On Fri, 12 Jan 1996, David Harvey wrote:

> I feel that I must reply because of the ire that has been raised by Patrick
> Brennan's posting of this position for a tiny sister institution in Norfolk,
> Virginia.  I want to make the point that my colleague was simply doing them a
> favor and none of your ire should be directed onto his shoulders.
>
> As to the monetary/professional issues which this has raised, look to the
> federal government, as this is a , "full-time term position with the federal
> government..."  I wonder if this one is in the register and who wrote the
> standards for the position?
>
Dave:

I don't think anyone was really intending to roast either Hampton Roads or
Mr. Brennan, specifically.  Nor do I think the volley of responses has
been the result of anger at that institution.  It hasn't been personal.
Rather, the nature of these postings has been more the result of extreme
frustration with the situation in general.  The particular notice in
question was not the cause of the problem, just a symptom of it.

All of us in the culture and heritage related professions have a
fundamental belief in the value and importance to our culture and our
society of what we do.  We are therefore increasingly frustrated by the
diminishing esteem in which we, and the jobs we do (no matter how well we
perform them), seem to be held by the members of the rest of society, led
by our government officials (as manifested by rapidly vanishing funding
and ridiculously low rates of pay). And now, more than at any other time
in our history, our ability to protect our cultural patrimony and to
educate our children about our past and its importance to our future, is
falling under sustained attack.

Sure, many of us are frustrated.  Do you really blame us for yelling and
screaming about it a little?  And yes, we all knew that we had no chance
of becoming rich when we entered this field; but is it unreasonable to
expect to be able to make a decent living wage?

Yesterday, in conversation, my brother (who is a senior executive with an
international car manufacturer and earns well in excess of C$150K/yr -
though he won't tell me how much in excess) expressed his opinion that a
friend of his, a computer network manager for a large corporation, is
"nuts to work for the pittance he's paid."  The pittance in question is
about C$75K/yr.!  I responded by telling him that I make just over half
that amount, and that I'm considered to be relatively well-paid in my
field.  To which he replied, "Then you're not only nuts, you're just plain
stupid!"  What does that say about our relative status in society???


Chris J.-Andersen

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