Early Retirement for Injured Federal Employees
How does one formulate “the argument”? Is it merely a reaction that comes naturally, like the person who has been tagged as one who is “constantly argumentative”? Do all arguments need to provide a foundation of rational discourse — of coherence within an invective of counter-statements, and structure countermanding a deterioration of civility? […]
How does one “prove” a standard of “incompatibility”? Physical injuries often allow for a medical opinion to impose certain restrictions: No lifting more than X-pounds; no standing more than 2 hours within an 8-hour period, etc. These, then, can directly “prove” that a Federal or Postal employee […]
Could the First Chapter be changed? Who will write the final chapter? Does memory serve the dictates of truth, or does a bit of “fudging” occur as with every narrative told, taking liberally the artistic license to its extreme? Will it be a Dickensian opening or a Salinger’s scoffing of the details of birth? What genre would be encompassed: Fiction; autobiography; Science Fiction; a Narrative Poem, perhaps? Can fact and fiction be interwoven, and will the middle parts include characters long forgotten, and some individuals be left out deliberately just out of pure spite? […]
It is the symbol of a quieter life; of a pastoral time of past remembrances, where the slower pace accorded a tranquility now lost forever. It is referred to in many of William Trevor’s short stories — of that time in England when people still sat around and had “that cup of tea”. For, somehow, the notion of fine china, the curling wisps of winding steam and the aroma of warmth and comfort retain a resonance of civility, quietude and the sentiment of calmer times. […]
There is, first, the preparation; then, the formulation; and finally, the filing and the waiting. Are the sequence of steps necessarily separate and identifiable — cleanly bifurcated such that there is no overlapping of concerns? Of course not; but the three elements in a OPM Disability Retirement application are necessary for the successful outcome of the endeavor. […]
One’s age can be revealed as to whether, in the privacy of one’s thoughts, the ellipses is replaced with — “Lost in Space”, or even The Swiss Family Robinson. The former is a television series that ran between 1965 and 1968; the latter, a novel by Johann David Wyss published in 1812 that few of us read anymore. Another television series recalled from the dustbin of history’s classics; another novel and writer no longer read, remembered or studied. […]
Doubting can become infectious. Once the confidence wanes, the seeds of doubt have been planted; once the seeds begin to sprout, further fears of shaken self-confidence begin to appear, and the shattering of a once-certain sense of calm begins to pervade insidiously within the soul of a questioning mind. A denial from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in a Federal Disability Retirement case is intended to do exactly that: Doubt the strength of your case. […]
How much historical data is too much? Is there a correlation between “too much” and “loss of interest”? In other words, when a history book is written, does the interest shown by the reader begin to wane when a certain point of quantitative overload begins to overwhelm? Further, does the audience for whom the historical data is written depend upon the extent given? Certainly, “popular” historical narratives provide “juicier” content than more “serious” biographies, […]
Can a project be well-prepared if there is no “system” in place? Do we trust, for example, a construction firm who goes about their business without a blueprint? If you ask of the firm, “Well, can we see some examples?” or “Can you provide a rendition of what kind of a house you plan on building?” — what would you think if the answer came back with: “Oh, don’t worry, it will have a roof, a couple of bedrooms and a kitchen.” Is that a satisfactory answer? […]
There may be a single criteria to meet, with subsets of requirements that must be complied with; yet, multiple methodologies in approaching the singular. How can that be? Isn’t it all simple, where you read what is required, then gather up all of the evidence that appears to meet it and simply send it all in? That is the “volume methodology”. Can a single sentence in a medical report ever meet the legal criteria in an OPM Disability Retirement case — i.e., a “qualitative” methodology, as opposed to a quantitative one? […]