I admit it... Will You? Can you? Or are these just my personal experiences? At this point, what I know is that there is no company or government agency, or internet site that can be considered trustworthy. For me that's saying a lot! But that's before Right Now - while I watch as the United States is being destroyed for we citizens... Yes, history has shown that whenever rich people get antsy, not having enough toys to play with, they start looking outward and seeing who they can hurt. Like having a spider in your home and you leave some living because they reduce the numbers of smaller insects... But, at the same time, when you see a very big ugly spider on the outside of your door, you decide you don't want that one inside not knowing what kind of spider it is--and kill it...
We make decisions each day about this or that small segment of our lives. Sometimes we make a wrong decision. Some turn out to be exactly what needed to be done... And other times, you turn to others to help you make that decision before you finally choose what to do...
Right now, my life is full of issues that I must address. Some are fearful, some are costly, some are just plain caused by others who are trying to manipulate me--us... Know what I men?
And, right now, almost all of those issues involve companies who claim they want to help...but, then, the truth begins to come out if you listen or watch closely...
Back in the 60s was the first time, for me, that I became aware of a big corporation being monitored by the federal government. As far as I can tell, no substantive governmental regulation has so affected one company as to, today, we don't hear much from IBM... Stanford University has put together an overview of this regulation which required that IBM reduced the scope of their influence...
I was already working at West Virginia University and, indeed, IBM had the computing contract for a major part of the hardware on campus. We used IBM typewriters and we would have representatives visit quite often. I remember one rep in particular that came when I worked in the Office of Personnel. We knew him so well that, he felt free to joke, at one visit, to one of the secretaries whose machine was one of the older ones we had, and he said, "I don't think I'll be able to fix it again." He cited that it must be the nut between the chair and the typewriter. It took us a few seconds to absorb what he'd said, but we all then laughed since he was making fun of the typist even though it was the machine that needed repaired, which he then did repair... Me, By that time, I was Secretary to the Director and had been able to purchase the latest model for the Director's correspondence and my older machine was the one that needed help, LOL... We never forget those type of moments, because, right now, we are watching as large corporations have been allowed to keep becoming more and more powerful, so much so that they have "purchased" the governmental support to reduce taxes, while they grow exponentially and make billionaires of these mega-monopolies...
This time, however, with the creation of Project 25, we realize that there is no longer anybody working to ensure the citizens of the United States are not placed in debt through prices, failure to provide support, and more... Don't believe me? Hey, I'm going to get personal, sharing what I'm facing... Only you can judge whether you too are being screwed and manipulated by large corporations... OK?
Computer use entered my life as the individual in WVU Personnel who welcomed all new employees and worked to get them on the payroll. My title was Records Clerk, so in the years during the Trump administration, I knew that what he was doing to remove classified documents from the Federal Archives was not only illegal but dangerous for those named within such papers.
When I moved into Facilities Analysis and Utilization, I continued to use and manage the use of computers to fulfill all needs for providing available data on university-wide facilities as well as for the state and federal government. It was a time of both exciting developments, but also the frustration of a lack of knowledge and leadership in the use of these computers to meet our needs. I was the creator, the person between the potential data users/manipulation and the computing services personnel. And I can definitely tell you, that during that time, there was an amazingly high misuse of the personnel resource because of the failure of the leadership...
What do I mean? Simply that individuals and departments were assigned responsibilities, but nobody at the top assume the final decision-making process... We were assigned the review/training activities for various types of software--TIF, Nomad, on and on and on...but in the end, nobody would make the decision to override the CFO to provide financial support through sharing personnel resources... Just one situation describes the last of leadership decision-making.
I was responsible for, among other things, classroom scheduling and management. I reported directly to the Provost for Instruction and had reviewed software packages so that we could move into use immediately. Well, I did the research and recommended Schedule 25. Years went by and funding nor staff would not be approved. In fact, Jay Barton, who was the Provost for Academic Affairs actually resigned and moved to be president at the University of Alaska. In a relatively short time, he had contacted me to get the Schedule 25 info, purchased it there and it was implemented, while WVU continued to do the process by hand... I, too, left so have no idea whether it was ever implemented. I do know that thousands of hours of time were wasted by my unit's staff because nobody ever really addressed the implementation of a university-wide integrated computer system... That is, the president staff always had their own priorities--sound familiar with our present federal government? Either you are a Jay Barton that acted for the good of the University of Alaska to get classroom scheduling functioning at a speed necessary to all routine student interaction re their classes...
Or you have a president that is defunding computer utilization in research, colleges and universities, because he has his own plans for the use of OUR tax dollars...
They - like those named above - come to our lives wishing only one-sided communication... You know what I mean...sites, companies, even hospitals send you emails... To which you can't respond...
While they create an environment where, unless you are willing to beg, can stop any service, words, or financial support from each one of us... During the last decade I've been the victim, and then, the whistleblower in one way or another, to point out what normal citizens like myself have lost...
My first purchases from a company who, when I needed repair coverage, discovered, that the home office was not in the United States. And that there was no legal way that repair coverage could be gained. It was for a washer... I bought a much cheaper replacement... Will they or won't they help when repairs are possibly needed...Only time will tell...
I then took a recommendation for a group to reroof my home. What a disaster... Had to redo and still had problems... Things like, having a Mexican crew who were hard workers, but who couldn't talk to me... And yes, their white male manager was hardly there and/or had to be called to get answers!
My next purchase was a new glass door for my home... I've written about this...I purchased a door, that forced you to purchase a handle/lock system separately--a very costly item which increased the purchase nearly $100. The manager tried to claim that everybody knew this...of course, that didn't mean the average citizen, who had nobody in the store to help acquire that door (decreased staffing is the norm these days...) One of the cashiers confessed that she and her husband had bought 3 of those doors, didn't know they wouldn't get the major part, and had to come back... Not everybody, including staff, knew that these were sold separately...
Routine bill paying... EVERY company wants to have customers use auto-pay... This has included for tv, electricity, water, online shopping sites such as Amazon or Walmart and so many more... The method by which an average user will be screwed is through lack of access to help except by a bot, no email, or removal of coverage. The last one pertaind to Windows, Amazon... At least Windows gave a long notice, but that doesn't help the individual who is quite satisfied with their present computer, but immediately begins to have problems when the next generation comes in and Windows help has been withdrawn! Just like that?"
So you don't have a computer? Well think about your purchase of a refrigerator...or some of the new cars with computer parts that seem to be an acceptable purchase. However, if those new purchases include computer parts, apparently that means that the owner must pay, without complaint. I know a guy who bought a hybrid, some of which were parts from a different country. During the tariff fiasco, there has been an inability to gain parts and the company who produces a new item has no responsibility to ensure that product is safe and working...
So recently I learned that electricity, for example, would increase... But this type of service has some type of dispensation from the government! What that means is that you will begin to receive "threatening" letters about service to your home... They imply that WE have been remiss in having some type of insurance plan for what we previously were getting routinely with the service... These letters keep coming and getting more threatening in use of words... Me, I toss them... When you realize that all corporations are routinely making a significant profit for their rich investors, while little is done to provide ongoing support to those who use/buy those services...? YOU know that some type of fraud has been permitted and will continue until something is done...or we the people start refusing to accept this type of treatment...
Let it be known that I'm willing to pay for what I need, but if it costs me more than I can afford for what I previously got free...? Why should I now be financially responsible without any justification... I've used the example for email. I get no more than 10 bills to be paid outside of the auto-pay process which I've slowly been stopping unless the company has proven to my satisfaction that they will support me and what I need.
I find myself having to deal with issues quite often based upon something done for which I have no control...Unless I pay, for instance, my email service which I've used since the 60s for my few business activities online, adds hundreds of daily ad emails that have no value to me. They keep trying to extort me to pay for NOT seeing these hundreds of mail most of which are fake as verified by me and/or research of the sites from which these supposed ads come...
Did you happen to see that the owner of Amazon recently lost billions when an explosion occurred on his shuttle launching? Hey, I'm not opposed to futuristic investments, as long as it doesn't affect daily service for my account... So, it was with quite a bit of anger that a post was placed on one of my readers, which said, just as Windows did, we are withdrawing support from your readers...and then gave the list of what I can no longer attempt to use...
Now here's the key for me. As you know I've had to switch to reading ONLY e-books. And, more importantly, NOT ONE of these readers have been provided sufficient power that will not require recharging. So here's somebody that blew up billions and vows to continue to try again, while his company has never even been able to provide a reader with sufficient charging capability to last longer than a day! What that means for me is that, I normally have to transfer a book and pull it up on another reader to continue to read until I want to quit. Now, having only one reader with the mandate that I cannot use another reader to pull up that book to continue reading, I'm forced to STOP READING FOR THE DAY... And it happened as if this was just another download of a book, yet was cancelling support for 3 readers!
What if refrigerators didn't have power to run continuously? And what if the manufacturer of one of the most important items in your home suddenly told us that they were withdrawing service for that item... No, there may be no real comparison between a reader and a refrigerator. But my need is very similar for both of these purchases... Why have computing companies been allowed such broad discretion and backing??? Could it be because there are few people who take the time to learn the technical side of computerization? And they do are "willingly" allowing themselves to be screwed? Look what DOGE did to computer areas of the government! Total chaos!
Now, of course, AI can be seen every place but where you can use it... There are those who tell us we will be left behind if we don't learn how to use it... Well, I have a response for that... Since everything else is being taken away that makes life worth living, why make us hope that more damage will NOT be done and that large corporations and the federal government will also not be pulling anything and everything away. After all, book banning is still going on, being allowed through one or two people making a complaint and a book is stopped in its tracks for reading pleasure... It is quite clear that many wish we were getting dumber and dumber so that we do not know just how badly the government has allowed power to corporations and ignoring the needs for us...
So, as I consider just how much I (we?) can no longer trust, I'm having to think about two major personal purchases. A car and a furnace... And the problem is that we have no idea just what this government is going to do...money has already been lost due to needing to use any savings that an individual might still have, because of what Trump is demanding, with the support of the Supreme Courts and a violent part of the republican party who sees the grift, the dishonest corruption, being made and want to get into the grab for riches... How do I proceed, knowing the old saying "the rich get richer and the poor gets poorer."
Is there any hope for short-term security? Or is it:
People talking without speaking. People hearing without listening... Is there anybody out there who can provide human hope to each other? Can you hear me and care enough to respond? Can you see the whole forest of the United States instead of each tree that bars your way to acting? The attack on democracy is not blatantly moving ahead...Only citizens who care about freedom help ensure we can still hold on to this democracy...
Are you fed up with companies acting as if they are doing you a favor by selling you a less than perfect product? That they can change remove or totally delete your accounts or access and then pretend that WE must have created the problem? I am... Yes, it's my personal opinion, from living during a time when it was indeed better for women, for Black people in gaining support on the job or in merely be accepted as a individual worthy of employment! Hate has arisen boldly because nobody stopped it... Or better said, because of corruption in our government. Yes, the Russian's gave assistance in 2016... it was proven and indictments were made, even though Russia refused to accept them.
Don't be misled. Do your research. Learn how to know and discover whether something posted is actually truthful... If you ever want additional info and can't find it, leave a message on comments below and I'll try to find support to verify what is truthful...
Right Now? There is nobody in the United States that can honestly act to protect or help us... Except each other...
God Bless
Gabby
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