THE DEPOSITION FROM HELL
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I need to emphasize, friends, that our natural, earthly
lives don’t in themselves lead us by their very nature
into the kingdom of God. Their very “nature” is to die,
so how could they “naturally” end up in the Life Kingdom?
~ 1 CORINTHIANS 15:50 [The Message (MSG)] |
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Posted By: Ann Mack on December 27, 2015 December 20, 2015 Approximately three years ago on July 25, 2012, a woman, Aleta Hernandez Smith (aka Aleta Haynes, Aleta Clark) fell in the building of the US Department of Energy (DOE) Headquarters which is located at 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20585. As a homeowner, I am aware of a policy or law in various jurisdictions of the Washington Metropolitan Area which states, the homeowner has approximately 24 hours or less from the time of inclement weather (snow) to clear their sidewalks and driveways although the deed to your home does not include the sidewalks. Nonetheless, you are held liable should a passerby be injured in the same manner in which you are liable for the injury or harm to a passenger in your car whether or not you are the major cause of the accident. Today, a person can be sued for something called “wrongful death” even if they themselves are not directly responsible for the death of that individual depending upon who you are! But, I do not know why I am still amazed to know that although justice is sought for all, justice is not granted to all equally across the board. And, a person can be injured on the premise of a Federal government building during their normal work hours and be treated with relentless contempt. But, “let the lying lips be mute, which speak insolently and arrogantly against the [consistently] righteous with pride and contempt (Psalm 31:18). Many of us, unfortunately, tend to fear people far greater than we fear God and that fear has a way of causing us to compromise our soul without giving any thought to the consequences of our actions! My fear of not pleasing God is far greater than my fear of not pleasing man! So, it is extremely important for me to attempt to live my life in accordance to God’s expectation of me. Initially, I was contacted by the individual appointed by the General Counsel’s office to represent DOE’s interest in a lawsuit whereby I was named as being a witness for the plaintiff. Therefore, my presence was required at an upcoming deposition. Upon finalizing a date and obtaining my availability, DOE felt the need to arrange a brief before meeting with me to go over their expectations concerning what I was and was not authorized to speak on to include processes which are not considered to be confidential. In fact, there is nothing about my job or the day-to-day duties and responsibilities of my job which I have been allowed to perform which is confidential in nature. Although my position description (PD) along with that of many others within DOE was deliberately rewritten to make us ineligible to seek Union membership or representation, I do not work directly with personal identifiable information (PII) pertaining to employees as connected with my job within the area of Human Resources as a member of the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHO or CHO; also informally, preferred to as the Human Capital Management (HCM)). Nor do I act in the capacity of a manager who supervises others; at least, not officially in accordance to my pay grade and salary. So, there I was on Friday afternoon (12/18/2015) in a conference room on the 8th floor with five (5) men: ◘ 1 African American, court reporter (stenographer) who was SECRETLY, so he thought, recording the session using his cell phone which went off from time to time. ◘ 1 Caucasian gentleman representing the Subway and Dunkin' Donut franchise which is set-up on the ground level of DOE. However, from the line of questioning or interrogation (extensive grilling), he seemed more like he was the defense for DOE who exhibited the demeanor of a military Babylonian Roman soldier. ◘ 1 Caucasian gentleman representing the custodian contractor providing industrial labor within DOE, ◘ 1 Caucasian gentleman representing the General Counsel of DOE. ◘ 1 Caucasian gentleman representing the plaintiff, Aleta H. Smith (aka Aleta Clark, Aleta Haynes). For clarification: The person suing is the plaintiff and the person against whom the suit is brought is the defendant. COMING UNDER FIRE Staying focused can be a horrific challenge while coming under fire! It was like sitting in a horribly narrated and produced “Bad Cop versus Good Cop” movie. Each person simply going through the motions and attempting to defend his own interest without really taking into consideration the interest of the only person who really mattered while the two most obvious bad cops persistently attempted to deface the character and integrity of the injured party; UNBELIEVABLE! Now, unless you have a photographic memory or the mind of a tape recorder to file away what events took place when and where approximately three (3) days ago not to mention three (3) years ago, answering questions thrown at you as if you were a part of some elaborate scheme other than wanting to see justice prevail for the person who was wronged throughout this entire ordeal, is very challenging. But, it is God who gives me the peace to endure in knowing HIS WILL will PREVAIL as HE continuously assures me, “I’m leaving you peace. I’m giving you my peace. I don’t give you the kind of peace that the world gives. So don’t be troubled or cowardly.” [JOHN 14:27, God’s Word Translation (GW)]Amazingly, the reputation and integrity of the plaintiff was an issue – as if she would deliberately stage an injury resulting in limited mobility, multiple back surgeries, being placed on multiple Opioid nerve blocking prescriptions to endure or manage her pain, and an interrupted way of life for possibly the remainder of her life. So, let’s be clear! Who would deliberately fall and break their back? That’s like saying I deliberately took a tumble on black ice on 20 February 2010 and broke my right leg in four (4) places just to get out of work! Although my injury also came under scrutiny in the workplace at which time I was treated like a lame horse whose inability to step and fetch it was more of an issue than my ability to use my analytical mind for fulfilling the responsibilities of my job. And, there I was coming under fire by an attorney with a hostile tone and demeanor, similar to what I and the Plaintiff have encountered within our current DOE working environment, as he attempted to intimidate me for his client’s unwillingness to be held accountable for their negligence. To add additional insult, the character of the plaintiff is being judged and measured by an attorney representing a franchise whose spokesman, Jared Fogle was recently, allegedly, charged with child exploitation, possession of child pornography, and voyeurism; however, he was recently found guilty and sentenced on November 18, 2015. As I sat there and scoped out the dynamics of the scene, I wanted to laugh out loud as each person played their well thought out part which demonstrated to me that they had already reached a conclusion before speaking to the last person of the day, me. Returning to my desk to lock-up and gather my things to depart the building a little past six o’clock (6:00 pm), I was so disgusted by the events of what had taken place. During my ride home, I engaged in conversation with God concerning my disappointment and I was reminded of the importance of not putting my trust in man or the world’s system of laws governing a false since of justice as being the right way. Holding back the tears emanating from my heart and the vexing of my spirit, I pushed beyond my feelings to get my mind right for fulfilling my daughterly responsibility as the caregiver of my remaining parent; my father. Walking in the door of my home, I sprung into action to ensure his dinner was on the table and his evening dose of medication was in plain sight upon his arrival from receiving his dialysis treatment. With my heart still heavy from the events of the day, between calls to the Metro Access customer service dispatcher and the DaVita Dialysis Center, I made a call to a spiritual sister and close friend about my intentions to get to a Friday evening service at the “Heavens Best Healing and Deliverance Church” in Clinton, Maryland which was scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm – although I knew I would be much later. But something was pushing me there no matter how late. Noticing the time, it was already a little past eight o’clock (8 pm) and I wondered about the possible delay of Metro Access’ retrieval and drop-off of my father. Placing the call to them, I learned from the dispatcher that the driver was outside of the DaVita Center and my father was boarding at the time of our conversation. Upon ending that call, I placed a call to the DaVita Center for confirmation and was told by one the Technicians that Metro Access just left with my father. Getting back to the major reason for the deposition, a young vibrate single mother of two fell on the ground floor of the US Department of Energy Headquarters’ building. While walking to a meeting with another co-worker, she slipped on mayonnaise which had not been cleaned up in a timely manner. She unfortunately fell twice that day, during her normal work hours within the same DOE building, but was reluctant to take heed to the first warning of possible injuries because she was more concerned about not being viewed as being derelict in her duties by those who were already bullying her for nearly a year. Her second fall with the mayonnaise spill, unfortunately, resulted in a far greater impact which she could not ignore so easily. However, you would think that the presence of witnesses to include the completion of a CA-1 Form (Federal Employee’s Notice of Traumatic Injury and Claim for Continuation of Pay/Compensation) via the US Department of Labor, Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs would be enough to substantiate the validity of the Plaintiff’s claim. The form alone which is used to document incidences or injuries sustained in the workplace coupled with other processes in place, if not deliberately ignored, misplaced, or defaced should be honored. No, not so! In addition, many who have been called to testify have been unwilling to speak the TRUTH out of fear and/or resulting from their own prejudices against the Plaintiff as inspired or directed by an existing organizational culture. During my questioning, I kept being grilled about culture as if it was unheard of although it is one of the topics addressed during mandatory required subjects as part of the curriculum for obtaining degrees at major colleges for certain areas of study. Each environment or organization has an existing culture as dictated by the expected behavioral patterns and norms as enforced by Leadership or certain managerial styles. Here is an excerpt from an INSEAD faculty and research working paper entitled, Organizational Culture, Leadership, Change and Stress: All members of an organization are intimately affected by the actions or inactions (and interactions) of those at the top. Because organizational culture is highly susceptible to the influence of leadership behavior, neurotic leadership patterns lead to toxic organizational cultures—and vice versa. Neurotic leadership patterns trigger social defenses in followers, diverting energy away from attaining organizational goals. Changing mindsets is never easy. Usually, a strong jolt is needed before people realize that the traditional way of doing things is no longer adequate. Awareness of the need for change is achieved most effectively when the employees in an organization come under internal and external pressure. Organizational stress from both directions, and the associated discomfort, may trigger organizational change processes. CLOSING Ironically speaking, God uses right now situations to teach us HIS WORD through our trials and tribulations as HE sends us out into the world as sheep or lambs among wolves (Matthew 10:16). It is HIS hope that we would be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16) while being tempered like steel to fulfill our destiny. Ephesians 6 speaks of SPIRITUAL WARFARE and references evil rulers (principalities), authorities of the unseen world, mighty powers in this dark world, and evil spirits in the high places! So, God impregnates us with HIS SPIRIT and equips us with gifts through the HOLY SPIRIT to aid us in the DISCERNMENT OF SPIRITS. [Ephesians 4:1-13, New Internal Version: As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.] In all, there are nine (9) gifts of the Holy Spirit: The Word of Knowledge, The Word of Wisdom, The Gift of Prophecy, The Gift of Faith, The Gifts of Healings, The Working of Miracles, The Discerning of Spirits, Different Kinds of Tongues, and The Interpretation of Tongues.It was so obvious from the line of questioning and dynamics observed during the deposition that the necessary information needed on behalf of the Plaintiff is not being considered, collected or readily relinquished in her the favor. Having the right documentation can speak to a present history or pattern of neglect, abuse of authority and an avoidance of accountability to employees on the part of the employer. Such things as: previous NAPA (National Academy of Public Administration) and GAO (Government Accountability Office) reports. And, because people are good at hiding things, an improved report does not equate to change and an improved environment. It may simply speak to the environment and the possibility of its culture getting better with no mention of using intimidation and bullying to instill fear for keeping things concealed on the surface. . However, I AM extremely grateful to know God sits up high and looks down low in taking an accurate account of all that is going on within the world. HE is aware of everything to include the number of hairs on our heads! Therefore, if not now and however later, each person will be held accountable for every action. Not to mention, for all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all. Luke 8:17 (NLT) SIDE LINE FOOD FOR THOUGHT: ◘ Do you think the Plaintiff, Aleta Hernandez Smith, knew or expected to be met with such adversity when she applied for and accepted a position at the US Department of Energy in continuation of her career pursuit?◘ Do you think she knew or expected to encounter the type of negativity and wickedly dark spirits resting in such a toxic induced environment? ◘ Can you imagine the possibility of God using the circumstances of your life - which is riddled with deep pain and disappointment after disappointment concerning the lack of humanity or the unwillingness of people to do the right thing – to help others experience Him as the God of all hope? (See page 40, “Finding the GOD ZONE.”) ◘ Do you honestly know what it is like to be CHOSEN BY GOD and to be allowed to endure until the end to receive the ANOINTING needed for a specific purpose in furthering THE KINGDOM and REACHING YOUR GOD-ORDAINED DESTINY? Many people want the anointing and the power of God, but they are unwilling to make the sacrifices needed to obtain the ANOINTING OF GOD. To whom much is given, much is required! ◘ THE LESSON, THE TEST AND THE QUIZ: Whether we chose to realize it or not, we “all” play a very important part in each other’s test and you will be judged based on your “role” when that day comes. I would like to leave you with a confirming excerpt from a book I’m currently reading, “Finding the GOD ZONE” by Jana Alcorn: This is the time for a fresh demonstration of faith, spawned by a new revelation of hope. It was only after His passion, after His suffering, that He showed Himself alive. God is getting ready to show that you are really alive – that you are not dead and the BATTLE did not kill you, but actually drove you to the place of CONSECRATION and SURRENDER as never before. Everything that has happened can be a vehicle to move you closer to His purpose for your life. (Page 38) When the adversary sees what God has invested in you, he, himself, knows that if you don’t quit, you will walk in your ultimate destiny. (Page 50) We each need to put our TRUST IN GOD to build strength to stand against the battles ahead. (Page 123) REFERENCES: Finding the GOD ZONEAuthor: Jana Alcorn ISBN 13: 978-0-7684-3218-3 or ISBN 13: 978-0-7684-3395-1 A Call for Character Author: Greg Zoschak ISBN: 978-1-6024741-1-6 http://www.insead.edu/facultyresearch/rese... http://www.napawash.org/wp-content/uploads... http://www.gao.gov/highrisk/doe_contract_m... http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/ciprod/... http://freebeacon.com/issues/report-depart... http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2013/07... http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2... If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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Ann Mack
Management Analyst, US Department of Energy University of the District of Columbia class of 2002 Member Since May 2008 |
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