Trials and Tribulations

For your consideration:

On this page, you will find a list of things which may negatively affect your willingness to work with me. Although I try not to sabotage myself by oversharing, I am a great fan of transparency, informed consent, and honest, good-faith access to information.

WARNING: You MAY wish to read no further. There some times when NOT knowing things can be best. Knowledge is power, but it is also an imposer of responsibility and accountability. If you do not wish to have knowledge of certain “negative” things about me, read no further. If you wish, you may discuss this “warning” with me.

The List:

A. My license to practice psychology was once suspended for a year.

I was accused of using a misleading initialism to indicate my license. My license was/is Licensed Psychologist Associate. I used the postnominal initialism, Psy.A. I was also charged with claiming to practice psychology (in advertisements and so forth) and more specifically, claiming to practice “clinical” psychology.

I continue to maintain I did nothing wrong and I am proud of myself for standing my ground.

B. I was arrested and jailed once.

This for an act related to the Black Lives Matter protests which followed the murder of George Floyd in 2020. I was charged with “Refusing to leave the scene of an emergency,” a misdemeanor. My trial by jury took place more than one year later. I was found guilty and sentenced to 13 days of House Arrest.

Again, I believe I was in the right and am proud of myself for standing my ground. Two weeks after the initial protests, I was returning home from making a platelet donation at Red Cross when I witnessed many, many police cars pulling someone over. I decided to drive slowly by and if there was a Black man in the car, I would stop and film with my phone. There was and I did. Even when the officers told me I needed to move because I was in the “line of fire,” upon assessing the situation, I did not move. In fact, I was glad to be “in the line of fire,” because, that way, I was able to be a shield.

As it would turn out the two people in the car were arrested for obstructing traffic (protest related), resisting arrest, and so on. NO URGENT or dangerous charges.

It is now all on video. The people in the car live streamed, I videoed, and the police videoed. It is clear from the videos, the people in the car were convinced the police were about to kill them. They are convinced I saved their lives.

I attribute my loss in court to an inadequate performance by my pro bono attorney among oter things.

Despite this trauma, should I see anything similar in the future, I wold and will what I did in this incident again.

C. I have an impairment called Moral Injury.

This stems from the incident with my licensing board described above and exacerbated by matters surrounding the incident of my arrest.

It is apropos that I provide a link to an article on Moral Injury in the workplace in that the workplace is the matter at hand. I may bring some of my symptoms into the workplace with me. The fact that I am demonstrating the courage to share this with you should be considered promising, however.

LINK: From The Harvard Business Review on Managerial Behavior: Employees Are Sick of Being Asked to Make Moral Compromises by Ron Carucci and Ludmila Praslova, February 21, 2022. There is a lot of material on the internet about Moral Injury, and I will be happy to discuss the matter more with you.

D. My financial credit rating is only in the high “FAIR” range.

This too, is fallout from the events described above. A CLOSE look at my credit rating will show only ONE flaw and that is my credit card debt-to-credit ration. If it were not for this, my credit rating would be hovering around 800 as it did for many years. I have NO late payments, a LONG credit history, and no claims against me whatsoever. My moral injury status has made it very difficult to work and I had to live off of my savings until I exhausted them, and then off of credit cards. No matter what, however, I have honored my monthly payment agreements. As soon as I lower my credit card debt, I am certain my credit will skyrocket back to 800 or more again.

E. I am old.

Born in 1960, I am 62 as of March 11, 2020. I consider myself to be a very young-spirited older person and as well, a wisened elder.

My health is good and I show no indication of cognitive decline.

I believe the advantages of my age, by far outweigh the disadvantages.

Age discrimination against me would be inappropriate.