Driving safety tips from 1937

Someone has posted complete scans of a booklet called “The Driver’s Handbook for Detroit, Michigan in 1937″. Some of the advice is, as could be expected, out of date. Most of it is just as relevant today as it was 71 years ago.

 

Drive Right

Automobiles were likely much more dangerous in the early days of motoring. In 1936 371 people were killed and 15,276 injured in automobile accidents in Detroit. In 2005, there 298 traffic fatalities in Detroit. It appears to be more dangerous to drive (or be a pedestrian) in Detroit today, since the city of Detroit’s population has dropped by about 50% between 1930 and 1990.

There is a lot of advice on dealing with streetcars while driving. These would be the same streetcars that GM had bought up like in other cities and put of business. That’s a controversial statement, but hell it’s likely true.

Don’t drive with anything in your lap, like a baby. Drunk driving, scourage then and now.

Look out for choo choos at crossings. And warn horse drawn wagons before passing them. Well, if you were to ever chance upon a horse drawn wagon, that would still be good advice.

As the Lower 48 faces economic collapse, refugees will flee to Alaska

On this posting about the Kenyan witch hunter who appeared with Gov. Palin at her church this past June, a pastor explains that Alaska will be a “refuge state” in the Last Days, for thousands of people fleeing the End from the Lower 48. Could this be the McCain/Palin plan C for the impending global financial system collapse, which no doubt would a sign of the Last Days? Plan A, B, not sure what those would be, give a trillion, maybe. Plan C – the anointed will go the Alaska, drill for oil and hunt for food.

My main question is, when Alaska suddenly faces a deluge of refugees, what happens after a year and they have to split up the oil royalty money?

Job seekers have to worry about the slightest employment gaps

My friend was recently berated by an HR flunkie because on her employment verification form, she didn’t explain to his satisfaction her employment “gap” from three years ago. There wasn’t really a gap to speak of. One position ended one month, and the next one began the next month. Being a contractor, you can certainly have some time between positions (between FTE positions, it could be a year between jobs!) This was a serious matter to HR, this “gap.”

Employment verifications aren’t just the attempt of the hiring company to make sure that you didn’t lie on your resume about your previous employers. They are the only sort of “gotcha” HR can muster in their piece of the hiring process, except maybe for the piss in a cup part. Most all companies will only confirm a person’s employment with them, and the begin and end dates. No other information will be divulged by these counterpart HR departments. Don’t want the legal ramifications. So, all there is to do is to haggle over “gaps” in employment. 

So, in addition to the ridiculous lists of skills needed for many IT positions, you have to run the gauntlet of explaining your employment history “gaps.” This punishes people who had been long time contractors, who I guess are objects of suspicion anyway in HR departments. What, this person is not so loyal as to stay someplace for 10 years and veg out? No matter that in the past 5 years that many contractors are looking for a “perm” job but can’t land one…