the 5 stages

[katty]

America is (now, knee deep)in the 5 stages of grief:


Denial (this isn't happening to me!)

Anger (why is this happening to me?)

Bargaining (I promise I'll be a better person if...)

Depression (I don't care anymore)

Acceptance (I'm ready for whatever comes)

-Feds are at the "Bargaining" stage with the American "taxpayer"--however, Americans have been FORCED to move along through these stages (colllectively) to: Acceptance (I "might" be ready for whatever comes?!-god, I HOPE I am!)

[JanusAscending]

1. This should start a good discussion!

k/r

[katty]

2. well, don't know....I am just exhausted-like so many others!

[patrice]

3. Well, I guess I have a head start on them because I began my 5 stages on March 19, 2003

I could see most of the rest of what's happened unfolding from that point. I figure I'm Bargaining still at this point. Don't know about those last two stages. Though I do hear you're supposed to actually let those things happen if you hope to ever be effective against the source of your grief.

But, I'll never ever accept what happened on March 19, 2003.

No KINGS, no f-ing-ever!

[katty]

4. yes, you do...mine started when Supreme Court appointed

the boy--and I have lingered on/off/inbetween many of these stages over the years.

[patrice]

6. Don't know how to get through this stuff without actully becoming dysfunctional.

[katty]

7. that can certainly be a side effect to non-stop chaos, disruption

lying, stealing by one's government, walls street casinos run amuk and on and on.... Americans have been subjected to a non-stop rollercoaster ride of shock therapy, predatory lending, last gasps of greedy capitalists sucking up their tax $ (first rule: they never use their own $)foreclosures, layoffs in the millions, credit freeze. This in turn ruins businesses, families, whole towns, infrastructure, services. Why are Europe/Iceland/Greece the only ones rioting?! It is Americans that should be leading the protest line!

[patrice]

9. Dysfunctionality is the only thing that the System recognizes in the Working Class.

Today, i had a woman who makes appx. 2X what I make ask me to do something that she could have easily and more efficiently done herself.

I like this woman and "we" are supposed to be ALL about "culture change" that is actually what we are supposed to be marketing, so I'm thinking "Wouldn't it just be easier and more efficient for you to just get the supply catalog and take care of that yourself?" But I didn't say it. She had a meeting later, and I've been to similar meetings, so I knew she was going to go and sit and listen for at least 2 hours to someone who is making appx. 2X what she is making ramble on about various personal topics and, every now and then, touch on something that we are actually doing, mostly to the effect of interfering with the persons who are actually doing the work of getting stuff done.

The thing that was needed from the supply catalog wasn't anything vital to our operation. Something that WAS vital to our operation, a certain print cartridge, WAS actually ignored by ALL of the people who use it (I being one of the least since I use the big industrial grade printer/copier that is elsewhere and is maintained by others), but anyway that little printer had sat there flashing its message for some weeks about needing a cartridge and no one had done anything about it, so it was out of service this a.m. when we had a bunch of people in and there was some need for copies and printing of this and that to get them settled and on track with what they were doing and I was surprised by the fact that there was no reserve cartridge of the appropriate color amongst the other reserves stored near the little copier/printer. That part of it is my fault.

And then, this culture-change person whom I like very much wanted me to look up this highly specific little item that goes with this other special little accessory that she uses every now and then. I'm mostly concerned about other things, so I say okay. Later, when I get around to doing it, I find there's nothing like what she wants in the supply catalog, but I can't make an alternative selection for her, because I'm not her. I have no idea what the specific purpose of the item that she wants ordered is, so that I can identify something that will work just as well. Turns out later, when I speak to her about it, that there is nothing in the catalog that will fit the accessory she has, but we look online and find she could have found the exact thing in 5 minutes. I spent at least 20 minutes, on a BAD day, looking for it by myself and then went to her and together we spent another 20 figuring out what to do for a FUCKING accessory!

I'm sorry, I'm REALLY bumbed out about this; it has to do with Dysfunction. For all of my awareness and vision, when it came time to say "No, I don't have the time, here's the catalog," I thought instead, oh well, I have to look for something or other in the supply catalog for so-and-so else, so I'll just combine the tasks.

It IS mostly about efficiency for me. I think I can do everything if I just get organized well enough, but today I'm also discovering it is also about resentment. I'm a VERY busy person, the woman who asked me to do this isn't even my boss, even if my time isn't as $$$ valuable as hers, you'd think people who are supposed to be all Edward-Demming-esque would know to order a print cartridge now and then and to pick up a supply catalog all by themselves now and then. And one of the few persons who might point in that direction is so habitually into pleasing others that all i did was make their mistakes worse.

How many other people are doing the same thing I did today? I guess I wouldn't mind so much, except that we (the people I work with) are actually supposed to be about the opposite of all of this. This confuses and alarms me. And on a cultural level, How much is this sort of thing costing Us?

And there's no way to talk to any of them about this without becoming "the dysfunctional one(s)"!

. . . "The misfit" as one of the maintenance guys called himself today, when he and I happened to chat and he told me (unsolicited) about a very long and protracted struggle maintenance had had with the county over some very expensive soap, provided by their vendor buddies that they wanted maintenance to use, even though maintenance KNEW that a much cheaper soap works much better.

I'm sorry. I'm VERY worried about America. I'm depressed. I'm going to get some sleep now.

[Greyhound]

5. December 2002.

I went through the 5 steps in a couple of months, and am living in stage 6 now; Blinding rage and absolute freedom.

[HillbillyBob]

8. started at blinding rage when I saw the men in black shredding our

ballots in fort lauderdale the night of the ''election''...

[Initech]

10. Repukes are still in the denial stage.

[Skittles]

11. I never go through those stages

I go straight from shock to acceptance