What profession sees the absolute worst of humanity?

[graciegirl]

There is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

[JP]

Cop

[Taltarzac725]

Soldier.

[keithwand]

Sales

[DandyGirl]

Social Worker.

[2newyorkers]

Social Services. I worked at a welfare center for 32 years.

[mentoj]

Now that I have officially retired from teaching after 39 years, I have to say teachers. It may not be politically correct to say, but everyone comes through the halls of a school. They may not graduate, but they are there until they are at least 16. Many times teachers see the signs of what is to come but can say little. They do what they can for students but parents are the decision makers. That's it in a nutshell. I can write a book, but I'll stop here!!! :pray:

[red tail]

Now that I have officially retired from teaching after 39 years, I have to say teachers. It may not be politically correct to say, but everyone comes through the halls of a school. They may not graduate, but they are there until they are at least 16. Many times teachers see the signs of what is to come but can say little. They do what they can for students but parents are the decision makers. That's it in a nutshell. I can write a book, but I'll stop here!!! :pray:

airline ticket agent during bad weather

[shcisamax]

There is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

Gracie! What a surprising post coming from YOU! What made you think about the depravity of mankind today?

[shcisamax]

I would have to say law enforcement. They see man at his worst whether as victim or as offender.

[gerryann]

Wait staff. I've seen examples here in the villages. I don't feel in the "rest of the world" they are treated as bad.

In turn, I think police are treated fairly here in the Villages.....not so much the rest of humanity.

[rayschic]

Prison guard.

[Monkei]

Correctional officer ...

[Trish Crocker]

Ok...maybe not the 'worst'...but working at the Secretary of State (Michigan's motor vehicle department) could be quite stressful...even your own family members came in hating you because of the ridiculous lines!! Once you throw into the mix the fact that half the time there I was out on the road with new drivers, testing their driving skills...ugh! The young kids were great, good reflexes, fresh out of driving school...then there were the elderly ladies (no offense anyone..I'm one now!). For some lame reason, their kids thought that it would be a good idea for mom to get a drivers license since dad was no longer around. Do you have any idea how it feels to be in a car with a person that has had one driving lesson from her son...and find yourself in rush hour traffic facing the wrong way??? I won't even talk about the people that didn't speak English..the only requirement was that they understood the road signs. Trust me, the line between church and state was crossed...this state employee was definitely praying!

[tucson]

Psychologist in a prison for the criminally insane/ treatment center for sexually dangerous persons.

[Trish Crocker]

Psychologist in a prison for the criminally insane/ treatment center for sexually dangerous persons.

That would be interesting!!!

[sharonga]

I too worked in education. We see the beginnings. At the end, I would have to say police officers.

[Patty55]

I've worked at Social Services, Probation and Family Court Intake. You would think that would be the worst of humanity, wouldn't you?

Nope, not by a long shot, the absolute worst that I have ever encountered was as a consumer in the horse industry. IMO, bigger thieves than I ever came across at Probation and more abusive than those walking the halls at Family Court.

[tucson]

That would be interesting!!!

My friend from childhood tells me she loves her job, I said God must have given you the grace to do it, I know I couldn't. Some of the most notorious criminals in the nation were and are in that prison.

[Virtual Geezer]

Cashier at Wal-Mart.

VG

[getdul981]

My wife was a nurse in a Level 1 Trauma Center for 20 years.

[red tail]

posters under the 'cart path closed' thread

[birdawg]

Worked as a tech for the phone company in the projects of N.J. want to see filth? They would pi$$ in their hallways, stairwells,elervators you could not breath when you were there.Animals lived better,

[Villages PL]

Message board moderator on a political board.

[kittygilchrist]

child abuse investigator--- sees babies with intentional iron burns, inflicted scalds, cigarette burns, torn bottoms and vaginas due to sexual abuse. Hears the childrens' stories of sexual abuse almost daily.
Knowing that cases are almost never prosecuted because the public (jury) believes child sexual abuse happens rarely and prosecutors only want cases they can win. Mothers prefer to keep the perpetrator and lose the child.
After 8 years in the profession, I burned out. My last day, I felt relief knowing that the baby my supervisors were discussing that had been thrown at the wall would not become my case.

[perrjojo]

Message board moderator on a political board.

You stole my post! :crap2: actually I was just going to say the TOTV moderator.

[graciegirl]

child abuse investigator--- sees babies with intentional iron burns, inflicted scalds, cigarette burns, torn bottoms and vaginas due to sexual abuse. Hears the childrens' stories of sexual abuse almost daily.
Knowing that cases are almost never prosecuted because the public (jury) believes child sexual abuse happens rarely and prosecutors only want cases they can win. Mothers prefer to keep the perpetrator and lose the child.
After 8 years in the profession, I burned out. My last day, I felt relief knowing that the baby my supervisors were discussing that had been thrown at the wall would not become my case.

Remember what I said to you when we first met and what you said back?

Kitty. That job has to be the toughest.

[Golfingnut]

TOTV Monitors that deal with political posts.

[l2ridehd]

Drill Sargent in a terrorist training camp.

[Indydealmaker]

A waitress/waiter in The Villages, Sun City, etc.

[kittygilchrist]

Remember what I said to you when we first met and what you said back?

Kitty. That job has to be the toughest.

exactly...no...but we know too much and are bereft of illusions.

[graciegirl]

exactly...no...but we know too much and are bereft of illusions.

I asked what you did for most of your life and I think you said you were a sin eater. A social worker. I immediately knew what you meant.

[rubicon]

After reading all four pages of posts I am convinced that the profession that sees the absolute worst in humanity is.....all of the above.

[SALYBOW]

I am not sure it is the depravity of mankind, although there is some of that, but as a chaplain I saw the tragedy of mankind big time.

[Halibut]

Is there a "worst" section of humanity? Or are there simply people everywhere who are or have been, at one time or another, physically or mentally ill, living in poverty, misanthropic, addicted to drugs, entitled, abused, judgmental, uneducated, abandoned, self-satisfied, or sociopathic?

If I were a PETA member I might answer game wardens because to them, hunters represent the worse of humanity.

[CFrance]

I would say anyone--social worker, teacher, law enforcement, prison guard--who has to have interaction with someone who abuses children, teenagers, young adults. The guy from Cleveland comes to mind.

[Taltarzac725]

child abuse investigator--- sees babies with intentional iron burns, inflicted scalds, cigarette burns, torn bottoms and vaginas due to sexual abuse. Hears the childrens' stories of sexual abuse almost daily.
Knowing that cases are almost never prosecuted because the public (jury) believes child sexual abuse happens rarely and prosecutors only want cases they can win. Mothers prefer to keep the perpetrator and lose the child.
After 8 years in the profession, I burned out. My last day, I felt relief knowing that the baby my supervisors were discussing that had been thrown at the wall would not become my case.

That's awful. I believe it depends on the person though when you break it down to individual experiences. I worked my way through college from 1976 through 1983 at the University of Nevada, Reno getting two BAs (Philosophy, History) as well as taking additional classes after dropping out of law school at BYU in September of 1982 . While I worked my way through school, I was in the employment of two guys in a partnership who ran food service at a ski training school (Slide Mountain), (Bower's Mansion), and a softball field (Idlewild Park). One of the partners, Craig F. was a nice guy as was the other Rich M. He seemed to often be looking for some way of making additional money or for more lucrative pastures. For some reason, he also was very taken by the movie Breaker Morant about some soldiers from the Boer War who are accused of war crimes.

I did not hear that much from Craig F. nor from his partner Rich M. I left for Library School at Denver University in 1983. I worked my way through Graduate School at DU in three different jobs and then went to work for Information Access Company (IAC) in Belmont, CA in 1984 after graduating from the 12 month Masters Program at the University of Denver.

I worked at IAC for about two years writing abstracts for Area Business Databank and indexing for Magazine Index, Business Index, Newspaper Index and other reference resources then went to Law School at the University of Minnesota Law School. I had not thought all that much about Craig F. and Rich M. until I learned that after I graduating from Law School in 1989 that the Law Librarian Convention was in Reno, Nevada in 1989.

I was the cataloger of all the files on WESTLAW for a national project and was a minor celebrity at the law librarian convention in Reno, Nevada that summer of 1989. I had no control over the law librarian convention being in Reno, NV. It was just one of those strange co-incidences that life throws at you. Its being in Reno did have a profound affect on me as it brought back all my experiences with the Michelle Mitchell murder case which I did mention to some of the law librarians from the University of Minnesota who were with me at the convention in 1989. (I talk about this case more below.)

I tried calling Rich M. who I could find in the Reno, NV telephone book at the MGM Grand (Balley's ?) Hotel where the law librarian convention was that summer of 1989.

He told me to move on with my life and not look back. Which I did at that time. He also knew as well as did Craig F. about my interest in victims' rights as I had been one of two students who won the Michelle Mitchell Memorial Scholarship. This was awarded by the Mitchell family in honor of their daughter who had been murdered by a small group of conspirators in Reno, Nevada on February 24, 1976. February 24 also happens to be my birthday (2-24-1959) so this kind of really stuck with me. The Michelle Mitchell murder case and later trial was also a hot button issue in Northern Nevada newspapers from February 25, 1976 through at least 1983 or so.

I needed references from past employers because of ugly stuff I had very little control of at the University of Minnesota Law Library/School. I had wanted to be honest about a niche I saw in many law libraries with respect to victims' rights based upon my experiences --mainly in Reno but also in Denver, at BYU in Provo, and other places-- with a huge gap in services for underdogs in the legal system. I had found this huge gap while trying to help myself and others deal with the Michelle Mitchell legal case from late February 1976 onward. I found next to nothing of any practical value in libraries of all kinds in NV, CA, UT, MN, AZ, CO, TX and elsewhere.

I finally found Craig F. in all places-- running as warden one of the large prisons in the Nevada State Correctional System. Considering his interest in Breaker Morant this was very interesting to say the least. I had worked with prisoners at Minnesota Correctional Facility in Stillwater while a law student at the University of Minnesota Law School. This was probably my best experience at the University of Minnesota Law School as it was about helping clients without all the political BS you find when you throw in office politics, the rather ugly politics of law school academia, and the added other stuff about my concern about this niche I had spotted in services for the underdogs in the legal system connected with the Michelle Mitchell murder case.

My point in all this is that an individual like Craig F. seemed to have little or no trouble doing a job that would have been very tough for many others as a prison warden. And, I never felt safer that at the Minnesota Correctional Facility at Stillwater. It was a very well run prison. The case files of some of the prisoners were quite shocking but water under the bridge for the most part.

The office politics at the University of Minnesota Law School were probably some of the most difficult experiences I had ever faced. You would not expect this in academia but wolves come in all kinds of clothing.

So, it probably depends more on what the individual was facing in whatever profession might be involved. I never heard of any other librarian having such as many tough problems I had trying to help underdogs in the legal system. I ran all this-- except for the Craig F. stuff--by a researcher at the University of California San Francisco Medical School Myra Y. who seemed rather as surprised by it as I was. This was in late 1992 and early 1993. I was subject #613 in a three month or so study on stress on the unemployed. She seemed to see that this was a worthy cause though but did not say this until the study was complete as she did not want to influence the study results. She just taped my telling of my experiences and nodded slightly every so often.

I tried getting as many people involved with spotlighting this niche from 1993 onward using the identifiers 224 and 613 to tell my story. I do believe that I made quite an impact for a while but probably ****ed off some of the people I was spotlighting even more. I had a professor at the University of Minnesota Law School (a Human Rights specialist) who had flunked me in Moot Court (I had quite a lot of trouble getting some legal arguments that seemed to challenge common sense, as some laws do) but his Student Assistant had found me in the law library while I was showing a library user the stacks and told me to never give up on this. Which I have not.

[Villages PL]

You stole my post! :crap2: actually I was just going to say the TOTV moderator.

I had to act quick to get that one in. There's not much left now; all the best ones have been taken.

How about this one: Killing cows all day long every day.

On wiki: "How many cows are slaughtered per day in the US?" Answer: 90,000 to 100,000

[eremite06]

Firefighters/paramedics.

[bkcunningham1]

Coroners/medical examiners.

[Villages PL]

Home health aid.

[Villages PL]

Stripper in a bar.

[Suzi]

I guess anyone could consider whatever they did in their working years as the "worst" job of all. I know I have seen horrible sights and suffering and have have done extremely painful things to people. However, I consider myself to be of the luckiest people around. I have always thought of my profession as a "calling". Not in a religious sense but in the human element. I consider it an honor to have been given the brains and determination to help mankind. Even when faced with dreadful situations and exhaustion until I thought I'd drop and was emotionally drained, I still could say to myself....."self, you are a good person and did what few others could or would do - so be happy that you were there for that person".
I don't have a single regret for my life's work. I did everything to the best of my capabilities and then some. In every (sometime just awful) situations I was there - never said I couldn't manage....I just did it (even if I went in another room to puke).
I am truly at peace with my life.

[bluedog103]

Coroners/medical examiners.
I agree BK. I was present once when a body was found in a trunk in NYC. Believe me, being a M.E. on a job like this is not something many people can do. Likewise when a child's body is discovered. It takes a special kind of person to do this job.

[NIPAS K-9]

There is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

LAW ENFORCEMENT>>>>>>>>>>> 32 YEARS SEEN IT ALL BELIEVE ME:police:

[asianthree]

ER Doctor...fractures...abuse....burns....accidents.. .sucide....cardiac arrest...birth and death...and you get to talk to each and every family and give them the good or bad news

[jrandall]

Law Enforcement

[mainlander]

Graciegirl, I do not know where you get these ideas for thread discussions, obviously from a very sharp and creative mind. " The absolute worst of humanity..."? I do not know where this ranks, but in my life I have managed a number of political campaigns and believe me, being exposed to some people under constant stress for a couple of months of 24/7 closeness you often see the "worst of humanity" and often it is from the candidate themselves... a sad but true reality.

[DougB]

Guess it would have to be the dude that gives that lethal injection.

[Taltarzac725]

There is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

I do wonder, graciegirl, where you get ideas for a thread like this?

I had an uncle who was a scout in WWII in Italy in 1943 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Campaign_(World_War_II) and who got hit with a tank tree burst which caused him to lose an arm, a leg, and a good part of his skull. He lived but only he and one of his fellow squad member's survived this. Of course, WWII was over for him. He had a great life as a small town hero of Itasca, Illinois. Until that is, dementia started and he began reliving his war days over and over as if it all was happening again. A lot of this was because of his head wound caused by the Panzer tank tree burst. It hits up high and sends shrapnel down onto troops as well as parts of trees like wood shards and caused horrific wounds.

I had been taking care of him before they got him into a nursing home back in 1994 in Itasca. Other times, he would relive more pleasant memories as if they were taking place right then and start having conversations with people from long ago and even naked Indians which he probably saw on some Western in the 1940s.

A lot of our troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan are experiencing similar trauma from IEDs. Of course, there are probably a lot more soldiers and others who never see the front lines and are never anywhere near IED explosions.

There are probably also soldiers who enjoy war, killing, violence and other aspects of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Kind of hard to generalize about various professions.

[Villages PL]

A lot of our troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan are experiencing similar trauma from IEDs.

One day I was sitting in a waiting room, waiting to get a blood test, and I saw a car pull up and two men got out. It looked like father and son. And the son was struggling to walk on two artificial legs. It's one thing to hear about trauma but when you actually see it, it's a whole different thing. It's very upsetting just to think about it, but these traumatized young men have to live with it every day.

[jannd228]

Now that I have officially retired from teaching after 39 years, I have to say teachers. It may not be politically correct to say, but everyone comes through the halls of a school. They may not graduate, but they are there until they are at least 16. Many times teachers see the signs of what is to come but can say little. They do what they can for students but parents are the decision makers. That's it in a nutshell. I can write a book, but I'll stop here!!! :pray:

I agree especially if one works at the high school level as I did

[renielarson]

I'm sure my best girlfriend of 50 years would say being a nurse at St. Jude's in Memphis.

[TexaninVA]

Psychologist in a prison for the criminally insane/ treatment center for sexually dangerous persons.

That sounds like it is indeed at the very top of the list

[kittygilchrist]

That sounds like it is indeed at the very top of the list

hey I worked in mental health with criminally insane murderers/sexual offenders...it was a dangerous work environment, but not the worst of humanity in my book of ugly.
at least they are insane.
child sexual abusers and baby torturers top my list for depravity.
especially heinous because most of them are family members or mother's boyfriend.

[ssmith]

I am with Kitty...could not take the children and their situations. My daughter fosters newborns and we have seen some really sad situations.

Suzi, what did you do?

[BobandMarilyn]

In the end, it must be a proctologist.

[Taltarzac725]

hey I worked in mental health with criminally insane murderers/sexual offenders...it was a dangerous work environment, but not the worst of humanity in my book of ugly.
at least they are insane.
child sexual abusers and baby torturers top my list for depravity.
especially heinous because most of them are family members or mother's boyfriend.

Since you seem to have some expertise in the area of victims' experiences, I would like to get your opinion on what this group might like to see in public, law, medical, and other type libraries? Since I basically got kicked out of the law librarianship profession in mid-1991 which was made quite clear to me at the law library convention in New Orleans in the Summer of 1991 and then cemented even further at the law librarianship convention in San Francisco in the Summer of 1992; I tried to do something with my own extremely limited resources about a niche I had found in my library meanderings from late February of 1976 through then. I ordered a copy of the National Organization for Victim Assistance Directory of Victim Assistance Programs and Resources and wrote maybe 1000 of these programs listed in this Directory and asked them what they would like to see in libraries of different types especially public and law libraries. This was a technique taught at the Graduate School of Librarianship and Information Management at the University of Denver (Class of May, 1984) in the Collection Development course. You go to a group you serve or would like to serve and get an idea of what they would like to see in your library.

Of course, I recommended this NOVA Directory as being one of the most important reference volumes that should be in libraries.

I became quite a pest of libraries and librarians as being blackballed gives you a lot of free time. And, after I had gone to the then Librarian of Congress for help, the then Law Librarian of Congress (M. Kathleen Price) who I had worked under at the University of Minnesota Law Library from around 1988 through 1990, had said that access to victims' rights information in libraries was important but it would take ALL libraries to address this issue. Kind of like a lawyer asking for one file and getting sent the whole archives of some place.

I would like to get more input on this especially with respect to Villages' area libraries, websites, Sheriff's Department websites and the like. What would be useful for a victim/survivor to have access to that would make their lives easier to deal with in the short and long run?

[Taltarzac725]

In the end, it must be a proctologist.

Like the pun, do not like the proctologist. :1rotfl:

[Tracy1581]

there is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

homicide detectives

[Parker]

I'm currently reading 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'. The horrors documented there are.....I don't even have the words. But Kitty's recalling the hurt babies and children she has seen also have no words. The world is a very scary place.

Thank God it is also a heartwarming amazing place full of wonderful people who make all the difference.

[donb9006]

I'm currently reading 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'. The horrors documented there are.....I don't even have the words. But Kitty's recalling the hurt babies and children she has seen also have no words. The world is a very scary place.

Thank God it is also a heartwarming amazing place full of wonderful people who make all the difference.

Don't believe everything you read...actually, believe very little of it. Remember, the winners write history...and what they write...ain't true! It makes "us" look good and "them" look bad.

We do horrible things too...we shouldn't be naive.

The world IS a scary place, fully of psychopaths who view us as a tool...something to be used for their gain. Also...freedom is messy. You HAVE to take some bad to have the good that freedom gives you. Lack of freedom...the beginning of slavery.

We've come to the right place, a place where everyone has the same basic views on what is a good life. Enjoy the time you've got left and leave the worlds problems outside the bubble...there's nothing you can do about it.

[gecun55]

as a new York state corrections officer (retired) I have seen every terrible thing that the devil can throw at humanity

[jebartle]

Proctologist without a doubt!

[Erijo]

Nursing.

[Uncle Pepe]

Prison Guard. I was one for a little over a year in TN. Worked death row and lockup mostly. It's amazing.

[2BNTV]

I guess is the percepton in the eye of the beholder.

I would say LEO, prison guard, caretakers of wounded vets and taking care of the mentally ill. A pediatric nurse who witnesses a loss of a child due to neglect, etc.

A schoolmate of mine who became a cop said he dealt with the lowest dregs of society. I tend to believe him as he went from a happy go lucky type of guy who became somewhat surly and eventually lost the love of his life through divorce.

[Chipper]

Having been in law enforcement for 32 years I have seen the very worst humanity has to offer. However, there was one group that I worked with that tries to protect the most vulnerable in our society. CPS(Childrens Protective Services) workers deal physical and sexual abuse on children where the suspects are family members. I don't think they receive enough credit for their hard work and dedication.

[TexaninVA]

Worked as a tech for the phone company in the projects of N.J. want to see filth? They would pi$$ in their hallways, stairwells,elervators you could not breath when you were there.Animals lived better,

I heard the same thing from a very successful plumber I knew up north

[TexaninVA]

There is a broad spectrum of retirees here, many who have seen some really overwhelming and awful sides of the human condition.

What professions would be the worst as far as seeing awful and shocking realities of our times?

Social work, law enforcement, medicine, teaching?

IT technical guy assigned to work the HealthCare.Gov website

[Jsling]

I may have to say an ER nurse and cops come close.
I've been one for many years and we get punched, scratched, sworn at, peed on, pooped on. I've had vomit all over me and told to F off to many times to count and still have to smile and say, THANK YOU for allowing me to help you. What else can I do for you, I have the time?
Really. I've had my face punched and I can't punch back. I've spit at, sworn at, made to feel like crap for even getting out of bed to come to work, but I keep doing it for the ones who truly appreciate what we do. Day after day, we make people feel better or die easier. Whatever the day brings, we can handle all of it with grace and confidence enough to return for more the next day.

[2BNTV]

Hands down, the police win. IMHO

I have a friend who changed from asweet guy with a loving wife and children to a person who became bitter and probbly was caused by having to deal with the low-life's in today society.

Second is nurses who work in a pediatric hospital, and have to watch children die. If they become too invovled in they take their jobs home with them,, they will suffer too.

[Golfingnut]

Animal control officers.

[Cisco Kid]

Animal control officers.

I 2nd that

[senior citizen]

...........