Scratch the Union idea! I say you look toward a Professional Secret Society...I hear they were all the rage in past power-player days :)
On Mon, 12 Jan 2004 12:31:03 -0800 Daniel Sichel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> It's time we as a professional group start talking and walking >like >> adults (at least more than in the past), I think. Just playing >with >> computers is fine, but not enough. > >>Agreed. And believe me, I have spent many an hour trying to figure >out > >>how to approach the problem. Unfortunately, every solution I can >come >>up with involves educating the masses . . . many of whom don't >want to >>be confused with facts . . . ;> > >This is off topic but I couldn't help myself. What we need is a >union. >Why? Well right now, management generally buys the software that >has the >cutest infobabes, the best promise, or safe branding (Microsoft). >If we >had a union that negotiated a contract that paid us extra for fixing >software failures or broken installs, so that the bottom line got >hurt >by the crap these people sell, it would take about 5 minutes for >the >priorities to change in purchasing decisions and for SLAs and tech >support to be ratcheted up where they belong. > >Speaking as a US citizen, if we were Teamsters and honored their >picket >lines think of the leverage we would have. Scab truck drivers are >available, but imagine the chaos of scab sys admins or firewall >administrators? And of course when the Teamsters honor our picket >lines, >that wouldn't hurt a bit. > >Be nice to keep our jobs from going to third world countries where >tech >professionals are even more exploited than here. > >But of course, all my technical professional colleagues will pooh- >pooh >the idea of a union. They always do. Think about this, a union for >us >could be like the bar associatio for lawyers or the AMA for doctors. >We >could impose stringent professional abilities, certifications, and >requirements to ensure we are a professional, capable body of people. >We >could institute apprenticeships so we have a supply of people who >are >more than paper MCSEs or CCNAs. > >I am very fortunate that I work in an enlightened company that pays >more >than lip service to standards and security. Management totally backs >us >up on secure and safe computing. No IM, no HTML mail, no user installed >software. A budget for security and training. It is wonderfule. > It is >also the first employer in my 15 years of IT experience that follows >through on these things. But I remember the pain and anguish from >before. If we are going to change our industry so that we can succeed >at >our jobs, we need a union. Period. > > >Dan Sichel, Network Engineer >Ponderosa Telephone Company >(559) 868-6367 > >_______________________________________________ >Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. >Charter: http://lists.netsys.com/full-disclosure-charter.html > > Concerned about your privacy? Follow this link to get FREE encrypted email: https://www.hushmail.com/?l=2 Free, ultra-private instant messaging with Hush Messenger https://www.hushmail.com/services.php?subloc=messenger&l=434 Promote security and make money with the Hushmail Affiliate Program: https://www.hushmail.com/about.php?subloc=affiliate&l=427 _______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.netsys.com/full-disclosure-charter.html
