be a great stress reliever. This would be a giant step to improving worker morale and this would even allow for the hiring of more unemployed people especially if some would prefer to take other seasons off.
The way Corporate America operates is you would be lucky to be allowed to take two weeks off at the same time. By the time you finished a week's vacation, you are getting to the point of recharging and getting out of the de-stressing phase. However, you head straight back to work when you are ready to recharge. As a payback to taking vacation, you have the stress of playing catch up and since the working ranks are so thinned out, when you take vacation, work does not get done while you are gone.
In my experience, I took 2.5 weeks of vacation in July and my manager flat out told me that he was not happy for me to take the time off. (BTW, I changed managers since Summer 2003) I also took a week off in June and I did not catch so much crap for that. That week off in June I was going to take it back in March and was going to be two weeks but there was so much that had to be done plus, getting a few people trained to do some of my work while I was gone under mgt's constraints that people I wanted to train were off limits (roadblocks).
The workplace is at a point is if you have a job, it is expected that you put in 60 hour weeks or be unemployed. There is no happy medium. It is either overwork or no work. The price is besides the medical implications of stress, your family suffers such as you don't get to see your kids grow up, see your wife and spend quality time with her. One of the contributors of our high divorce rate and the problems our kids face due to lack of attention. Columbine shootings are a good example of kids who have little parental involvement since they were chasing the corporate dream.
I have been interested in this issue for many years. A heads up. There is a new model law being pushed by the AAMVA called the Driver's License Agreement (DLA). It is a compact that is suppose to replace the "Driver's License Compact (DLC)" which requires the state you are licensed in (home state) to assess a point penalty for an out of state ticket and the "Non-Resident Violator's Compact (NRVC)" which requires your home state to pull your license if you ignore an out of state ticket.
The DLA is much more draconian than than the DLC & NRVC. It also has "backdoor" provisions for a National ID Card such as minumum requirements to be on/inside a driver's license such as smart chip, biometric information. The AAMVA supported the Clinton Administration's requirement that Driver's Licenses display your Social Security Number. The DOT got as far as issuing proposed regulations but Congress refused to fund the mandate and eventually repealed it. However, Congress did not remove the provision that states had to collect the number as per the revised Welfare Act.
The DLA also will be an instrument more severly punish traffic offenders for an out of state infraction than under the current system. The NRVC cannot be used by states to pull a license for ignoring non-moving violations such as parking tickets. Also with the DLC, you could only be punished for an out of state infraction only if your home state has the exact infraction on its books as well. If you get a ticket for careless driving away from home and you home state has no such offense, you get no points. The DLA would require some form of point penalty. Also, the DLA will allow for the suspension/revokation of your car registration which is supposedly aimed at people who ignore out of state parking tickets. It also requires states to post ALL offenses on your driving record including parking tickets. Some states only post offenses that incur points on your driving record where as non-pointable offenses don't show such as a tinted window violation or not front plate.
The worst part of this DLA is it is International. It will include reciprocity with Canadian Provinces and Mexican States but the AAMVA mentioned it will not stop there. They are working on drafting aggrements between states and foreign countries which will eventually include reciprocity for traffic violations. So one day, you get a ticket from an asshole French cop or get a reckless driving ticket from a cop in Cancun Mexico since you refuse to pay a bribe, you will end up paying when you get home such as points against your license and the mandatory insurance increase because of out of country tickets. Unfortunately, coming to a state near you thanks to the DLA. The AAMVA will start pushing it very hard starting next January.
Back in May, I went to the Dayton OH Hamfest. The have many vendors there besides ham radio related. I stopped at one booth which was a company called Davis Instruments which sells a product called the "Car Chip". I was in an extended discussion with the proprieter.
The salesman mentioned that a lot of companies are requiring the device in company vehicles (I can understand since it is their property) and he even mentioned one company requires it in employee's personal vehicles as well. This is where the extended discussion came about. I asked him who the company was and he mentioned that the name cannot be divulged. The discussion went into privacy concerns such as it is none of your employer's business how you drive outside versus the emplyer's concern about you being an asset to the company.
I looked at the article and it was mentioned there was a bonus for not exceeding 75 mph. I am against the device myself. It is pretty bad that insurance companies can raise your rates without paying a claim such as getting a speeding ticket. I travel between Colorado and Indiana several times a year and when I drive, I end up driving through Kansas at 80 or 85 mph (70 mph SL) and usually drive about 80 mph in IL and IN (65 mph SL). Colorado does not recognize out of state minor violations (not yet!) which includes speeding. State to state reciprocity is another matter and is being pushed hard by the AAMVA with a legal instrument called the Driver's License Compact which is supposed to be replace by the Driver's License Agreement which requires all violations even down to parking tickets be on your driving record and also opens the door to reciprocity to foreign countries starting with Canada and Mexico.
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One place I worked at, we had a smoking room that had a window into the parking lot. Everyday, the Executive VP of Finance would go in there at 4:25 in the afternoon. She kept tabs on those who dared to leave before 5 pm since our office was a 8 to 5 organization. She was old school in terms of pecking order. If you were not an executive, you were looked down on. She was very cheap as well. We had to dress in nice clothes everyday including Friday and if we traveled on Business even if it was on a Saturday or Sunday, you had to dress up as well. She came from one of the big accounting firms.
I got to work about 7am but I worked my butt off in that company and I left work at 4:30 pm. I got to work early and left earlier because I did not want to fight the traffic. This was in the early 1990's when flex time for most companies was an exotic concept. Traffic patterns have changed since flex time has become common.
I had a VP who measured into the office, and how late they were still working. He commented to me about that and I said "Or it could just be they are too disorganized to get the work done in an eight hour day."
A few months later he comes up to me and (I swear) tells me he has decided I was right. So he started a set of programs to get people to balance work/life. He encouraged people to take vacations, take weekends off, and get out of the office by 6PM.
Bingo ! You got to the point. Where I work at, we have flex time. I try to do my scehdule to where I work a 12 hour day on Monday, a 10 hour day on Tue, 8 on Wed, 6 on Thu and 4 on Friday. With flex time, I get in pretty early so I can leave mid-afternoon and do some things such as bike ride after work. A lot of times, it doesn't work out since our East Coast counterparts who live to work always have these last minute demands on Thu or Fri and expect us in Colorado to drop everything for their whims.
I work to live, not live to work ! Unfortunately, corporate America looks down on enjoying life which is supposedly reserved for the executives who are miserable anyway.
We're tied to this 40 hour work week (which is often much higher) that forces us into a schedule that minimizes our ability to have any serious daily enjoyment beyond the workplace.
Many of us commute. After an 8 hour day and a commute, doing the daily chores, there's little time to reflect, ponder, play a game of whatever with friends.
We've been pushed into complacency and we all sit back and take it. We're a society that by enlarge lives for the weekend. I really don't consider this an optimal solution by any stretch.
Where I work at, most meetings especially with our counterparts on the East Coast (Maryland near DC) are a waste of time. I attend a status meeting every two weeks. It should be a short meeting but it usually takes about 4 or 5 hours to go through. There are quite a few people who decide to go on and on to try to impress the high ups like the Program Manager. I unfortunately have to give status on the labs since I am a part of the lab team. My status takes about a minute or two. I get to the point, be done and get the hell out ! I got many things that need my time and I am not into playing politics.
Several times a month, some high level executives (VP level) come to our site and it seems they like to come on a Friday afternoon like 3 in the afternoon. I blow off those meetings since they are a BIG WASTE of time ! It is usually a big ego thing such as how wonderful they are to the company employees or to pat themselves on the back. I gone to one or two of those and I learned not to waste my time. Besides, I am usually out of the office by Noon on Friday.
Reminds me of the public school I went to - Carmel Clay Schools in Indiana. At that time, athletics was "king" and if you did not play sports, you were looked down even by the teachers. The punishments dished out were different between the jocks (slap on hand) and non-jocks (we will make an example out of you !). I happened to be a non-jock, so I experienced the heavy hand of authority. If you even dared to defen yourself from the "bully", you, not the bully experienced severe punishment and the bully got his hand slapped.
The shit doesn't change when going into the corporate world. Where I work at, our company is subcontracted to another (DoD contract usually pairs companies, one is prime and others are sub-contract). The manager I report to, I am not one of his favorites. The prime company files a formal complaint against me for something that happened on our own premises based on some minor technicality. I got called into his office and got an ass chewing to end all ass chewings ! One of his favored ones openly defies the prime's dress code at the prime's location (wears blue jeans, not dress pants). Nothing is done since he is the "fair haired" child. If he was not favored, he would be told to comply and "like it" in honor of Judge Smells from Caddyshack and have an ass chewing on top of that.
And, lo and behold, despite the fact that he was VICIOUSLY assulted, he was suspended for a week because he didn't want to die.
I worked for one company that looked down on motorcycles and muscle cars. I use to have a Mustang GT - bought it new in 1990 and since I did not drive a "responsible" type of car (according to executive's view), I was not allowed to drive the rental cars on business trips. They also had stupid dress code rules. We were expected to dress up at all times even if it was a business trip on weekends on your own time when you weren't going to meet with the client. The company is now out of business but since I have been working for over 15 years, I won't play these "games" anymore. I "played them" when I first started but didn't after the first few years.
Anal dress code rules are an indication that other stupid rules may also be in force, and stupid rules are symptomatic of a) an unpleasant and oppressive working environment and b) a company too bogged down by micromanagement by self-important, clueless bureaucrats to get anything interesting done. Show me a company which has a strict suit-and-tie policy but is otherwise an absolutely lovely and relaxed place to work, and I'll be very surprised.
Well put ! Where I work at, I wear blue jeans even though company policy says dress pants/khakis Mon to Thu. I am a lab "rat". I am the first person to do physical labor or to crawl on the floors doing cables in addition to being a Unix Sys Admin. I don't have piercings or tatoos. I am conservative such as short haircut. The only body "modification" I do is tanning bed a couple of times each week but nothing else.
I am one of those people who questions the rules and regulations such as inquiring what the purpose behind them. In my job, I don't interface with the customer, so therefore, why wear nice dress clothes. They are a pain to take care of such as ironing or dry clean. With my jeans, wash, throw into dryer and they are ready to be worn. With ironing, that takes time which I could use to do other things such as goofing off.
Same for long button shirts and dress pants. I love how companies, at least most here locally where I live, require you to dress in both of these, when it's 100 degrees outside. Yes, again naysayers will say "but inside it's not like that" yea, it is. Not every business chips in to keep the air conditioning at an acceptable level inside. So more often or not I'm there sitting in the cubicle, in some stuffy ass pair of dress slacks or khakis with a tie and dress shirt, about to burn to death cause I'm so hot. And no, for naysayers that will ask, I'm not excessively overweight or tall, I'm an average size medium height. When a 140 pound male that's 5'11 is sweating in a dress shirt, tie, and dress pants, then it's either too damn hot inside or they need to allow you to dress more comfortably.
If I had mod points, I would mark it insightful ! You hit it straight between the eyes ! I myself have been in corporate America for a quite a few years. I would like to get out. Nice bennies such as vacation but executive management looks down on taking vacation except for their own ranks. The two Columbine gunmen had parents worshipping at the altar of Corporate Society instead of spending time with their kids and knowing what they were up to !
In my job, we are so spread thin that it is almost impossible to take time off. I had to "pull teeth" just to get a week and a half off. Talking about corporate greed, one company I worked for, the executives were marketers and accountants had an unwritten rule that no one was to take time off during the Summer. That was an "executive privilege". I took time off anyway but always caught crap when I got back such as hearing words of some executive VP was upset I took a week off. This rule was anti-family. The person who favored this rule was a career woman who thought work was more important than family. Similar to Ms. Carly.
Here in Colorado Springs, it may take quite a while before you piss off everyone but there are some ways to accomplish the feat much more quickly such as a lawsuit against your former employer.
When I first moved to Colorado Springs, I worked for MCI as a contractor. My MCI manager was such an asshat that I got let go after 9 months. When I was looking for other jobs, the prospects seem good and then suddenly vanished not knowing he was badmouthing me. I called his house and decided to inquire on what kind of reference he will give me. He mentioned that I did not deserve a decent reference since I didn't fit into their culture and then he warned me that I was not to use anyone for a reference except for him and on top of that, he told me that he would personally see to it that I would not be able to get another job in town.
The thought crossed my mind of a lawsuit but however, that definitely causes you to get blacklisted beyond the geographical area you are in. I ignored his warning about not using anyone else for a reference and got another job within several weeks. He has been working in a different city for the last 6 years as nothing else but an Executive VP of a major financial company - Wachovia. To this day, I will not use him as a reference.
Recently, working in DoD, there was a person who was fired by the prime contractor. The company I work for is a sub to the prime. This person was caught many times getting into phone sex at a local Air Force Base during the day. He got fired from our company in California a few years back before he moved to Colorado Springs to work for the prime. He showed up one day and was met by one of the managers and company security and was given a box, packed his stuff and was escorted to his car. The manager and security person scraped his AFB stickers off his car/confiscated his badges and when he left, they drove behind him until he was off the base. This person now has a lawsuit filed against the company plus the two people who escorted him out. He had a decent chance to get a different job but that will be gone.
The original section 203 mandated that all states must join a compact known as the Driver License Agreement (DLA) which a given member state will share their database with other states and Canada/Mexico. That was removed in the final bill.
Today, there are a very few states that don't take any action on out of state violations (minor such as speeding). Most states, unfortunately, will assess points and even if they don't, they will still put the out of state violation on your record so your insurance company can increase your rates. There are only two states that will not put an out of state minor traffic offense on your record, it is Colorado and NY. However, NY will however, assess points for violations in Ontario and Quebec under a special agreement. Some states will assess points for Canadian traffic violations (OK, TX, CA, WV, VA, NY*, MI-special agreement w/ Ontario only) off the top of my head). States like MD, NV do not assess points but will post out of state violations on record.
The meat of dealing with motor vehicle violations in the final conference report is Section 202d 12 & 13. It basically requires states to keep track of all motor vehicle violations, suspensions, points. I don't know how far they will be required to do this such as only including moving violatgions or all violations such as out of state/country, equipment, parking, etc. Colorado where I live at, they only put pointable offenses on record where as non-pointable offenses are left out such as no front plate,seatbelt violations, etc.
I would prefer to keep it as a state function. If you think the state DMV is bad, a federal one would suck !
I do a lot of out of state traveling. I am licensed in Colorado and currently, Colorado does not penalize for out of state tickets (minor but will hammer you for DUI). In other words, no points, no record, no insurance increase. I do make myself aware of the other state's laws such as concerning tinted windows. Some states will apply their tint law to non-resident vehicles such as recently enacted in Georgia due to the GA Surpreme Court decision. Utah, California, Iowa, Virginia and Indiana are other states that apply their tint law to out of state vehicles. Other laws I have to concern myself with are lights. I have ECE code (European spec) headlamps on my Jeep and Toyota Truck. In some states, you are required to have US-DOT spec headlamps such as Illinois, Virginia for example. Colorado is silent, they just require headlamps. When I travel through some states, I am aware that I can get stopped and ticketed for violating their vehicle code such as vehicle equipment.
I have been a lifelong Republican, this Real ID Act is a big usurpation of state rights ! At least the mandate for states to join the Driver License Agreement was removed from the bill which would have forced states to share data not onlt betwen states but also Canada and Mexico. In 2006, I am going to vote Democrat because my Congressman refused to step in to change the bill but instead not only he voted for it but signed it. I think it is time for to have divided power and eventaully I would like to see third parties get into office like the Libertarians.
There is one thing I support of the Republicans is reducing taxation such as getting rid of the inheritance/estate tax which was designed to hurt the family owned business in favor of large corporations.
I read a survey recently that that the US is not in the top ten of the most free countries and New Zealand is rated at number 5. I am thinking of immigrating to NZ. One big downside of NZ is they have much more gun control.
I bet that the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) would propose something like this considering it is composed of driver's license officials and law enforcement executives and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA). NHTSA was particularly upset when the national speed limit of 65/55 mph was repealed almost 10 years ago.
An interesting item is I went to the Dayton Hamfest last year, there was one vendor selling a Car Chip that recorded details on your driving. I talked with the salesman and he even mentioned one company (he would not name) mandated this in private vehicles of their employees. If you didn't like it, you don't work for the company.
With the coming Driver License Agreement as sponsored by the AAMVA and the mandate for states to join it if the Real ID Act of 2005 passes combined with this technology, it would be very difficult to retain your driver's license or maintain reasonable insurance premiums especially if you travel alot by car like I do. Even a "law abiding" driver will get nailed here and there !
I will be doing a lot of traveling this Summer such as traveling from Colorado to California and to Indiana. In Indiana, the speed limits is pretty well 55 mph except for rural interstates. The 4 lane divided highways are 55 mph and I usually do 70 to 75 mph. Currently, Colorado takes no adverse action such as points for minor out of state offenses. Here in America, since our public transportation is non-existent, the motor vehicle is the only way to get around unlike Japan or Europe. Unfortunately, it is not practical since places of employment is spread around unlike many years ago where your job was located downtown in a given district.
To be decided in the Senate and the House/Senate Conference Committee is the Real ID Act of 2005 sponsored by F. James Sensenbrenner. This will be a backdoor defacto National ID through your driver's license. Included is a linked database known as the Driver License Agreement as sponsored by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. States will be required to sign it in order for given state driver's license to accepted when dealing with the Federal Gov't such as boarding an airplane or train.
Included in the Driver License Agreement is sharing information not only within the US but with Canada and Mexico (pg 4, item 11 in PDF Document). Required in the database is identity theft type of information such as your Social Security number. Also the Driver License Agreement as a side "benefit" requires your state to punish you with points for a traffic offense anywhere within North America. So a speeding ticket from a vacation in Cancun, Mexico or Montreal, Quebec, Canada will tarnish your home state driving record and as an insult to injury, your insurance goes up !
There is not much time left to defeat this legislation. It is attached to HR1268 - Emergency Appropriations for Iraq, Tsunami Relief. The Senate has removed it but the House will insist on the Real ID Act of 2005 in conference committee and we need to let our Senator's know that we are against this. Information to Contact Congress web link.
It is the same thing with the Real ID Act of 2005 legislation (HR418) by Sensenbrenner. Section 203 requires that states must participate in the Driver License Agreement (DLA). Also states will be required to keep information on personal information like social security numbers, addresses, and driving record items such as license suspensions, points (both redundant since it is done already) and all other violations (moving, non-moving/equipment, parking) and share them with ofhter jurisdictions. In addition, it would require states to punish their drivers for out of state and out of country infractions (Canada & Mexico so far).
Not known to many people is the data will be shared with Canada and Mexico as a start. Reference DLA at the AAMVA. Look on page 4, item 11 defining jurisdiction.The sharing of personal info like SS#'s would be a great bonanza for foreigners and US people alike to abuse such as identity theft.
The Senate so far has refused to pass the legislation so it was attached to the emergency funding for Iraq War and Tsunami Relief (HR1268) since it is a must pass legislation. The House will attempt to pigeon hole the Senate to pass this contrary to their reseversations for this piece of draconian legislation. It will come up for discussion in the second week of April when the Congress reconvenes from their Easter break.
The time is now to speak against this. Contact Congress
In the 15 years I have been in the "Wonderful World of Work", I have seen a few things.
First, a guy that I know who works in the same DoD company as I do spends quite a bit of time in Maryland. He is a Colorado Resident. He has to do two different state tax returns. One for MD and the other for CO. He mentioned it is a pain to deal with.
Second, in the same company, a few of our people spend quite a bit of time working in California - job site at an Air Force base. They have to do a CO and a CA tax return. According to company rules, if you spend a cumulative number of days that is greater than 30, you have to pay tax to and do a return for the other state.
Third, over ten years ago, I worked in a company that was based in Indiana and when I was an IN resident at the time. We had several people who worked in NY for several months. A new plant was being built and they were installing the computer equipment such as serial and ethernet lines and hooking connections to the factory equipment. If I remember right, they never had to pay NY tax even though the cumulative time spent there was 3 or 4 months. If this happened today, this would be a different story epsecially if Corporate Legal had something to say about it and how cautious companies are to toe the line to cover their proverbial rear end compared to even 10 years ago.
Contact Congress and oppose this draconian bill ! Contact your Senators and ask them to strip this "HR418 - Real ID Act of 2005" from any bill it rides over on from the House, probably the Iraqi funding.
Contact Congress
It even gets better. A part of this bill is the mandate that states join the "Driver License Agreement" (DLA) (PDF Document) as sponsored by the AAMVA. Not only will our driving records include personal info like SS# be available to cops within the US but also Canada and Mexico ! Also this means a traffic ticket anywhere within North America will go against your driving record at home which your insurance company will punish you for accordingly.
So, go on vacation to Cancun Mexico, get a ticket from some dickhead cop and since there are no due process rights there, get home and get boned again by your state DMV just because of him.
This DLA will be replacing the Driver License Compact (DLC) and Non-Resident Violator Compact (NRVC). The DLC is where your state will assess points for the out of state ticket or pull your license for the out of state DUI. The NRVC means that when you get ticketed for a violation in a different state, the cop does not have to take you to jail or make you post bond. He treats you like a resident. If you ignore the out of state ticket, the other state notifies your home DMV and your home DMV will pull your license until you take care of business in the other state.
The DLA will replace or supercede the DLC and NRVC and. The DLA will include provisions from the old compacts but however, it is more draconian. It also allows for the suspension/revokation of not only your drivers license from another state but also the suspension/revokation of your vehicle registration especially for something like ignoring the out of state parking ticket. Also, it limits due process rights such as you cannot challenge violations that are put on your record from a different state except for clerical errors. It benefits the DMV's and insurance companies.
The state I live in - Colorado participates in both compacts but however, the legislature put in limitations on the DLC to mention that points cannot be assessed for minor offenses such as speeding reported from other states. This was recognition that other states are known to abuse nonresidents for revenue enhancement, therefore, at least when the motorist gets home, he does not have to worry about home state punishement. In addition, since out of state violations are no points, they don't go on your record since another part of Colorado law does not allow zero points tickets to be recorded. The DLA would change all that.
I don't know if our legislature would be too keen to join the DLA but I can see them writing in some limitations such as not sharing all information with other states like SS#'s. However, the DLA does not allow for any exceptions. I hope our legislatures decides to skip the DLA but won't hold my breath. They already implemented most parts of the house bill anyway such as photo recognition, checking SS#, mag strip and 2 level bar code.
The only people I can see having a true complaint are the drivers who want to hide their tickets in one state from LEOs in another state.
About 13 years ago (~1991), there were a couple of Butler students who made fake ID's out of their dorm room. What they used was a large Illinois DL background with a hole to put your head through for the picture. One of the underage kids got caught with the fake DL at a bar and ended up ratting on the Butler students. The police raided the dorm room and then notified the Illinois Secretary of State (who administers motor vehicle functions) even though the crime has occured in Indiana. The IL SOS sent one of their police cars to Indiana to pickup those involved and took them back to IL to be prosecuted. The students were charged with felonies. They also faced charges in Indiana as well.
It is in the intelligence legislation that is being worked out. The House version (HR10) mandates that states must participate in a new compact called the "Driver License Agreement" (DLA) which will supercede the current "Driver Licence Compact" (DLC) and the "Non-Resident Violator Compact" (NRVC). This DLA would link state driver's license databases between the US States and Territories but unknown to many people, it will link databases to Canada and Mexico as well. This is being put forth by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) which is composed not only DMV officials but also police executives and insurance companies executives.
The DLA requires a state to assess points for a violation such as speeding in a different state/Canada/Mexico. It also requires all violations to be on your motor vehicle record regardless if there are points or not. Some states like Colorado (where I live at) only put pointable offenses on record. Offenses such as not have your front tag will not show on your record. Also Colorado does not assess points for out of state tickets except alcohol realted such as DUI.
The most insidious part of this DLA is cops in different states as well as Canada and Mexico will have access to your Social Security number. Can you say identity theft !
There is very little time to oppose this. Contact Congress. The House is hell bent on passing this and the Senate needs to be encouraged to get rid of the Driver's License provisions. It is best that the intelligence legislation dies.
This happened to a good friend of mine. Back in the Summer of 2002 when the Dot Com boom was just about busted, a friend of mine lost his job and ended up taking contracting gigs. He lived here in Colorado Springs and ended up doing gigs in Ft. Collins (2 hr drive) and in the Denver Tech Center (1 hr drive). Having a mortgage, wife and child, it was a lot for him. In November 2002, he ended up taking a job in Salinas area of California, not too far from the bay Area and its high cost of living. The house got sold, no equity left from it. He always talks about wanting to come back to Colorado but like most palces, the high tech job market is in the shitter. He had a clearance but it was already the past the 2 year mark of where it was easy to reinstate or resubmit paperwork.
Today, he is living near Santa Cruz in a small 1000 square foot house costing $2500 per month. He has two kids and pulling in $40k per year. He cannot even buy a house since even the junky houses are a half-million -> high mortgage payment.
With his situation, more than likely, if I lose my job here, I would have to move and leave Colorado even with the upside of have very little debt - car payment only and house is paid off. Washington DC is doing good but cost of living is awful.
Within 3 years, no federal agency such as the TSA shall not accept a state ID/DL unless it conforms to certain federal requirements such as collecion of SS#'s
States will be required to participate in the new compact known as the Driver License Agreement. (more on that later)
The bills are in conference committee
Information on this ID can be found at No National ID blog site
On the Driver License Agreement (DLA), it is a compact which has been worked on by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA). It will facilitate the exchange of driving records between states which includes and requires points to be assessed against your driving record for an out of state offense including offenses in Mexico and Canada.Most states do this already but a few select states will take action for a Canadian ticket but no states that I know would take action for a ticket from Mexico. The work on the DLA started in 1994, around the same time that NAFTA passed. Also with the DLA, your driving record would be available to Canadian and Mexican authorities including your SS#. A corrupt Mexican cop could use your SS# to get access to your credit and can estimate your net worth and "charge" his la morida (bribe) accordingly.
The DLA is much more draconian than the current Driver License Compact (DLC) that most states operate under today. It is written in such a way that when you get a ticket in a different state, you will be punished at home even if your home state has no equivalent offense. That cannot under happen under the DLC. An example is as an Indiana driver you get a ticket in Michigan for Careless Driving. Under the DLC concept, Indiana will not assess points for the careless driving but under the DLA concept, you will get some kind of point penalty and Indiana could bump it to reckless driving.
However, there is little time to contact our "representatives" to express out objection to this.
I have been closely watching the US House on passage of HR10 as put forth by the House of Reps. They are proposing some draconian measures that states have to implement if their driver's licenses/ID cards are to be accepted when dealing with Federal agencies.
Buried in the measures is a requirement that states must participate in the Driver License Agreement (DLA). The DLA requires information to be exchanged between states on traffic violations and driver history records. It is also mandated that state must keep record of ALL violations and assess point penalties for out of state tickets as well. Canada and Mexico is included as well. More information can be found through Google.
Some states like Colorado (where I live at) does not deal with an out of state ticket as long as it is taken care of (paid) and it is not a major violation like a DUI. I would hate to see that change.
There were attempts to take the driver license provisions out but unfortunately, they failed. I will check tomorrow when the information is up on the House web site.
If this option was offered, I would be more than happy to take a 25% cut in pay if I am allowed to take 3 months off each year such as during June, July, August. Too bad companies don't offer that option. It would be a great stress reliever. This would be a giant step to improving worker morale and this would even allow for the hiring of more unemployed people especially if some would prefer to take other seasons off.
The way Corporate America operates is you would be lucky to be allowed to take two weeks off at the same time. By the time you finished a week's vacation, you are getting to the point of recharging and getting out of the de-stressing phase. However, you head straight back to work when you are ready to recharge. As a payback to taking vacation, you have the stress of playing catch up and since the working ranks are so thinned out, when you take vacation, work does not get done while you are gone.
In my experience, I took 2.5 weeks of vacation in July and my manager flat out told me that he was not happy for me to take the time off. (BTW, I changed managers since Summer 2003) I also took a week off in June and I did not catch so much crap for that. That week off in June I was going to take it back in March and was going to be two weeks but there was so much that had to be done plus, getting a few people trained to do some of my work while I was gone under mgt's constraints that people I wanted to train were off limits (roadblocks).
The workplace is at a point is if you have a job, it is expected that you put in 60 hour weeks or be unemployed. There is no happy medium. It is either overwork or no work. The price is besides the medical implications of stress, your family suffers such as you don't get to see your kids grow up, see your wife and spend quality time with her. One of the contributors of our high divorce rate and the problems our kids face due to lack of attention. Columbine shootings are a good example of kids who have little parental involvement since they were chasing the corporate dream.
I have been interested in this issue for many years. A heads up. There is a new model law being pushed by the AAMVA called the Driver's License Agreement (DLA). It is a compact that is suppose to replace the "Driver's License Compact (DLC)" which requires the state you are licensed in (home state) to assess a point penalty for an out of state ticket and the "Non-Resident Violator's Compact (NRVC)" which requires your home state to pull your license if you ignore an out of state ticket.
The DLA is much more draconian than than the DLC & NRVC. It also has "backdoor" provisions for a National ID Card such as minumum requirements to be on/inside a driver's license such as smart chip, biometric information. The AAMVA supported the Clinton Administration's requirement that Driver's Licenses display your Social Security Number. The DOT got as far as issuing proposed regulations but Congress refused to fund the mandate and eventually repealed it. However, Congress did not remove the provision that states had to collect the number as per the revised Welfare Act.
The DLA also will be an instrument more severly punish traffic offenders for an out of state infraction than under the current system. The NRVC cannot be used by states to pull a license for ignoring non-moving violations such as parking tickets. Also with the DLC, you could only be punished for an out of state infraction only if your home state has the exact infraction on its books as well. If you get a ticket for careless driving away from home and you home state has no such offense, you get no points. The DLA would require some form of point penalty. Also, the DLA will allow for the suspension/revokation of your car registration which is supposedly aimed at people who ignore out of state parking tickets. It also requires states to post ALL offenses on your driving record including parking tickets. Some states only post offenses that incur points on your driving record where as non-pointable offenses don't show such as a tinted window violation or not front plate.
The worst part of this DLA is it is International. It will include reciprocity with Canadian Provinces and Mexican States but the AAMVA mentioned it will not stop there. They are working on drafting aggrements between states and foreign countries which will eventually include reciprocity for traffic violations. So one day, you get a ticket from an asshole French cop or get a reckless driving ticket from a cop in Cancun Mexico since you refuse to pay a bribe, you will end up paying when you get home such as points against your license and the mandatory insurance increase because of out of country tickets. Unfortunately, coming to a state near you thanks to the DLA. The AAMVA will start pushing it very hard starting next January.
Back in May, I went to the Dayton OH Hamfest. The have many vendors there besides ham radio related. I stopped at one booth which was a company called Davis Instruments which sells a product called the "Car Chip". I was in an extended discussion with the proprieter.
The salesman mentioned that a lot of companies are requiring the device in company vehicles (I can understand since it is their property) and he even mentioned one company requires it in employee's personal vehicles as well. This is where the extended discussion came about. I asked him who the company was and he mentioned that the name cannot be divulged. The discussion went into privacy concerns such as it is none of your employer's business how you drive outside versus the emplyer's concern about you being an asset to the company.
I looked at the article and it was mentioned there was a bonus for not exceeding 75 mph. I am against the device myself. It is pretty bad that insurance companies can raise your rates without paying a claim such as getting a speeding ticket. I travel between Colorado and Indiana several times a year and when I drive, I end up driving through Kansas at 80 or 85 mph (70 mph SL) and usually drive about 80 mph in IL and IN (65 mph SL). Colorado does not recognize out of state minor violations (not yet!) which includes speeding. State to state reciprocity is another matter and is being pushed hard by the AAMVA with a legal instrument called the Driver's License Compact which is supposed to be replace by the Driver's License Agreement which requires all violations even down to parking tickets be on your driving record and also opens the door to reciprocity to foreign countries starting with Canada and Mexico.