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    #1

    Disrespect worthy of firing?

    Lindsey Stone, of Plymouth, Mass., was on a work-paid trip to Arlington National Cemetery in October when she posed for the photo in question, CBS Boston reported. In the photo, Stone stands at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider next to a sign that reads "Silence and Respect," giving the middle finger and pretending to yell. She then posted the picture to her Facebook page.
    Lindsey Stone, Plymouth Woman, Takes Photo At Arlington National Cemetery, Causes Fury On Facebook

    News of Stone's controversial Facebook photo spread to LIFE, and the organization placed Stone and her co-worker on unpaid leave pending an internal investigation.
    So what do you think?

    Is the anger people have expressed justified, or is it much ado about nothing?
    Every moment of a life is a horrible tragedy, a slapstick comedy, dark nihilism, golden illumination, or nothing at all; depending on how we write the story we tell ourselves.

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    #2
    Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

    She was an ass in public at the memorial of men and women who have died on her behalf. She has every right to be an ass and I would oppose any legal sanctions beyond possibly barring her from future access to the tomb if she can't be trusted to follow simple rules of conduct there.

    However, the rest of us have the right to call her an ass for her conduct and the private company that was paying for her trip has the right to assess whether or not her burning desire to be an ass in public and then post photographic evidence of it on the net is good for their business. I don't care enough about petty assholishness to join public campaigns over this but if I were making decisions about her continued employment, shrug, her desire to be an ass on a trip I'm paying for has brought public outcry, continuing to pay her doesn't seem entertaining.
    Life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

    Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

    "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

    John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

    "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

    Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


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      #3
      Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

      Sometimes I think people just end up with way too much time on their hands. Disrespect is a huge pet peeve of mine, but unpaid leave and investigations? Come on, don't they have better things to do?

      Comment

        #4
        Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

        Those people died defending her right to do stuff like that, so no she shouldn't be fired.

        Did she make it obvious on facebook that she was at work at the time and who she works for? Because she could be fired for bringing her employers into disrepute. She could also be fired if she was supposed to be doing something else more worky at the time.

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          #5
          Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

          Was she supposed to be with clients or otherwise working when the pic was taken, or was it "after hours"? If it was on company time, dismissal is warranted. If it was on her time, not. Unless people can now be fired for being stupid, thoughtless douchebags......and unemployment rises to 95%..... Lol
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            #6
            Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

            She was on company time, which (IMHO) changes things.

            Her private act of foolishness reflected badly on the people who were paying her to be there.

            Also, her private act of foolishness stopped being private when she put it up on Facebook.

            Like MaskedOne, I'm not going to get all hot and sweaty about it, but I'm not surprised that some people do. Anybody who wants to can be a jerk, but nobody should be surprised if they get called out for being a jerk in public.

            Especially when they are well aware of the fact that they are being a jerk.
            Every moment of a life is a horrible tragedy, a slapstick comedy, dark nihilism, golden illumination, or nothing at all; depending on how we write the story we tell ourselves.

            Comment

              #7
              Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

              I think the severity of the punishment for her actions (firing) would depend mostly on if her employer has a Social Media Policy that specifies what their employees can and can't post as representatives of said company. Plus the stuff about being on company time. She seems a bit immature and could probably use some sensitivity training, maybe docking her pay for not actually working, but flat out firing?

              My employer has a Social Media Policy, which I've signed for. I'm sure people know where I work, it's easy to figure out just from peeking at my friends... but I try not to mention any names or places. I don't post pictures or anything like that (especially because it's expressly forbidden to take photos in certain areas where I work), try not to be blatantly derogatory, etc & so forth. Most people just don't think things out enough when they hit the 'Share' button.
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                #8
                Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                I'm not sure I would be absolutely committed to firing her were I here boss. The problem for her is more that by bringing backdraft onto me over really silly crap, she forces me to look at her as a potential liability. I don't particularly like liabilities so if you make yourself one, I'm gonna start asking whether you bring anything vital to my organization. If the answer is no, then my next question is why am I enduring headaches on your behalf? If she's largely an asset to the corporation then other sanctions might be imposed to insure this idiocy doesn't occur again. If she's expendable then she can be an object lesson. It's not so much "you're an ass and now you're fired" as "you are very publicly an ass and several thousand people are bitching at me, convince me you're worth the migraine that you just gave me."
                Life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

                Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

                "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

                John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

                "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

                Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


                Comment

                  #9
                  Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                  She acted like a jackass, got called out for being a jackass, and is now suffering the consequences for being a jackass.

                  I really don't have any sympathy for her. There are actions that are considered acceptable in society and there are actions that are considered unacceptable in society. While some "unacceptable" actions aren't in all honesty offensive and really shouldn't be thought of as unacceptable, there are actions that are looked at as rude and inconsiderate no matter where you go (at least by a majority of people). In my opinion, this is one of those unacceptable actions.

                  I understand where you guys are coming from who are saying that those people fought and died for her right to free speech like that, but I look at it this way. The fact that they died fighting for my right to exercise my free speech (which includes being a jerk) is one reason why I feel I should be as respectful as possible towards them and their final resting place.

                  There's just no reason for being a jerk for the sake of being a jerk.

                  Comment

                    #10
                    Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                    I get that she was trying to be funny.

                    ...but seeing as she showed an incredibly poor sense of judgement--between the picture and the posting of it on social media and her obvious inability to think about using permissions for her account, I don't think she deserves any particular protection from firing.

                    By now, any user of social media should know better. Someone that works for a non-profit should know better than to get their name linked to their workplace in a negative way (I wonder how many of their disabled clientele might have been veterans) in the media. Any professional in the current economy should be smart enough to keep unprofessional behavior to themselves when on business trip.

                    Maybe firing is excessive if she's a good employee...but its well within the company's rights, IMO.
                    Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
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                      #11
                      Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                      She has every right to be an ass. And her employer, being a media outlet, has every right to fire someone for being an ass in public, for not wanting to be associated with it. Even neglecting that it was company time.

                      You know, there are Privacy Settings on facebook for this very reason. The cemetery itself wasn't public enough to get her fired - Facebook was.
                      "A true initiation never ends"-Robert Anton Wilson
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                        #12
                        Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                        Ten to one this probably isn't her first step into jackassedness.
                        Satan is my spirit animal

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                          #13
                          Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                          Originally posted by Medusa View Post
                          Ten to one this probably isn't her first step into jackassedness.
                          I was thinking that, too, Medusa.

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                            #14
                            Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                            If you act like a douche, don't be surprised if you get treated like one. Bottom line.

                            Her employer has every right to fire her if they choose, just based on the fact that she did this on a company paid trip. Who would want someone like that to represent their company?
                            �Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted. And experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer.�
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                            Comment

                              #15
                              Re: Disrespect worthy of firing?

                              I agree with everyone here that she's being an ass in the picture. It's rude and disrespectful. But I also have a great deal of respect for people who "stick it to the man"...so I suppose I'm on the fence about it. I don't really feel she was 'sticking it to the man' here, but just being a dick.

                              As for being fired - it's her company's perogative. Public company or not, they have the right to fire her for doing something on company time, and as a paid trip, that makes it company time. In my line of work, I'm not allowed to post publically to the internet any pictures of myself or my workplace that involve core (rocks), the company's name, or anything that could make someone else realize where in the world I am. I know a guy in 2007 who posted a video on FB of him doing a sweet jump in a snowmobile, while on company time. Someone saw it, and then someone else, and then he was friend's with the bosses daughter on FB, she mentions it to her dad (our boss) in passing, not thinking anything of it. He was banned from using snowmobiles at work for two years.

                              If I posted a picture, here, or anywhere on the internet, of visible gold in a rock found at work, and my boss found out, I'd be fired asap.

                              (Note: I realize I'm unemployed right now - but the rules are the same throughout the industry. All companies have the same privacy rules, and we sign a ledger of confidentiality every time we get a new job) never mind pictures, I'm not even allowed to TELL you if I find something.


                              Mostly art.

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