Getting Worse Before it Gets Better

Earlier this morning I dialed into an all hands meeting with my present employer, which will be my former employer around noon tomorrow.  The program manager has been very good about keeping the troops informed, but there is only so much that he can say.  He doesn't lie; he will tell you what he knows, and he will tell you what he doesn't know.  And this morning what he didn't say told me a whole lot more than what he did say.

Down there in Sorry Vista, the lockdown will very easily go thru the entire month of May, and it's possible that it may go all the way until the end of June.  That's a long time for people to be teleworking and once house arrest is lifted by the governor there's going to be a lot more teleworking than there was before all of is.

He admitted that he couldn't tell us what is being discussed between him and the customer, but he did say that the tests aren't coming in any more, which was also admitted by an officer at the O-6 level in an email I saw a few weeks back.  No tests, no need for testers, and certainly no need for test engineers.  He said he was trying to avoid the situation he had when they took over the contract, and in that one some key people were furloughed for six, maybe eight months.

What that told me is that down there, it's going to get worse before it gets better.  I don't think that is applicable to most situations outside of that one, although Organized Media can't wait to tell you otherwise.  Our useless governor waited until yesterday afternoon before announcing two more weeks of house arrest, which suggests there was a big argument up in Phoenix over who was going to get to flip that coin.  (I am proud to say that I haven't donated as much as a plugged nickel to either major party.) 

As for that operation down there in Sorry Vista, that is, that specific test center I was supporting down there.....stick a fork in it, it's done.  Testing of satellite radios will have to continue in one way or another as per a Pentagon directive, but it doesn't have to done in Sorry Vista.....there are at least two other facilities that I am aware of that can pick it up.  I know of one other workaround that can also be used, and why it hasn't yet been used might be a good question. 

Anyway, I separate tomorrow morning.  I am personally glad about it, especially considering the next chapter in my career starts Monday.   From reading their employee handbook, I'm joining a good company.  Yes, I'm leaving a good company as well, but that came with a situation that I will be glad to be leaving behind. 

We need to do to a lot of politicians what they are now doing to us.