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I know that here at the DMV we have a reputation for being utterly cold, heartless monsters. But still:
1. Young girl comes in with her father to get her permit. For a first time permit, license, or ID card, we must see an original birth certificate. No exceptions.
Unfortunately, the girl did not have hers with her. So when the clerk says, "Well, you need your birth certificate before we can do this," and the girl starts sobbing. Dad is hugging her, "Oh, honey, it will be okay. Don't cry."
The clerk then offers them a return pass, which means that when they return, they will get right up to the counter without having to wait a second time. The father glares at the clerk, "Wait, are you telling me that you aren't going to give my daughter her permit? Her heart is set on it."
Seriously, dad, you were under the impression that the clerk was just trying to reduce your daughter to tears FOR FUN? Or that we tell you that we have requirements, unless you can produce tears or blood, at which point we waive the requirements?
2. From years ago, when I was still in training. It was a minute to 5 pm, closing time (and we lock our doors promptly at closing. We still take care of everyone inside, but no one new gets in). The office I was working at then was in a strip mall shaped like an L, with our office in the corner, with a small garden right in front of it. An elderly lady (in her 70s), came running in from the parking lot to make it in before we closed the doors. In the foyer (between the out door and the one leading into the lobby), she fell, twisting her leg and severely injuring her knee. Several customers helped us to scoop her up and carry her into the lobby.
Here is where the craziness started. The woman is in extreme pain, writhing and sobbing. Her daughter (who had been parking the car) comes in and she starts sobbing. We want to call for an ambulance, which ratchets the sobbing up even harder. No! No! It's too much trouble! Sob-sob-sob-scream of pain-sob.
What's the matter? Do you have health insurance? Yes, they had insurance, but they didn't want to impose on the ambulance company or the emergency room. I bite back the inclination to say that they are imposing on US.
Finally, the manager says to the daughter, "Go get your car, and drive it up as close as you can to the door. Then come back inside to help."
"I can't do that!" the daughter sobs. "You are closed, the door is locked, and you won't let me in."
The manager somehow restrained the urge to scream. "Ma'am, we are not the heartless monsters you seem to think we are. We are not going to drag your crippled mother out onto the concrete outside, and leave her there to drag into your car. We need to let you back in so that you can help us carry her out to the car."
And why did the elderly woman come in? To get a handicap parking permit because she just had gotten out of the hospital for the same knee she had fallen on. We did ask the daughter why she had made her mother come in, and we pointed to the spot on the application where it is clearly marked that someone else can pick up the parking permit if the applicant cannot come in. The daughter didn't think that applied to them, because her mother could "kind of" walk. With great difficulty. With pain.
Morons.
1. Young girl comes in with her father to get her permit. For a first time permit, license, or ID card, we must see an original birth certificate. No exceptions.
Unfortunately, the girl did not have hers with her. So when the clerk says, "Well, you need your birth certificate before we can do this," and the girl starts sobbing. Dad is hugging her, "Oh, honey, it will be okay. Don't cry."
The clerk then offers them a return pass, which means that when they return, they will get right up to the counter without having to wait a second time. The father glares at the clerk, "Wait, are you telling me that you aren't going to give my daughter her permit? Her heart is set on it."
Seriously, dad, you were under the impression that the clerk was just trying to reduce your daughter to tears FOR FUN? Or that we tell you that we have requirements, unless you can produce tears or blood, at which point we waive the requirements?
2. From years ago, when I was still in training. It was a minute to 5 pm, closing time (and we lock our doors promptly at closing. We still take care of everyone inside, but no one new gets in). The office I was working at then was in a strip mall shaped like an L, with our office in the corner, with a small garden right in front of it. An elderly lady (in her 70s), came running in from the parking lot to make it in before we closed the doors. In the foyer (between the out door and the one leading into the lobby), she fell, twisting her leg and severely injuring her knee. Several customers helped us to scoop her up and carry her into the lobby.
Here is where the craziness started. The woman is in extreme pain, writhing and sobbing. Her daughter (who had been parking the car) comes in and she starts sobbing. We want to call for an ambulance, which ratchets the sobbing up even harder. No! No! It's too much trouble! Sob-sob-sob-scream of pain-sob.
What's the matter? Do you have health insurance? Yes, they had insurance, but they didn't want to impose on the ambulance company or the emergency room. I bite back the inclination to say that they are imposing on US.
Finally, the manager says to the daughter, "Go get your car, and drive it up as close as you can to the door. Then come back inside to help."
"I can't do that!" the daughter sobs. "You are closed, the door is locked, and you won't let me in."
The manager somehow restrained the urge to scream. "Ma'am, we are not the heartless monsters you seem to think we are. We are not going to drag your crippled mother out onto the concrete outside, and leave her there to drag into your car. We need to let you back in so that you can help us carry her out to the car."
And why did the elderly woman come in? To get a handicap parking permit because she just had gotten out of the hospital for the same knee she had fallen on. We did ask the daughter why she had made her mother come in, and we pointed to the spot on the application where it is clearly marked that someone else can pick up the parking permit if the applicant cannot come in. The daughter didn't think that applied to them, because her mother could "kind of" walk. With great difficulty. With pain.
Morons.
And if you don't trust your own license that you gave me after I showed you all my documents, why would you trust those same documents next time? Cmon, at least pretend to have some logic somewhere (oh, yeah, we're talking about government, agencies never mind).
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