Dishonesty pays

“...a guy got fired for lying on his application form. He had a criminal record, and lied about it.

He sues Walmart and wins $10,000US (I think it was US ($7000 and legal fees)).

What do you all think about this? I think Walmart was in the right.”

“Yeah. I never though I would ever say this, but I'm with Wal Mart on this one.

However, there could be other circumstances we don't know about that affected the decision to give this guy money. Alot like that lady who burned her genitalia with McDonalds coffee.”

“this happens alot at my job. we have the same policy. something interesting happened the other day. a lady left that part blank on her application. the manager didn't catch it and when they ran a background check they found several felonies.

the delima is that she didn't actually lie on the application. it's the managers fault for not catching it.

but you cant be forced to hire felons if you dont want to, imo. it's jsut not right.”

“its a catch-22 with hiring criminals. who wants to have a convicted felon working for them? but then, if nobody gives them a job, what are they gonna do? probably fall back into their criminal lifestyle.”

“yeah but i think our lawyers look at it as a liability issue- with all the frivolous lawsuits today. say you hired a robber and he robs you later and hurts another employee.”

“i agree with that strat (the apocalypse must be upon us). im just pointing out the catch-22 inherent in this issue. kind of a damned if you do, damned if you dont kind of thing.”

“Interesting. In theory, these people have supposedly paid their debt to society, but that's hardly the case. At least here in Tampa, you can also forget about getting a decent apartment if you have a criminal record. You'll have no choice but to live in a subpar place in a less than desirable neighborhood with lot's of crime.”

“man, that musta been tough arty. heh heh, just joshin ya man.....please don't mince me up and feed me to the gators!

it really is a bummer though...”

“LOL @ strat! Naw man, I'm a good boy. My record is cleaner than Anna Nicole Smith's dinner plate.”

“You're record has been scraped clean by some fat bimbo's tongue??

Ewww.”

“LMFAO!”

“It is a tough catch-22 2scoops... and given the high number of black males who are convicted, it's another spoke on the continuing cycle of poverty and crime (poor frustrated Dad's who aren't there in a healthy way for their kids).

Of course poverty, bad upbringing and frustration are not excuses for the individual - but they sure don't help when you look at the societal level.

The Lord's prayer asks "Lead us not into temptation..." and there is real wisdom in that.

I don't have the answers.”

“LOL @ mediaman's post.
I read it again and laughed as hard the second time around.”

“I recently hired a felon. He had been in the prison system from the age of 15 through his late twenties. He is 31 now, and has a wife and two kids. He was a great worker, but I could tell from the start that he liked to talk a bigger game than he could play. He worked for three weeks and then just stopped showing up.
I would like to be able to help people who are coming out of the prison system, if possible. However, when they have been incarcerated for a number of years they, out of necessity, learn the "con" game real well and feel they have to continue it when they get out.
This guy was offended when I didn't trust him from the start, but I made it clear that I had been ripped off before and things were going to proceed slowly. I didn't trust him with power tools or things of much value, and I'm sure it hurt his feelings.
It is very hard for most felons to get back into a productive life. I watched a show on PBS recently about wrongly accused people who were trying to make it on the outside. Very good show if you get a chance to see it.
I think what could be of help to these people is an extensive counseling service to help them after they get out of prison.”

“Sad story Dunadan.
Earning trust after you've lost it is a tough one - but it is part of the price you have to pay. Getting ripped off ain't no fun.

It also points out the hidden cost of putting people in jail (especially without suitable rehab efforts).”

“Dunadan, I caught parts of that show on PBS, and wish to watch it to see it again. I started a thread shortly later about it.

Aparently, these folks were let out of jail on the balance of DNA reports. What was not always said in each case was that these folks were proven innocent. Sure, some cases they came out and said they were proven innocent, and a great wrong has been righted, partially anyways. Others, the DNA evidence cast enough new evidence to call for a retrial, or mistrial or whatever.

Now, just imagine if you are the DA. Person A is entitled to a new trial based on the DNA testing. Person A has served 17 years of a 25 year sentence. With the time off they hand out for these sentences, that's probably about all the time one would expect person A to serve anyways. Now, imagine being the DA. Do you invest/waste time and resources to reprove this guy guilty, knowing you'll have a harder time of it, as the only fresh evidence is against you. The witnesses memory is clouded with time. The victim has gotten on with their life, and doesn't really want to relive the event and have a defense attorney call them a liar.

Just something to think about.

I think we all agree that is a great time when we can free a man who was truly wrongly convicted. But I have doubts about every single one of them being innocent. Half because the "scenario" I laid out above, and half because of what is NOT being said in newspaper articles and the PBS show.”

“Now I am backing Wal mart on this one.”