You know something terribly shady? I'm working on switching majors in grad school, and it's gotten quite difficult. The Sociology department, which I'm leaving, is amazingly supportive of the change, and happy to help in any way possible. The Linguistics department, where I'm going, is thrilled to have me, and is also willing to help in anyway possible. The Administration, however, is fighting me tooth and nail. They don't want to do the work to switch me over, so they've been shuttling me from department to department, telling me I'm going to have to pay for the classes I'm leaving (even though I have a full tuition waiver,) and giving me confusing directions that won't help me get this stuff done. An example of that last one is telling me I need to get a form from my doctor that says when I had the surgery, what complications I had, what medications I've been on and how they affected me, and how long I've been officially out of school, then later telling me that it doesn't matter what my doctor says because my surgery was after the official drop date for classes. I feel like I'm on fifty wild goose chases at once, and I don't know who to turn to. Luckily, there's one department on my side over in Administration, and oddly enough, it's the Fellowship department. They're the ones who will have to do the most work out of any of the others during this switch, but they're the only ones willing to push the boundaries to get me set up. I see them in about an hour. Wish me luck! I maybe paying a few thousand dollars, apparently, if things don't go well. *sigh*
Let's get to it.
-- [Chuck] Occupy DC is celebrating their one year anniversary, and a few news outlets are picking up the story. On this site, Cool Revolution, there is this story and many more. (I've read several of them so far. They're pretty good.)
-- [Chuck] Here is a must watch video in which a man reads an open letter he wrote to the LAPD concerning their harassment of his family and their supporters while they fight back against the foreclosure of their home by Bank of America. The letter is straight-forward and well thought out, asking direct questions of the police and provides timelines of the events that have happened.
-- [Chuck] Still wondering about the Illuminator? This RT article provides details about the fight that grew between the funding person and the group running it.
-- [Chuck] These days, we expect scientists to follow a strict code of ethics when it comes to testing on humans. Not too long ago, however, groups operating in secrecy for the US government may have lost all ethical sense. According to this researcher, during the Cold War, things happened in St. Louis and Corpus Christi, Texas, that never should have seen the light of day.
-- In a bit of strange news, Republicans are moving to tie Democrats to the corruption and financial issues on Wall Street, but the money they are using to do so comes straight from the Big Banks of Wall Street.
-- What happens when you strike at Wal-mart to fight back against deplorable working conditions, harassment, and loss of pay? Well, you get arrested, of course! Over a dozen people protesting were arrested at the Wal-mart distribution center in Elmwood, Illinois yesterday by police dressed in riot gear. The striking workers have much support from the community and from unions, but the Wal-mart spokesperson claims that the only reason unions are supporting them is so they can get them organized and take dues from their paycheck.
***Solidarity***
To contact me, email elvishbutterfly@hotmail.com. Thanks!
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