By the miracle of the internet, I now bring you the TRUE story of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg who ordered that one of his office assistants - on a paltry $20k odd awage - be fired for having Solitare running in the background of his computer. Why Why WHY MR BLOOMBERG?! To what point does this serve, except your own maniacal glee at having your finger on the "fire" button for every local government employee in the state. "The workplace is not an appropriate place for games," Bloomberg said. "It's a place where you've got to do the job that you're getting paid for." Sure. That nasty Bill Clinton set such a bad example for people wanting to get paid for not doing work. And you mean to tell me that HE's NEVER done anything extra-curricular in his office?! Riiiiigghttt.Office assistant Edward Greenwood IX was going over some papers at his desk as Bloomberg made the rounds with his photographer, greeting workers and posing for pictures. When the mayor reached him, Greenwood stood, they shook hands and the photographer snapped a photo.
But the eagle-eyed mayor - a billionaire former businessman with a certain idea of how offices should be run - noticed Greenwood's game of solitaire glowing on his screen. He said nothing about it to Greenwood but later told an aide to give him the ax.
Greenwood, who earned $27,000 a year and had worked in the office for six years, said in a telephone interview that he limited his play time to his one-hour lunch or during quick breaks when he needed a moment of distraction.
"It wasn't like I spent hours and hours a day playing, because I had plenty to do," Greenwood said. "If I had been working at something exhaustively for two hours, I might get a cup of coffee and play for a minute but then go right back to my work."
