I will only agree with outsourcing and off-shoring when Americans have carte

are going to. Like, the companies that enjoy the protection and luxuries of operating out of the United States -- when those companies work deals with the COUNTRIES they are allowed to send our jobs to SO THAT WE CAN VISIT, MOVE TO, EXPLORE, SHOP IN........when we can go to those very same countries without question, passport, or visa, then I will say I will not fight off-shoring and outsourcing.

But the way it is now......basically we are being held PRISONERS IN OUR OWN COUNTRY while our JOBS ARE GOING OUT THE DOOR.

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http://health-information.advanceweb.com:80/Editorial/Content/Editorial.aspx?CC=200503

Recently, my father cancelled his JCPenney credit card b/c he was furious that they had outsourced their customer service dept to India. Long story short, he cancelled his credit card & wrote them a letter complaining about the language barrier and told them that if they want to accept American dollars, they should hire American workers.

A few days ago, he received an incorrect billing statement from him. He called the customer service dept and quickly realized he was speaking to an American. The woman on the phone told him that JCP had received so many complaints, that they are closing their India office and bringing the jobs back to America. She said it was b/c of the lay-offs in India is how she got her job.

Did you NOT see all the newswires on this very subject about the govt spying via Google's new desktop? Read and then go to Google and read some more!!

February 09, 2006

Google Copies Your Hard Drive - Government Smiles in Anticipation

Consumers Should Not Use New Google Desktop

San Francisco - Google today announced a new "feature" of its Google Desktop software that greatly increases the risk to consumer privacy. If a consumer chooses to use it, the new "Search Across Computers" feature will store copies of the user's Word documents, PDFs, spreadsheets and other text-based documents on Google's own servers, to enable searching from any one of the user's computers. EFF urges consumers not to use this feature, because it will make their personal data more vulnerable to subpoenas from the government and possibly private litigants, while providing a convenient one-stop-shop for hackers who've obtained a user's Google password.

"Coming on the heels of serious consumer concern about government snooping into Google's search logs, it's shocking that Google expects its users to now trust it with the contents of their personal computers," said EFF Staff Attorney Kevin Bankston. "If you use the Search Across Computers feature and don't configure Google Desktop very carefully�and most people won't�Google will have copies of your tax returns, love letters, business records, financial and medical files, and whatever other text-based documents the Desktop software can index. The government could then demand these personal files with only a subpoena rather than the search warrant it would need to seize the same things from your home or business, and in many cases you wouldn't even be notified in time to challenge it. Other litigants�your spouse, your business partners or rivals, whoever�could also try to cut out the middleman (you) and subpoena Google for your files."

The privacy problem arises because the Electronic Communication Privacy Act of 1986, or ECPA, gives only limited privacy protection to emails and other files that are stored with online service providers�much less privacy than the legal protections for the same information when it's on your computer at home. And even that lower level of legal protection could disappear if Google uses your data for marketing purposes. Google says it is not yet scanning the files it copies from your hard drive in order to serve targeted advertising, but it hasn't ruled out the possibility, and Google's current privacy policy appears to allow it.

"This Google product highlights a key privacy problem in the digital age," said Cindy Cohn, EFF's Legal Director. "Many Internet innovations involve storing personal files on a service provider's computer, but under outdated laws, consumers who want to use these new technologies have to surrender their privacy rights. If Google wants consumers to trust it to store copies of personal computer files, emails, search histories and chat logs, and still 'not be evil,' it should stand with EFF and demand that Congress update the privacy laws to better reflect life in the wired world."

For more on Google's data collection:
http://news.com.com/FAQ+When+Google+is+not+your+friend/2100-1025_3-6034666.html?tag=nl http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/01/21/google_subpoena_roils_the_web http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/01/20/EDGEPGPHA61.DTL http://news.com.com/%20Bill+would+force+Web+sites+to+delete+personal+info/2100-1028_3-6036951.html

Contact:

Kevin Bankston
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
bankston@eff.org

http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2006_02.php

PLEASE do NOT condemn ALL Americans for what the Ignorant Americans do......most Americans are NOT this ignorant and would never do something like some of these people *owned* up to doing.....

What we deserve, but paid what it actually costs to LIVE in America, to afford the insanely high medical care, insanely high gas, insanely high food, etc. We can never work for less than what we get because we'd then have to move to a different country where we can afford their cost of living. Its all backwards. Thats why CEOs are all slime...they're sitting pretty up there and do not care what goes on because they're comfortable and well taken care of.

I do not do business with anyone not in the U.S.A.. I try to say it very nicely, though. I totally resent having my financial records (let alone medical records) in the hands of other countries!

If everyone would refuse to deal with them, U.S. companies would be forced to bring the work back home.

another one who needs their head examined - blaming all the crime in America on illegal aliens.....you're very sick......

Just look at the predators going after kids - NOT ONE IS EVER FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY - only white trailer park trash oh and priests.......pedophiliacs......

drugs were around way before the illegal aliens - street gangs were around before illegal aliens (think MAFIA and then Bloods and Crips)........

Geesh - you need to just quit posting is all....ill-educated as far as the street goes, eh?

Trailer park trash has been on the welfare rolls for 4 decades in this country!! They keep having more babies thinking they can stay on forever. Good thing the welfare laws are changing!!

We average 1960+ hours worked per year. Google "Americans work the longest hours". Nobody else can touch us. Provide us with a link proving your theory that Americans don't want to work. Young people want to work as well. Every young person I know of is working on top of going to school fulltime. Maybe it's just the people you know who don't want to work, because I can tell you that everyone in my family has a good work ethic. Google "American youth don't want to work". Oopsy, no hits. Guess that blows your theory.

Job security, union jobs, full benefits, 1 year of maternity leave, parental leave, vacation time, sick time, $18 or more an hour...

I think it will get to the point where everybody will outsource at least some of the work. With all these companies begging for employees it doesn't seem like there's enough of us. The employer I just left was a private owned company and one of the biggest accounts decided to outsource. Don't know who they chose to do this for them, they didn't say, but my income was cut from 4500. a month to 1300. a month. Right now just desperate for a good job.

I agree with the posters. Check your medical reports, some of them contain serious errors, I was misdiagnosed in an op report as having a serious condition I was determined "not" to have.

I also was treated like a common criminal by a foreign country because I bought a laptop from someone who lost their job in 9/11. I paid a little more than I should have because I felt sorry for him and unless I pretended to be "him" they would not help me. I finally after two months got the right part from an American company and my laptop worked just fine after two shipments of the wrong part and a whole lot of aggravation and misinformation.

They are a third world country and we will take their place soon if we don't watch out. They'll be taking over more than our jobs. It's very dangerous. It is life-threatening as far as information goes. Some will be saving money but losing lives.

In response to: People say outsourcing will happen.....It is happening!! There are a few National companies (which will go unnamed, but you know who they are) who have contracts with facilities who know the work is being outsourced and they want it because it cut their line rates significantly. This is our biggest competition right now. Overseas, the piddly line rates of 6 cents/line is a lot of money to those people. They are getting better and better at it (the offshore countries), and in time, they will be so good that there will be little editing needed. It is just like newbies here in the US, it just takes time for them to improve and learn...and before you know it, we'll wake up one day and poof...very little if any work in US, all overseas! It is a global economy and what we think is peanuts, they think is a fortune! I am currently retraining in another profession (nutrition) because I have been watching this evolution for the past 7-10 years. I managed a company back in 1997 that first sent transcription overseas and I had to proof and edit that crap! I think in 9 years, they are probably getting better at it and with time, they will improve even more. Don't be so sure that outsourcing will not continue to be a current event! IMHO.

I originally posted this on the "Company Board," but one kind soul there suggested I repost it on the Main Board, so here it goes:

I'll tell you my personal take on this. I'm a very small MTSO and am fighting like heck to keep my jobs in the good old USA - hiring only Americans, etc.

We face stiff competition from companies who offshore, use EMR, etc. I charge my clients what the market will bear. I've already had to lower my rates to 2 of my largest clients because even at the lower cpl rates I was charging them at the time, they were ready to walk to India, and in fact were testing out some Indian MT companies - this after I had, in fact, already lost 2 other doctors' offices to offshore Indian companies. I feel I am fair and pay my IC transcriptionists 2/3 of whatever I make from my clients. But whenever I advertise for experienced transcription help, I am pretty much told to go jump in the lake with the rates that I'm able to afford to pay, even though it's good, steady work. So the bottom line is that I really find it difficult to get any competent help from American MTs. Not that there aren't many around, just that I and many like me can't afford them. Not blaming the MTs (American OR Indian) for wanting to make a living either, I'm just saying this to demonstrate the dilemma I find myself in. I suspect it's the same for other small MTSOs. Can't really raise my rates, because from prior experience, many doctors offices have no scruples about sending work offshore. I've never resorted to offshoring anything, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted.

Not singing the blues, just telling the facts. Personally, I'd rather be selling hotdogs on the beach.

I am the only Transcriptionist in a doctor's office. We started sending some work to a transcription company in November and later found out they were outsourcing to India. I thought my doctors would be upset, but guess what??? NO!!! It has been the biggest "mess" for me to correct. It has been far more trouble for me than if I just typed everything. I started leaving all the blanks, etc. and let the doctors start dealing with this and as of 6/15/07 we are no longer using that transcription company. We found someone locally (IC) who is typing our work for the same amount per line. YEAH!!!!!