Your Degree by Richard Tornello

Tell us what you thought abou thte November issue!
Post Reply
User avatar
Robert_Moriyama
Editor Emeritus
Posts: 2379
Joined: December 31, 1969, 08:00:00 PM
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Contact:

Common practice in the real world?

Post by Robert_Moriyama »

I seem to recall reading articles indicating that in some cases, diplomas were withheld because graduating students had outstanding fees (maybe as trivial as library fines)... In Ontario, a new toll highway was built with public money then sold to a private company for a fraction of the construction cost (on the condition that the company would continue to maintain and expand the highway -- which it has done, while jacking up the tolls (mainly by extending the higher-cost "peak hours" pricing to cover most of the day)). The fun part of the contract was that it obligated the government to withhold license plate renewal stickers if vehicle owners had unpaid tolls!

I think it more likely that a college or university would send a notice to a student approaching graduation that his/her degree would be withheld unless outstanding tuition or other fees were paid than that they would revoke a degree already granted. Of course, corporations (and formerly "public" institutions are expected to behave like private corporations these days) follow the "if you make a mistake, you will be penalized; if we make a mistake -- you will be penalized" system, so... (viz. banks, the Big Three automakers, etc.)

Now imagine the ultimate expression of this principle: new parents fail to pay the bill for delivery of their child, and... (There's a story in there -- any takers?)
You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

Jack London (1876-1916)
User avatar
Robert_Moriyama
Editor Emeritus
Posts: 2379
Joined: December 31, 1969, 08:00:00 PM
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Contact:

Re: Novel Idea!

Post by Robert_Moriyama »

Mark Edgemon wrote:Now that is a Tom Clancy novel if I ever heard one!...Mark
I'd think it might be more Ira Levin (author of "Rosemary's Baby", but also "The Stepford Wives" and "The Boys From Brazil") territory. Or if focused on the legal maneuvering, John Grisham. Or Pohl/Kornbluth...

RM
You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

Jack London (1876-1916)
Post Reply

Return to “November 2008”