.
It's not easy setting out to write a piece that reveals one has been abused, physically and mentally.
But that's what I now do. And more, I will name the abusers and their complicit agencies.
All this it seems, is in keeping with the spirit of the age.
A good chunk of my reticence in posting this revelation has been the rather long gap, in human terms, between then and now. Then was half century ago and more. Again though, this seems to be in keeping with the spirit of the age, that is a big gap in time between the abuse and the report.
'Report' I observe tends to be the immediate precursor of 'claim'. As in a monetary claim against the abuser and their complicit agencies. For me, this is still a delicate issue, still unresolved, though I do not want in any fashion to close the door to a substantial claim as a victim.
The institutional abuse began was I was a tender 5 years old. Still I remember it clearly. It was a grade school environment. I was only in Grade 1ne. Our woman teacher named Moynihan called me aside, but within the view of my class mates so they might know what might await them should they ever be called aside. She brandished a significant and heavy leather strap, designed specifically for imparting a beating. She ordered me to hold out my hand. There followed a sharp deliberate blow. I yanked back my hand on the sting, in complete shock. She order me to hold out my hand again. I hesitated and she then grabbed my hand, palm up, and delivered another blow. And then a third.
Tears flowed. With attendant crying. It seemed like a very long while before the pain subsided.
I came to understand that Moynihan was no rogue teacher with this teaching method. Her principal approved and indeed required this approach to discipline. Her principal was a nun. From the order Sisters of St. Joseph. They wore full length black habits, and head gear that left only the front of their face exposed, a veil extending at the back of their head past their shoulders. A white starched forehead band and a crisp white starched bib completed the outfit that never changed. In later years I would have further run ins with these sisters of corporal discipline.
It came to pass that I understood my parents both approved of 'the strap' as a reliable way to encourage compliance, and conformity. Interestingly my father had known Moynihan as she had taught him in Grade 1ne at the same school round the early 1930s. I also came to learn that in his early school days my father was no stranger to 'the strap'.
And now to backtrack some for completeness, because some might think that the conduct leading to the strapping might offer just cause. Well, .....
There will be some who would press to ask what consequences can we confidently say flowed from this approach to discipline. Others would be quick to say it is not a relevant question. Again for the sake of completeness I can offer a few summary elements.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Places and Choices
We all make choices about our places.
Some choices are big.
The consequences of some of the big choices are huge.
This, then, is about some ideas related to making choices,
with, inevitably I suppose, some prescriptive tips.
Most of us have many degrees of freedom
in our choices of where we call ' my place'.
Here, I am thinking of place as a certain (in the colloquial sense) space.
Space as in 3 dimensions. Time in the background a fourth.
And at a part of the scale that represents geography.
And a related concept of 'home' or homes.
Make no mistake. These places are the result of our choices.
How should me make our choices?
What process should we follow?
What factors should be counted and how?
more later
Some choices are big.
The consequences of some of the big choices are huge.
This, then, is about some ideas related to making choices,
with, inevitably I suppose, some prescriptive tips.
Most of us have many degrees of freedom
in our choices of where we call ' my place'.
Here, I am thinking of place as a certain (in the colloquial sense) space.
Space as in 3 dimensions. Time in the background a fourth.
And at a part of the scale that represents geography.
And a related concept of 'home' or homes.
Make no mistake. These places are the result of our choices.
How should me make our choices?
What process should we follow?
What factors should be counted and how?
more later
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Exercise & Mood
.
The verdict I now confirm.
Exercise improves mood.
And it improves productivity, meaning,
there is more energy available,
and more inclination,
to be productive,
(even as simple as getting to create this post.)
And I am confident that there are other benefits,
meaning results that are worth pursuing.
Like improved sleep.
Which in turn makes for improved wakefulness.
And life is just better,
and one imagines that it facilitates more of a good life.
Less sickness, less pain, less discomfort, more energy.
But I am also alert that one may be easily sidetracked from exercise.
Other things frequently push for priority, and often win.
Part of the solution I think to reconcile these competing interests is
to find ways to mix exercise with things that you might be doing otherwise.
Tasks like dishes, or brushing one's teeth,
might just as well be accomplished
standing on one foot, with tiptoes every once in a while.
That's exercise.
And while there are surely better approaches,
the key is not to seek perfection,
rather just to get the exercise 'in', get 'er done.
And so that's my plan....
M
The verdict I now confirm.
Exercise improves mood.
And it improves productivity, meaning,
there is more energy available,
and more inclination,
to be productive,
(even as simple as getting to create this post.)
And I am confident that there are other benefits,
meaning results that are worth pursuing.
Like improved sleep.
Which in turn makes for improved wakefulness.
And life is just better,
and one imagines that it facilitates more of a good life.
Less sickness, less pain, less discomfort, more energy.
But I am also alert that one may be easily sidetracked from exercise.
Other things frequently push for priority, and often win.
Part of the solution I think to reconcile these competing interests is
to find ways to mix exercise with things that you might be doing otherwise.
Tasks like dishes, or brushing one's teeth,
might just as well be accomplished
standing on one foot, with tiptoes every once in a while.
That's exercise.
And while there are surely better approaches,
the key is not to seek perfection,
rather just to get the exercise 'in', get 'er done.
And so that's my plan....
M
Monday, August 18, 2014
Paradox - All Right & All Wrong
.
.
It seems I am sometimes motivated to resolve conflict.
Not infrequently the conflict is within my own head.
There, competing notions do battle.
And the background meta guideline is that the preferred path is a logical and rational one.
And logic and rationality do not take easily, or sometimes at all,
to mutually exclusive notions simultaneously holding sway.
Consider this example.
It occurs to me that everything is All Right.
It occurs to me that everything is All Wrong.
And it further occurs to me there is a case to be made out for each.
More or less at the same time.
ALL RIGHT
As a proportion, or ratio,
how
do the number of properly working subsystems compare
to the number of all such sub systems
in order for me to command, as quickly as I do,
my fingers to tap out on this keyboard,
(think human body/mind electro-chemical subsystems, for openers)
the precise movements that allow me to communicate with you
through these images of words?
And the answer is !
a huge proportion; Gy-normous; 99.999999+ percent.
Virtually everyone of those sub-sytems has to be 'working'
for me to do what I have just done.
Now, mind, it could all come to a screeching halt if,
that is if, just one of those sub systems started messing up.
I'll save examples of some of those good working subsystems till later on.
ALL WRONG
Today it seemed as if I had about a dozen conversation connections
with a dozen folks
all doing separate tasks
and more often than not
when I was paying the freight (as customer or employer).
And in virtually each of those encounters
I felt like ranting
near to the point of raving.
There had been some flaw, or goof up, or unmet expectation
in each situation.
At my expense.
And the flaw typically was at some core or fundamental level,
hardly trivial in many plausible imaginings.
And I came to thinking: dang,
the snafus are simply too numerous, too frequent, and involving too deep a gouge,
to allow the whole system to cope.
It can not hold, I surmised.
Again examples will have to be deferred.
RECONCILIATION
That is now I reflect on
how to resolve these apparently competing and
dare I say, mutually exclusive notions,
into a sensible whole.
But alas the clock nears its irrelevant time.
And that resolution will have to await another post.
.
It seems I am sometimes motivated to resolve conflict.
Not infrequently the conflict is within my own head.
There, competing notions do battle.
And the background meta guideline is that the preferred path is a logical and rational one.
And logic and rationality do not take easily, or sometimes at all,
to mutually exclusive notions simultaneously holding sway.
Consider this example.
It occurs to me that everything is All Right.
It occurs to me that everything is All Wrong.
And it further occurs to me there is a case to be made out for each.
More or less at the same time.
ALL RIGHT
As a proportion, or ratio,
how
do the number of properly working subsystems compare
to the number of all such sub systems
in order for me to command, as quickly as I do,
my fingers to tap out on this keyboard,
(think human body/mind electro-chemical subsystems, for openers)
the precise movements that allow me to communicate with you
through these images of words?
And the answer is !
a huge proportion; Gy-normous; 99.999999+ percent.
Virtually everyone of those sub-sytems has to be 'working'
for me to do what I have just done.
Now, mind, it could all come to a screeching halt if,
that is if, just one of those sub systems started messing up.
I'll save examples of some of those good working subsystems till later on.
ALL WRONG
Today it seemed as if I had about a dozen conversation connections
with a dozen folks
all doing separate tasks
and more often than not
when I was paying the freight (as customer or employer).
And in virtually each of those encounters
I felt like ranting
near to the point of raving.
There had been some flaw, or goof up, or unmet expectation
in each situation.
At my expense.
And the flaw typically was at some core or fundamental level,
hardly trivial in many plausible imaginings.
And I came to thinking: dang,
the snafus are simply too numerous, too frequent, and involving too deep a gouge,
to allow the whole system to cope.
It can not hold, I surmised.
Again examples will have to be deferred.
RECONCILIATION
That is now I reflect on
how to resolve these apparently competing and
dare I say, mutually exclusive notions,
into a sensible whole.
But alas the clock nears its irrelevant time.
And that resolution will have to await another post.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Learning (active voice) Computer (a subject area)
.
The dot just gives me a little space - leastwise as it shows on my screen.
Sat.Nite.Blues cbc in back, at wood counter at 277.
Tomorrow I head out for a week golfing in Myrtle Beach with Jay Paul Tony Dave & JimMac.
And I got a lot of packing and other stuff to do before departure.
But still I make this feeble effort at a few words about
Computer and the struggle to learn it and keepup.
Geez it takes some effort and patience.
Plenty of both.
The most recent challenge
getting music for my iphone (which spelling was rejected by this apple spell checker.
And more specifically, without using iTunes service/software/maniacal patience challenger.
After a few hours browsing the Web, as we used to say,
I'm thinkin' you juz can't get there from here.
Leastwise not sensibly.
Got t'hand it to the genius Steve Jobs
he wasn't letting go once he had you in his grip.
But what's harder to understand
is the seeming lack of a easily retrievable common sense explanation
of the straight goods
on how Apple ties you up when it comes to listening to music,
and what the sensible workarounds are.
And then I thinks to myself,
I got better things to do.
And probably the same for you.
-30-
The dot just gives me a little space - leastwise as it shows on my screen.
Sat.Nite.Blues cbc in back, at wood counter at 277.
Tomorrow I head out for a week golfing in Myrtle Beach with Jay Paul Tony Dave & JimMac.
And I got a lot of packing and other stuff to do before departure.
But still I make this feeble effort at a few words about
Computer and the struggle to learn it and keepup.
Geez it takes some effort and patience.
Plenty of both.
The most recent challenge
getting music for my iphone (which spelling was rejected by this apple spell checker.
And more specifically, without using iTunes service/software/maniacal patience challenger.
After a few hours browsing the Web, as we used to say,
I'm thinkin' you juz can't get there from here.
Leastwise not sensibly.
Got t'hand it to the genius Steve Jobs
he wasn't letting go once he had you in his grip.
But what's harder to understand
is the seeming lack of a easily retrievable common sense explanation
of the straight goods
on how Apple ties you up when it comes to listening to music,
and what the sensible workarounds are.
And then I thinks to myself,
I got better things to do.
And probably the same for you.
-30-
Monday, January 13, 2014
Solo Practice Lawyers - no more
Tis with a tinge of sadness, I report the demise of the solo practising lawyer. No doubt this is not an original notion. And I am not inclined to do a search to determine who said it earlier. If this post be repetitious, perhaps there is merit in repetition. And if it is new to your eyes, then the post will be worthwhile.
Let me be more specific about the phrase 'solo practising lawyer'. It covers a range of practice types where there is a single licensed lawyer plying his/her trade.
Imaging a spectrum of complexity, at one end is the proverbial rural or small town sole practitioner, usually in general practice, with a staff of one trusted clerical secretary. This type of practice is most vulnerable, and no doubt has seen a continuous diminution these last 40 years. My guess is that those courageous souls who have pursued this path recently are struggling and have regrets.
At the other end of the spectrum might be a sole lawyer with a large complement of staff, who operates in a narrow specialized field. There is greater hope for the survival of this type of practice, but I figure only with a proviso. The proviso being that the firm have on the payroll a staff person attending to regulatory compliance matters, and ensuring that the practice keeps abreast of the ever growing, always changing, regulatory regime.
Know that I say these things with a confidence that comes from over 30 years of experience in the profession, 20 of those operating solo. The first 12 years of my trade were in a small firm that I co-founded with a contemporary, and it faced many of the same challenges that solo firms have. And I have come to the conclusion that for a new entrant, the hills are too steep, the costs too onerous, and the obstacles too numerous for any sensible prospect of success.
Following I aim to catalogue some of the regulatory burdens that a law firm faces. But before doing that it is important to observe that other factors are at play besides the regulatory landscape. Most notable of these is the increasing complexity of the laws that beset every practice area.
It is difficult to understate the magnitude of changes in the law, even as it affects a narrow practice area. It is also difficult to describe the scope of the changes in the last generation for a particular practice area. Consider this though. Take Real Estate practice; helping individuals and organizations buy, sell and finance real estate. Thirty years ago at the local courthouse law library there were perhaps a dozen textbooks on topics related to real estate law. Of these, maybe 4 or 5 would have been considered classics, and these were the kind that would have seen multiple editions. By that I mean every few years the classic text would have been updated to reflect changes in the law, and a new edition number would be given to the text. The nomenclature sounded authoritative: "Falconbridge on Mortgages, 4th ed." A practitioner could be confident that if the answer to the question being searched for wasn't in Falconbridge, then the question was likely spurious.
Apart from the texts there were other library resources, namely the digests and related reference books. The 3 or 4 heavy weight publications were 20 plus volume affairs, with all areas of the law covered. Real estate law was a big chapter in each. And every 3 to 5 years, these resources would be updated to deal with new laws and new court decisions.
Over time publishers increased the frequency of updates. At one point it was annual. Then 3 or 4 times a year. Then monthly. And now, by the miracle of electronic communications, it is by the minute, as new laws or passed, or new court case decisions are released.
All this to say that just keeping up to the substantive changes in a particular field is a serious task that compels commitment and diligence. Sadly for the practising lawyer, the usual compensation scheme for legal services does not synchronize with the demands of keeping up. Reading and studying new material is not considered "billable time". For those efforts there is no direct compensation.
Now back to the regulatory issues. Even more dramatic than changes to the substantive law, practitioners are inundated with frequent and novel demands that require attention and effort. Mess up on one of these demands and you might just kiss your license to practice adieu. And don't be bothering to ask le Bon Dieu for help in time of need.
Here, just for snooks, is a list of some of the big regulatory changes I have encountered in my time to date.
Oversized Annual Reporting requirements for membership - Law Society of Upper Canada
Oversized Annual Reporting requirements for mandatory errors and omissions insurance
Conflict of Interest checking requirements, and restrictions
Privacy laws and freedom of information access
- establish policy
-
Hiring Protocols for articling clerks
Expanded Human Rights protections for certain groups
Accommodating clients and staff with disabilities
GST and HST requirements to bill, collect, report and remit (independent of whether there was collection) with an extremely convoluted and complex set of rules.
Let me be more specific about the phrase 'solo practising lawyer'. It covers a range of practice types where there is a single licensed lawyer plying his/her trade.
Imaging a spectrum of complexity, at one end is the proverbial rural or small town sole practitioner, usually in general practice, with a staff of one trusted clerical secretary. This type of practice is most vulnerable, and no doubt has seen a continuous diminution these last 40 years. My guess is that those courageous souls who have pursued this path recently are struggling and have regrets.
At the other end of the spectrum might be a sole lawyer with a large complement of staff, who operates in a narrow specialized field. There is greater hope for the survival of this type of practice, but I figure only with a proviso. The proviso being that the firm have on the payroll a staff person attending to regulatory compliance matters, and ensuring that the practice keeps abreast of the ever growing, always changing, regulatory regime.
Know that I say these things with a confidence that comes from over 30 years of experience in the profession, 20 of those operating solo. The first 12 years of my trade were in a small firm that I co-founded with a contemporary, and it faced many of the same challenges that solo firms have. And I have come to the conclusion that for a new entrant, the hills are too steep, the costs too onerous, and the obstacles too numerous for any sensible prospect of success.
Following I aim to catalogue some of the regulatory burdens that a law firm faces. But before doing that it is important to observe that other factors are at play besides the regulatory landscape. Most notable of these is the increasing complexity of the laws that beset every practice area.
It is difficult to understate the magnitude of changes in the law, even as it affects a narrow practice area. It is also difficult to describe the scope of the changes in the last generation for a particular practice area. Consider this though. Take Real Estate practice; helping individuals and organizations buy, sell and finance real estate. Thirty years ago at the local courthouse law library there were perhaps a dozen textbooks on topics related to real estate law. Of these, maybe 4 or 5 would have been considered classics, and these were the kind that would have seen multiple editions. By that I mean every few years the classic text would have been updated to reflect changes in the law, and a new edition number would be given to the text. The nomenclature sounded authoritative: "Falconbridge on Mortgages, 4th ed." A practitioner could be confident that if the answer to the question being searched for wasn't in Falconbridge, then the question was likely spurious.
Apart from the texts there were other library resources, namely the digests and related reference books. The 3 or 4 heavy weight publications were 20 plus volume affairs, with all areas of the law covered. Real estate law was a big chapter in each. And every 3 to 5 years, these resources would be updated to deal with new laws and new court decisions.
Over time publishers increased the frequency of updates. At one point it was annual. Then 3 or 4 times a year. Then monthly. And now, by the miracle of electronic communications, it is by the minute, as new laws or passed, or new court case decisions are released.
All this to say that just keeping up to the substantive changes in a particular field is a serious task that compels commitment and diligence. Sadly for the practising lawyer, the usual compensation scheme for legal services does not synchronize with the demands of keeping up. Reading and studying new material is not considered "billable time". For those efforts there is no direct compensation.
Now back to the regulatory issues. Even more dramatic than changes to the substantive law, practitioners are inundated with frequent and novel demands that require attention and effort. Mess up on one of these demands and you might just kiss your license to practice adieu. And don't be bothering to ask le Bon Dieu for help in time of need.
Here, just for snooks, is a list of some of the big regulatory changes I have encountered in my time to date.
Oversized Annual Reporting requirements for membership - Law Society of Upper Canada
Oversized Annual Reporting requirements for mandatory errors and omissions insurance
- per file levies for civil litigation and real estate - report quarterly
- dollar volume of billings based levy (since discontinued
Conflict of Interest checking requirements, and restrictions
Privacy laws and freedom of information access
- establish policy
-
Hiring Protocols for articling clerks
Expanded Human Rights protections for certain groups
Accommodating clients and staff with disabilities
GST and HST requirements to bill, collect, report and remit (independent of whether there was collection) with an extremely convoluted and complex set of rules.
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