Early Retirement for Injured Federal Employees
Words chosen bespeak of the artfulness of the one who chooses them, but the true artist remains anonymous and allows for the words themselves — the “artwork” of the word-meister — to make its quiet impact. It is the vehicle of communication; it is the goal of the sentence, […]
What makes a “reason” to do something “compelling”, as opposed to voluntary or optional? Is it when the choices given are no longer existent and one must by necessity or default act — not out of choice but by being forced to? Is it the unwillingness of the individual that defines the act, or the lack of alternatives remaining that determines the defined moment? […]
The metaphorical image representing such a phrase allows one to pause and reflect: the dichotomy between the physical world and the conceptual one — of a person “hanging”, as from a cliff, with his fingers turning white from gripping the tenuous life-line of a flimsy branch, a loose boulder or an outstretched hand of another; and of the technical term that possesses meaningful discourse […]
It is a peculiar word; for, it can mean both the final, end and trailing subject remaining in the far recesses of a sequence, likely to be forgotten and – except for the Biblical reference where such an entity can be accelerated to the front of the proverbial line – surely to be abandoned; yet, it also connotes endurance, the capacity to outfox others in similar circumstances, and the symbolic appearance of vitality and energy. “Oh, that’s the last thing in the world you want to buy”, goes the dismissive utterance in considering that which is not of significance or relevance as a priority to be considered. And: “That’s one of a kind – it will last forever,” comes the accolade showered upon a product of excellence. […]
What does it mean to merely give “lip service”? Ultimately, it is the hypocrisy of committing to words the sincerity of inaction. In other words, it is merely the utterance of words, with nothing to follow. This is a society that speaks much, and does little. We give lip service to the braggadocio of being a productive society, yet, concurrently admit to the massive loss of the manufacturing sector of our country. Can a country whose primary essence is built upon a “service industry”, actually declare itself to be “productive”? Can we truly instill fear and dread upon our enemies while simultaneously confessing that no ground troops will be deployed? […]
Life is often like a boat without oars, let alone a motor which functions; and as the waves rock the water transport, one maintains balance, sanity and survival by attempting to prepare for the whitecaps and hoping for a further delay of a storm, and never a tsunami. But those changes inevitably come, and attack in onslaughts of exponential fury. One attempts to adapt, to remain like the chameleon who must survive by an unwanted metamorphosis, in order to maintain the delicate balance of nature as described by the brutality of Darwin’s world. […]
Of certain politicians, it has become commonplace to expect such occurrences, but with a slight change in consonants in the first word. As it stands, however, the word as left alone is a state of another kind; not of relational states of erotic ecstasy, but rather a border on the region of heaven or hell, where an intermediate state of oblivion exists in a transitional state of suspension. To that extent, perhaps the two concepts are similar. […]
Have you ever noticed how British actors don’t have the same perfectly white teeth as their American counterparts? Or, for that matter, any non-American, foreign television personality; unless, of course, they have lived here for a few years, in which case they have already undergone the cosmetic transformation of dental voila. Beware of that which one preaches for others; for, someday, it may come back to embrace the hypocrisy of one’s being. Yet, when something becomes the normative standard for everyone, then boredom and monotony of purpose begins to set in. […]
We are completely disconnected from the imposition of nature’s imperatives; through artificial means, we extend the light of day in the name of productivity, and prevent and shut it out for the sake of lengthier restorative sleep; we defy slumber and seasons of cocoon-like hibernation with unnatural heat, and resist the middle of the day where scorching temperatures and required siestas in other countries are ignored and scoffed at. […]
Is it inherently presupposed that a case to be formulated is one which should be “effective”? By the insertion of that term, of course, it immediately implies a retrospective vantage point — an “ends” to “means” view of an outcome-based approach. If a Federal or Postal employee who files for Federal Disability Retirement benefits, whether under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, receives a denial from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, one assumes that the case was not “effectively” formulated. […]