Letters to the Editor 09-20-1999
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- HarassmentEditor, Times-Union: - Drug Testing - Dalton - Animal Welfare - Waste District Thanks
Harassment
Editor, Times-Union:I am a concerned parent whose children go to Triton School systems. My oldest daughter came home in tears yesterday (9-15-99) from Triton Jr./Sr. High School.
She was talking in class which I know that she should not do and so does she. The teacher told her to be quiet and she shut up and the other kids were talking and my daughter said "everyone needs to quit talking," which made the teacher tell her that she was going to call her mother. My daughter raised her hand and told them that I stay connected to the internet so they would not be able to reach me. She was then told to go to the principal's office. When she got there the vice principal's advice to her was to just quit school. Now in my opinion, I thought that a teacher's or a principal's duty was to try to keep kids in school. Apparently I was wrong. This is not the first time that I have heard of them telling a student this. What is wrong with this school system? I went in to talk to them and they basically told me to move out of the district since she does not want to be there. I told them that it is because she feels she is being harassed. I would like to hear other parents' comments on this and what I should do to end this harassment short of moving.
Thank you for letting me get this off my chest.
Lesa Regenos, Tippecanoe (via e-mail)
Drug Testing
Editor, Times-Union:Let me tell you a light, local, lesson about "labor"...
This letter, I hope, will be able to serve as dated, publicly-posted legal notice of my decision not to ever be tested, chemically or blood serum, in order to obtain employment in the future. I know that this will undoubtedly disallow me from being socially accepted, so what else is new?
Without mentioning any corporate names, I will let you know what happened to me at my last place of work.
I was hired the last week of July 1999. I applied for a position advertised in the local newspaper. Not for the wage implied in the advertised position nor in that position; but for considerably less in wages and benefits.
Three weeks later the very same job opening that had evaporated when I had originally applied for it, somehow resurfaced as an "in-plant job bid offering." I bid and I got the offering.
I wasn't allowed to assume the new training responsibilities (full-time) for the bid offering because I was "needed" in the original department to complete its contracts. It was decided that the two separate departments now laying claim to my labor would "share" me.
So began weeks of voluntary (most of the time) but unspokenly "expected" overtime. I began putting in anywhere from 54 to 68 hours per week. And, let's be fair, it was nice of them to allow me to work for the new wage that came with the bid offering job. It did make my financial life a bit more tolerable.
Last Friday, a young lady from the front office came up to me while I stood working and informed me that it was time for me to take my "Pre-employment Drug Screen Urine Test."
I told her I would go immediately after I got home tonight, showered and changed clothes - which is what I did.
Tuesday following that Friday, I was presented with the "results."
It had come back negative, meaning no drugs present in my system. But is also came back with an additional "finding": Not Human Specimen!
My employer said it was my (implied) responsibility to re-affirm my drug-free body and nature by taking another test, at my expense, in order to remain employed with them. I told them that I would be happy to comply and take the test again any time and in any setting, but not at my expense. They refused to accept this condition/requirement of mine.
I walked out of that meeting room.
I walked back to my supervisor, a man I have come to respect. I proceeded to tell him what he might be hearing regarding the circumstances of the meeting I just left. Then, I punched out at the time clock and left the building.
And, as I walked out of that building, I promised myself that I would never again allow myself to be "tested" in such a manner in order to work for my wages.
Now having said all that: Anybody out there got a job they need a good worker to accomplish? I have great local references.
Larry W. Craig, Warsaw
Editor's Note: This letter was edited to conform more closely to the 500-word limit stated in the Times-Union letters policy.
Dalton
Editor, Times-Union:After reading some of the letters on Dalton Foundry, it's the same old story that's been happening over and over these past 20 years or so.
Dalton's is not doing the best job by far in keeping a good face about their property, but they are an industry and doing well and doing a good job of keeping the pollution in check. That foundry has been there all of my lifetime in this county, all 52 years and more. It has had to meet as many of the EPA's dictates that could be. And I've not seen the soot and dust that we used to get.
It is a dirty job and some dirt will be tracked about the property. But a foundry can't be spic and span like Zimmer or Biomet and still make their products. If you live within a couple blocks on any side of a foundry, you ask for it. But if you live beyond that space, there are only about a dozen houses even remotely close to the foundry. Well it's city life, OK? That foundry and other foundries and factories in the area were there before most of the housing.
If dirt is your main problem, well you only need to look at your favorite love affair in your driveway. Just go to it and lift the hood and look under it. Bingo! Find any dirt? That didn't come from Dalton's. It comes from you running it and hauling yourself all over, on open sometimes crowded roads, iceless travel in winter. If the dirt bothers you at home then maybe you should be made to keep that machine spotless inside and out, so I don't have to touch your dirty car to rotate your tires, that leave black rubber all over as you wear them out. Or the black carbon and fiber that you wear off your brakes trying to stop on a dime, or change your black oil you left in the motor 10,000 miles too long, causing it to wear out even more just to save a couple bucks. No matter how you want to point the finger and judge, all people are causing the pollution around you, even you!
Dalton's like so many other factories helped provide products that give you your convenience items you demand in your life. No matter how clean your backyard is or spotless your home, your trash winds up in somebody's backyard or landfill.
Dalton's people need those jobs and I appreciate them for doing that kind of work. You can get rid of a racetrack and then make sure none can replace it anywhere in the county, but that won't stop your dirt either! If these complainers want to be productive, put your time, effort and your money into getting our government to bring back vehicle inspections, to get bad cars off the roads, to pay cities to get old polluted sites cleaned up, tear down old buildings closed up, and getting oil and gas motors off all lakes surrounded by land, our watershed, to get our state to be an employee friendly state, instead of looking for unemployment statistics.
Charles E. Cole, Warsaw
Editor's Note: This letter was edited to conform more closely to the 500-word limit stated in the Times-Union letters policy.
Animal Welfare
Editor, Times-Union:Please don't get tired of the letters concerning the AWL. The problems are not going to go away or cure themselves. They need our help continuously until they can raise the money necessary to survive. Most of us want the AWL to survive, a few don't. We know who they are.
We live in a very caring and compassionate community. You came together when the AWL needed food. You saved the animals. But now we need to save the AWL. Could you find it in your hearts to send small donations of money ($1, $5, $10)? Whatever you can. It is up to us to fund the AWL - $30,000 per year does not do it. Thank you Kosciusko County.
Joyce Moore, AWL Volunteer
Waste District Thanks
Editor, Times-Union:The Kosciusko County Solid Waste Management District would like to thank all those who participated in the Tire and Appliance Amnesty Day this past Saturday, Sept. 9, 1999. During the four-hour event we collected five semi-trailer loads of old tires (approximately 5,000 tires) and over 300 old appliances. Hopefully this event helps to clean up unsightly areas in the county and gives residents an outlet for those hard to dispose of items.Ê
Our tire collector this year was CR3 of Muncie, who use the old tires to make playground cover. They also sell their crumb rubber to other manufacturers of recycled rubber products. Because we were able to contract with CR3, if there are any schools, day care facilities or other public facilities that may be interested in using the crumb rubber playground cover, we will be able to buy back the end product at a reduced price, so contact the District if there is an interest from any public facility!
A special thanks goes out to Lewis Salvage Inc., who allows us to not only use their property for this event, but also provides six paid (overtime) employees to help run the cranes and loaders and who manually help unload tires. Lewis Salvage does this as a public service to the community without compensation from the District.
An additional thanks to the Kosciusko County Sheriffs Department, who provides the District with individuals from the county jail who work extremely hard for four or five hours unloading and loading old tires. Believe me, it is a dirty, back breaking job.
The next District event will be Paper Recycling Day on Saturday, Oct. 9, 1999. Look forward to more recycling opportunities sponsored by your Solid Waste District at the beginning of the new millineum. (Next year.)Ê
As always, we welcome suggestions, in fact we would love to hear from the public concerning their desires for recycling opportunities in the county.Ê
Thanks again for a successful tire and appliance collection!
Marsha J. Eikenberry, Director Kosciusko County Solid Waste Management District
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- HarassmentEditor, Times-Union: - Drug Testing - Dalton - Animal Welfare - Waste District Thanks
Harassment
Editor, Times-Union:I am a concerned parent whose children go to Triton School systems. My oldest daughter came home in tears yesterday (9-15-99) from Triton Jr./Sr. High School.
She was talking in class which I know that she should not do and so does she. The teacher told her to be quiet and she shut up and the other kids were talking and my daughter said "everyone needs to quit talking," which made the teacher tell her that she was going to call her mother. My daughter raised her hand and told them that I stay connected to the internet so they would not be able to reach me. She was then told to go to the principal's office. When she got there the vice principal's advice to her was to just quit school. Now in my opinion, I thought that a teacher's or a principal's duty was to try to keep kids in school. Apparently I was wrong. This is not the first time that I have heard of them telling a student this. What is wrong with this school system? I went in to talk to them and they basically told me to move out of the district since she does not want to be there. I told them that it is because she feels she is being harassed. I would like to hear other parents' comments on this and what I should do to end this harassment short of moving.
Thank you for letting me get this off my chest.
Lesa Regenos, Tippecanoe (via e-mail)
Drug Testing
Editor, Times-Union:Let me tell you a light, local, lesson about "labor"...
This letter, I hope, will be able to serve as dated, publicly-posted legal notice of my decision not to ever be tested, chemically or blood serum, in order to obtain employment in the future. I know that this will undoubtedly disallow me from being socially accepted, so what else is new?
Without mentioning any corporate names, I will let you know what happened to me at my last place of work.
I was hired the last week of July 1999. I applied for a position advertised in the local newspaper. Not for the wage implied in the advertised position nor in that position; but for considerably less in wages and benefits.
Three weeks later the very same job opening that had evaporated when I had originally applied for it, somehow resurfaced as an "in-plant job bid offering." I bid and I got the offering.
I wasn't allowed to assume the new training responsibilities (full-time) for the bid offering because I was "needed" in the original department to complete its contracts. It was decided that the two separate departments now laying claim to my labor would "share" me.
So began weeks of voluntary (most of the time) but unspokenly "expected" overtime. I began putting in anywhere from 54 to 68 hours per week. And, let's be fair, it was nice of them to allow me to work for the new wage that came with the bid offering job. It did make my financial life a bit more tolerable.
Last Friday, a young lady from the front office came up to me while I stood working and informed me that it was time for me to take my "Pre-employment Drug Screen Urine Test."
I told her I would go immediately after I got home tonight, showered and changed clothes - which is what I did.
Tuesday following that Friday, I was presented with the "results."
It had come back negative, meaning no drugs present in my system. But is also came back with an additional "finding": Not Human Specimen!
My employer said it was my (implied) responsibility to re-affirm my drug-free body and nature by taking another test, at my expense, in order to remain employed with them. I told them that I would be happy to comply and take the test again any time and in any setting, but not at my expense. They refused to accept this condition/requirement of mine.
I walked out of that meeting room.
I walked back to my supervisor, a man I have come to respect. I proceeded to tell him what he might be hearing regarding the circumstances of the meeting I just left. Then, I punched out at the time clock and left the building.
And, as I walked out of that building, I promised myself that I would never again allow myself to be "tested" in such a manner in order to work for my wages.
Now having said all that: Anybody out there got a job they need a good worker to accomplish? I have great local references.
Larry W. Craig, Warsaw
Editor's Note: This letter was edited to conform more closely to the 500-word limit stated in the Times-Union letters policy.
Dalton
Editor, Times-Union:After reading some of the letters on Dalton Foundry, it's the same old story that's been happening over and over these past 20 years or so.
Dalton's is not doing the best job by far in keeping a good face about their property, but they are an industry and doing well and doing a good job of keeping the pollution in check. That foundry has been there all of my lifetime in this county, all 52 years and more. It has had to meet as many of the EPA's dictates that could be. And I've not seen the soot and dust that we used to get.
It is a dirty job and some dirt will be tracked about the property. But a foundry can't be spic and span like Zimmer or Biomet and still make their products. If you live within a couple blocks on any side of a foundry, you ask for it. But if you live beyond that space, there are only about a dozen houses even remotely close to the foundry. Well it's city life, OK? That foundry and other foundries and factories in the area were there before most of the housing.
If dirt is your main problem, well you only need to look at your favorite love affair in your driveway. Just go to it and lift the hood and look under it. Bingo! Find any dirt? That didn't come from Dalton's. It comes from you running it and hauling yourself all over, on open sometimes crowded roads, iceless travel in winter. If the dirt bothers you at home then maybe you should be made to keep that machine spotless inside and out, so I don't have to touch your dirty car to rotate your tires, that leave black rubber all over as you wear them out. Or the black carbon and fiber that you wear off your brakes trying to stop on a dime, or change your black oil you left in the motor 10,000 miles too long, causing it to wear out even more just to save a couple bucks. No matter how you want to point the finger and judge, all people are causing the pollution around you, even you!
Dalton's like so many other factories helped provide products that give you your convenience items you demand in your life. No matter how clean your backyard is or spotless your home, your trash winds up in somebody's backyard or landfill.
Dalton's people need those jobs and I appreciate them for doing that kind of work. You can get rid of a racetrack and then make sure none can replace it anywhere in the county, but that won't stop your dirt either! If these complainers want to be productive, put your time, effort and your money into getting our government to bring back vehicle inspections, to get bad cars off the roads, to pay cities to get old polluted sites cleaned up, tear down old buildings closed up, and getting oil and gas motors off all lakes surrounded by land, our watershed, to get our state to be an employee friendly state, instead of looking for unemployment statistics.
Charles E. Cole, Warsaw
Editor's Note: This letter was edited to conform more closely to the 500-word limit stated in the Times-Union letters policy.
Animal Welfare
Editor, Times-Union:Please don't get tired of the letters concerning the AWL. The problems are not going to go away or cure themselves. They need our help continuously until they can raise the money necessary to survive. Most of us want the AWL to survive, a few don't. We know who they are.
We live in a very caring and compassionate community. You came together when the AWL needed food. You saved the animals. But now we need to save the AWL. Could you find it in your hearts to send small donations of money ($1, $5, $10)? Whatever you can. It is up to us to fund the AWL - $30,000 per year does not do it. Thank you Kosciusko County.
Joyce Moore, AWL Volunteer
Waste District Thanks
Editor, Times-Union:The Kosciusko County Solid Waste Management District would like to thank all those who participated in the Tire and Appliance Amnesty Day this past Saturday, Sept. 9, 1999. During the four-hour event we collected five semi-trailer loads of old tires (approximately 5,000 tires) and over 300 old appliances. Hopefully this event helps to clean up unsightly areas in the county and gives residents an outlet for those hard to dispose of items.Ê
Our tire collector this year was CR3 of Muncie, who use the old tires to make playground cover. They also sell their crumb rubber to other manufacturers of recycled rubber products. Because we were able to contract with CR3, if there are any schools, day care facilities or other public facilities that may be interested in using the crumb rubber playground cover, we will be able to buy back the end product at a reduced price, so contact the District if there is an interest from any public facility!
A special thanks goes out to Lewis Salvage Inc., who allows us to not only use their property for this event, but also provides six paid (overtime) employees to help run the cranes and loaders and who manually help unload tires. Lewis Salvage does this as a public service to the community without compensation from the District.
An additional thanks to the Kosciusko County Sheriffs Department, who provides the District with individuals from the county jail who work extremely hard for four or five hours unloading and loading old tires. Believe me, it is a dirty, back breaking job.
The next District event will be Paper Recycling Day on Saturday, Oct. 9, 1999. Look forward to more recycling opportunities sponsored by your Solid Waste District at the beginning of the new millineum. (Next year.)Ê
As always, we welcome suggestions, in fact we would love to hear from the public concerning their desires for recycling opportunities in the county.Ê
Thanks again for a successful tire and appliance collection!
Marsha J. Eikenberry, Director Kosciusko County Solid Waste Management District
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