FERS Medical Retirements: Future Uncertainties

Human beings love certainties; but in this cold and objective, dispassionate world, such certainties can rarely be relied upon.

Hume’s causation argument undermined any attempt to establish repetition as a basis for future events, precisely because X occurring the thousandth time gives us no concrete evidence that the next time will result in any causal reliability.

Probability theory aside, as Hume argued, there is missing any “necessary connection” which would establish a predictable nexus to extrapolate future reliability based upon prior life events.  Without that necessary connection, causal certainty can never be ascertained.— or so his argument goes.

Yet, we continue to rely upon future certainties regardless of such “conceptual proofs” to the contrary, for, what other choice do we have?  We cannot wander throughout our lives  without reliance upon some semblance of causal expectation, otherwise, we would be like newborn infants every day with no sense of security or stability.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal Service workers under FERS who suffer from an illness or injury which impacts their future certainty in their Federal or postal career, a large stumbling block is the uncertainty of being approved for a future medical retirement application.

Although there can never be a causal guarantee when it involves the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, you can increase the probability of a successful outcome if you are adequately represented by an experienced attorney.

Citing the proper and relevant case laws and formulating the most effective legal arguments will increase the probability for future success.  To that end, applying to OPM does not need to seem like reinventing the proverbial wheel every time, or like being that lost child wandering in the woods without any sense of security.

Contact a FERS Lawyer experienced in Federal Disability Law, and increase your chance for a more certain future, despite what Hume says.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill
Experienced lawyer exclusively representing Federal and Postal employees to secure their FERS Disability Retirement benefits from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

 

FERS Disability Retirement Law: The Dreaded Next Day

If every day is becoming the dreaded next day, then the hope of living a contented life — a life of “happiness” — becomes an impossibility.

Modernity has become obsessed with “happiness” as a goal to embrace, as opposed to a byproduct of one’s manner of living.  Additionally, the term itself has been redefined to encompass only the realm of one’s immediate emotional contentment, as opposed to the Aristotelian (and Greek, in general) concept of eudaemonia — the state of living a life defined by what it means to be a human being.

In our concept of happiness, the dreaded next day guarantees that each day will be enveloped by unhappiness, precisely because the “next day” was yesterday’s dreaded next day, upon us with a vengeance, like the eternally rolling boulder which Sisyphus must gather the strength to push up the next hill.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal position, each day is already the dreaded next day with an endless cycle of pain and despondency, precisely because your medical condition is incommensurate with the job which you hold.

It is like the life as described in Camus’ work, The Myth of Sisyphus — of pushing that boulder up a hill, only to have it roll down the hill, and then to push it up the next hill, for eternity.

Contact an OPM Disability Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and consider preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement, to avoid each day becoming the dreaded next day.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill
Lawyer exclusively representing Federal and Postal employees to secure their Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

 

Federal Employee Disability Retirement: The Steps Themselves

When you hear a scream, witness an assault, observe the smoke or visually ascertain the flames spewing from the upper floor of a building, do you respond by trying to scale the face of the building?  Or, is the more effective — and intelligent — approach in the rescue attempt, to call the fire department, get a ladder, ascend the fire escape, locate the stairwell, etc.?

The steps themselves are in important component of a building’s structure; for, they were built and installed as part of the architectural formulation with a specific purpose in mind — so that people can come and go, enter and exit, use for regular, exigent and emergency reasons, etc.

Similarly, when an administrative process is engaged in, should one simply go “full hog” and begin attacking the paperwork, filling out furiously the forms which need completion, and not worry about the “steps” which should be taken?

In the administrative process entitled, “Filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits”, there exists a coherent, logical, systematic procedure which will heighten and enhance the chances of an approval from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.  In order to access those steps themselves, contact an OPM Disability Retirement Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and use them to effectively file a Federal Disability Retirement application under FERS.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire
Federal Disability Retirement Lawyer

 

OPM Medical Retirement Legal Representation: Confidence games

We all know (or, by a certain age or stature of wisdom, should know) about the psychology behind the scam:  Of gaining one’s confidence by first including one into a select group of people who are “in the know”.

There are two primary senses to the word, aren’t there?  The first being a sense or feeling of self-assurance, as in, “He is very confident in his own abilities.”  The second, and somewhat connected, is the definition pertaining to a relationship of trust and reliance, where there exists or builds upon a sense of camaraderie and intimacy, as in: “He brought me into his confidence.”  In both cases, there develops a relationship of bonded certainty, whether in one’s self or in the connection between two or more individuals.

Thus, the “confidence” games encompass those activities or endeavors that build upon a relationship based upon trust, and engender the hapless victim to possess a sense of self-assurance that what he or she is giving up is of sacrificial value because the trust relied upon has been built on a foundation of friendship, relationships entrusted, and a shared affinity of intimacy exclusive of others.

Thus does the classic confidence game begin in a parking lot where a a cache of money is found and you are roped into becoming a select group within a conspiracy of two, or maybe three, and you are asked to put up a “deposit” of trust — then, when it is all over, you open the bag of money that you were left holding, only to find that it was merely a bundle of newspaper clippings.  Or, of more complex pyramid schemes, ranging from the simple to the incomprehensible, ending up sometimes like Bernie Madoff’s decades-long game of roping in even the most sophisticated of unweary investors.

But then, aren’t we all conditioned from a very early age to believe that “confidence” games are acceptable, and that we get on through life’s difficulties by acting a part?  Don’t we teach kids to “act self-confident”, be self-assured and walk with your head held high and play the “as if” game — as if you know what you are doing; as if you are the best qualified; as if you can have it all?

That is often the veneer we put on, and how thin the veil of confidence can be, only to be shattered like the delicate china that give off the clink-clink of refinement until the first fissure begins to show, then shatters upon the hardness of the world.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition where the medical condition begins to prevent the Federal or Postal worker from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job — it may be that your self-confidence is beginning to wear off.  As the Federal Agency or the Postal Service steps up its campaign of harassment and intimidation, the Federal or Postal worker has to deal with a double-problem:  The profound fatigue from the medical condition itself (which impacts one’s sense of self-assurance) and concurrently, the loss of self-confidence as one realizes that one’s physical or cognitive capacity to continue in the chosen career is beginning to wane.

We all play the “confidence game” — that of going through life winging it and hoping that no one else notices; but at times, when the “real game” of life suddenly imposes its presence upon us, it is time to become “real”.

For the Federal employee or Postal worker who must face a real-life crisis of confidence because of a medical condition, it may be time to prepare, formulate and file an effective Federal Disability Retirement application, to be filed with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, so that the focus of one’s efforts can be redirected upon the greater importance of one’s health and well-being, as opposed to being drawn into the parking lot schemes of further confidence games.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Disability Retirement for Federal Government Employees: Authentication

There is a process and means by which it is accomplished — as in authenticating a painting or an antique piece of furniture, jewelry, etc.; of an autograph or handwritten letter (although, many will say that in the field of forensic sciences, handwritten analysis is far from reaching a vaunted level of precision or reliability); of a pet’s pedigree or even of a person’s right to have access to sensitive information, etc.

Authentication is thus a process of verification, of identifying X as being Not-Y in many instances, where exclusion by elimination of other possibilities results in the declaration of the genuineness of the person or thing declared to be so.

When applied to an object, it inspects and compares against other objects within a historical context, style, peculiar features of an artisan’s eccentricities, period-characteristics and signature features, etc.  When applied to an individual, it may take into account physical features as well (appearance; finger prints; voice matching; DNA sample, etc.), but could also encompass questions posed and answers given, and depending upon the comparison to known archives of historical background checks made against statements previously provided, deem that an “authentication” has been reached concerning the “true” identity of an individual, akin to declaring that a painting previously unverified is in fact a product of this or that “Master”, or that an antique furniture piece was the craftsmanship of some famous cabinetmaker during the Jeffersonian Renaissance period or from some pop-culture minimalist timeframe during the early Sixties, etc.

The process of “authentication”, of course, can be distinguished from whether or not an individual is living an “authentic life”, as well, and here, the meanings become somewhat muddled and divided.  One can be “authenticated” and be allowed access to sensitive banking information, be allowed to use a credit card, write a check, etc., and still live an inauthentic life (e.g., act like someone you are not, present yourself as a “family man” despite all the while committing multiple affairs; live a double or triple or even a quadruple life and deceive everyone around, etc.).

The process in reaching a conclusion as to whether a person is living an authentic or inauthentic life is somewhat different from “authenticating” a person.  For, to engage in the former analysis, it is normally done for the most part as a self-analysis (i.e., only the person who is living an inauthentic life can know for certain whether it is so or not), whereas the methodology imposed of “authenticating” a period-piece or an individual (the latter) is by applying a more objective standard of comparative review.

For the Federal or Postal employee who is suffering from a medical condition, where the medical condition begins to prevent the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, the dual issues of “authentication” and “authentic living” come to the fore, precisely because the Federal or Postal employee becomes forced into behaving in rather inauthentic ways.

Hiding the medical condition; trying desperately to work through the debilitating symptoms and maintaining an appearance of normalcy; and all the while trying to force a consistency between one’s capacity and the watchful eyes of the Federal Agency or the Postal Service — these are the elements that challenge the authenticity of one’s life.

Living an authentic life under normal circumstances is difficult enough; trying to authenticate one’s capacity to continue “as is” in the face of a progressively deteriorating medical condition makes it all the more challenging.  It may be that preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement application, to be filed with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, is the only way forward in forging an authentic pathway away from an inauthentic morass that the medical condition has forced upon you.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal Disability Retirement: The Court of Sycophants

The word itself is a linear sequence of consonants and vowels which delight the linguistic palate of parallelism between sound and meaning; rolling off of the tongue, it begins with the soft purr of the ‘s’, then slides midway into the harsh and guttural clash of a germanic cough, as if something untoward has been stuck in the center of one’s throat which needs to be cleared, like phlegm gathered in the mucous membranes of the respiratory passages; then flows to the end and drifts off into a quietude of irrelevance, disregard and dismissal, as the pointed meaning of application coincides with the diminishing utterance of fading signification.

In feudal times, when kings and princes of minor fiefdoms pockmarked the divided provinces of Europe and Asia, the gathering of sycophants pervaded each hour with daily tributes of flowery adjectives added effortlessly in conjunction with backstabbing motivations; the smiles of agreement and infusion of words to puff up the royal kingdom were offset by the murderous rage hidden in the dark corridors of dungeons where the abyss of human cruelty and malevolence resided with unfettered and ravenous appetite.

Does the modern presence of such and the like represent a fading vestige of that former calumny of bacterial servitude, or merely a reflection of the true nature of man’s essence?  The court of sycophants does not exist merely in dusty books of historical irrelevance; it survives in small pockets of sibling rivalries where inheritances are favored by means of embellished compliments combined with fading cognitive capacity for recognition of the distinction between words and sincerity; and in workplaces where no hostages are taken when one’s livelihood is at stake.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who are intimately familiar with the darkened hearts of sycophants, there are more colorful words used to describe them — as in the kissing of another’s behind; but whether one uses the original one or a replacement of a more informal vernacular, the meaning all amounts to the same.  Especially, when a medical condition begins to impacts the Federal or Postal Service employee’s ability and capacity to perform at the same level as before, the wide range of sycophants begin to make their appearance.

Somehow, denigration of others is believed to elevate one’s own status and stature, and indeed, the feudal court of sycophants was based upon that system of favoritism and derisive discourse.

For the Federal or Postal employee who suffers from a medical condition, however, such that filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management becomes necessary, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, the escape from the constant backbiting and backstabbing becomes necessary not only to maintain and further one’s health and well-being, but is also a recognition that one has lost the favor of the court itself, and it becomes incumbent upon the Federal and Postal employee to recognize that the Court of Sycophants has been powdering the nose not of the king’s face, but of the emperor whose clothes has disappeared and where the cheeks which quiver with frolicking laughter are at the wrong end of the anatomical map.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

FERS & CSRS Medical Retirement: The Corner Thought

Corners are creations of geometric amplitudes; we point and direct that some person, object or place is “just around the corner”, deferred from a reference point of equilibrium.  Furniture pieces fail to fit in them, unless they are specifically designed for that purpose; people congregate towards them, especially those at parties who desire a semblance of anonymity or quiet discretion; and we used to send bratty kids to sit and stare at the geometric arrowhead of oblivion, hoping that the boredom of such a consecrated space would straighten out their demented characters.

Thoughts, likewise, remain sweetly anonymous, unless of course one blurts out what previously existed in the quietude of consciousness, and even then, we remark that such declarations emitted from the hollow of one’s mouth were mere “thoughtlessness”, thus negating that very expression which just a short while ago remained unknown and unknowable, but in a flash of an instant, articulated in the shattered world of calm and noiseless space.

When space and conceptual expression combine to coalesce, we refer to it as “the corner thought”.  The corner thought is that conceptual construct which is relegated to a later time, pushed aside and reserved for a future date of uncertain pinpoints of time.  We often never get back to it.

Like the child scolded and told to “sit in the corner until you straighten up” (a self-contradiction, to be sure, when the geometric fold of the corner is the very place where one is expected to defy a character of misgivings), the corner thought is left like mold on a damp and forgotten shelf of books and backdoor alleys, where the trash is never picked up and the stench of leftovers become a natural compost of hidden regrets.  It is always that “corner thought” which one day must come back to haunt.

For the Federal employee or U.S. Postal worker who suffers silently in the angst of the Federal agency or the U.S. Postal Service, relegated to perennial “light duty” assignments, “modified” work duties, sudden and unexpected demands to appear for a “fitness for duty” examination, then never to be heard from again until some irritant of polluted thoughtlessness tramples in from the misery of unknown lives but to whom one must submit and be subservient because of a title imparted as “supervisor”, “manager” or just plain “boss”; that corner thought was always the one entitled, “Filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management”.

When the medical condition first began to impact the Federal or Postal employee’s ability and capacity to perform the essential elements of one’s positional duties, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, the thought of filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through OPM was at first nothing more than that “corner thought” which was pushed aside and asunder.  But as time went on, it became clear that the miscreant of unexpressed conceptual construct needed to be dusted off, brought back, and repositioned to take a more prominent placement in the covey of ideas to be considered.

Corners cannot, of themselves, instill character into wayward children; and thoughts cannot, left alone, compel purposive action without a corresponding will to act; and it is when the corner thought takes its proper role of relevant existence, that the directionless pointing to a reference “just around the corner” will one day become solidified into a concrete plan for some time hence, by preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement application, to combine the separateness of the corner with the delay of thought, in order to embrace that corner thought for a secure future.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal & Postal Medical Disability Retirement: Vultures the world ’round

Despite what they do, some find them to be elegance in flight; and whether the encounter is in the New World or Old, their bald heads mark them out to be the focus of fascination, repulsion and avoidance of shuddering whispers.  Scavengers upon carrion of dead carcasses, the full display of their baldness and redness marks them for a discriminated species.

Evolutionary scientists note the advantage of the featherless appearance — of cleanliness in the act of wading deep into the putrid caverns of hollowed bodies and able to shake off the decaying infestation of harmful bacteria; while some in the minority have posited the age-old explanation of colorful display for attraction to the opposite sex and promotion of the genetic dominance of the handsomest.  We humans may find them repulsive; within the species, perhaps there is an attraction unknown and undiscoverable, unable to be understood from the perspective of a different viewpoint.

Yet, we humans can understand the plight of the vulture; for we see them all over the place, as existentially pervasive as the world ’round.  Like the soaring wingspan in the animal kingdom, vultures watch and wait in the world of men and women.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers, their presence is everywhere, and frighteningly lacking in discreet patience.  As empathy is not a character trait of the vulture in the animal kingdom, so it is lacking in the world of men and women.  Thus, when a medical condition begins to impact the Federal or Postal employee’s ability and capacity to perform the essential elements of one’s positional duties within the Federal Sector or the U.S. Postal Service, the circling shadows of the ever-present scavengers from high above begin to circle the decaying carcass of the Federal or Postal employee whose progressive medical condition signals the decline and inevitable debilitation leading to absence and exit.

While the final chapter of each story may be different, the intent of the vulture of either species always remains constant — of circling, waiting, and watching with anticipation to swoop down upon the weakened and disadvantaged figure, when such bold presence would never have been displayed at the pinnacle of one’s power.

For the Federal and Postal employee weakened by a medical condition, preparing, formulating and filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, is the road away from the inevitable circling of the awaiting scavengers.  In the end, breeds of a pair tend to stick together, and vultures the world ’round — whether of the bird type or the animal kind — wait for the pickings to ripen in their state of decay.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire