Letters to the Editor
Older and Wiser
Published Letters: 56 Editor's Choice: 19
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Trouble in the Ol' Factory
[Read the article: My office mate lets off noxious farts]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I believe that no one in the workplace should be subjected to an environment that makes it all but impossible to do one's job. There are reasons that most environments are smoke-free. Likewise, many people are sensitive to fragrances, and have bad reactions to them, so some places might request that employees don't use, or use sparingly, personal fragrances.
Although this is a "sensitive" area, it's no less noxious than smoking or excessive fragrance (and, to my mind, adding artificial fragrance to mask the natural gas is not an acceptable remedy).
Why should any person hired to do an office job endeavor to do their best in an atmosphere that might want to make them vomit? It's not unkind to a person to bring up this issue. However, whether it's stated out of concern for their health or their social standing, I don't think anyone should pretend that it's not something that they simply cannot tolerate. If the "offender" (no matter how nice a person) doesn't "get" the message, then it is something to be taken up with a supervisor or HR. (I posted a similar reply to a previous letter, and someone said something along the line of "are you crazy?" regarding reporting it. I'm sorry, but if an atmosphere is detrimental to doing the job that one is paid to do, then one certainly should be adult enough to deal with it forthrightly.)
So--I think it should be handled directly. It's a health matter for the people affected by it. No one wants to do office work in a bathroom. With all due consideration to the expeller of gas, the overall environment should be of primary concern.
Bring up this issue directly or with managerial/HR help. You really shouldn't have to work in a place that makes you sick to your stomach and places undue stress on your well-being.
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A Vacation from the Truth?
[Read the article: I'm a brilliant scientist and I fear for the world's fate]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]While I don't like to wallow in gloom n' doom, and I try to give my sons a sense of optimism about their own futures, I can't totally disagree with the LW regarding the state of the nation, the state of the world.
With the exception of certain geographic "pockets," this country, as a whole, has been an astoundingly (to me) anti-intellectual society. I'm not the first to say it, nor will be the last, but the hypocrisy surrounding the blatherings about "education," the attention paid to pop culture, the paucity of reason and logic governing national policies here and abroad, the cowardice in kowtowing to religious sects, the head-in-the-sand reaction to the complexities of global events--all of these speak to a lack of true leadership, which should be based on an in-depth understanding of the issues that have been facing this country and will continue to face us for decades, if not centuries.
Perhaps LW can inspire his daughter to think about these issues and prepare herself to take a leadership role in one of the areas in which leadership and clear thinking are so badly needed. He can observe her strengths and talents and mentor her to become perhaps a scientist like himself, or seek another career in which she can act as a competent voice of reason.
I know that my own skepticism and pessimism about these things can drive me to despair. Yes, it's true that a vacation can help to ease the mind. But, for goodness' sake, we certainly don't want the LW to put his own head in the sand of a sunny Bermuda beach and pretend these things aren't happening.
So, LW, sure, take your vacation, really, allow yourself to relax, and then think about how you can pass on your own legitimate concerns to your daughter, but without scaring her into helpless gloom n' doom. Rather, try to inspire her to become someone who can face the realities and perhaps help to do something to truly benefit the world in which she's growing up.
Good luck.
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Compassionate About Compulsions
[Read the article: I can't stop stealing!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I’m not an expert in this area, but, like most people, I know a thing or two. While I haven’t read all the letters responding to LW, the majority of the ones I’ve read addressed the legal and moral issues (all legitimate, of course). But very few addressed the psychological issues (as Cary himself has done).
I don’t think that pointing out moral and legal consequences is sufficient toward resolving compulsive behavior. There are indeed underlying issues here, and they need to be addressed with a competent professional. I’m not speaking here of the rationalizations of dysfunctional family and so on, which a great many of us deal with as a matter of course. But the LW does acknowledge that there is a compulsive pattern here, and it needs to be dealt with.
It probably does help to, at first, say “Stop!” in order to curtail the thefts immediately, but then to also say, “Get some help—NOW!” If the underlying issues can be dealt with successfully, then the legal and moral consequences can be addressed in tandem with them.
That said, I do agree that the LW should quit this job (he can give any reason) before he’s inevitably caught and then seek help before taking another. I also feel compassion for the business owner—twenty dollars may not seem like a lot, but it buys quite a bit of ballpoint pens, paper clips, and the like. No joke—offices need supplies to run on, they need to account for what they purchase, and they need to pay people! I certainly wouldn’t want my own pay to be decreased by twenty dollars.
I hope the LW seeks help for this problem and also comes to realize that there’s a great deal of relief, satisfaction, and freedom to be gained from being an honest and trustworthy person, and from being released from the prison of a compulsion that can only eventually lead to ruin.