How would you define THE last straw? It would be the last thing someone ever does to you before you retaliate. Although not from any dictionary, I believe it's as close as it will ever get. And lately, straws have been piling up. From demeaning policies to unfavorable practices, it has become quite clear what the goal of the company is. And it is to save their own asses. I have no qualms about mentioning names of companies and people, but for now, I have to keep this post as vague as possible. I just want to compare the current situation at hand with what has happened recently to Yahoo. Lately, Yahoo's stock has been going down. They were forced to lay-off 1000 people from various departments. The criteria for being laid-off has been very much a secret, but I'm sure those were fair criteria (performance- and redundancy-based, most likely). And of course, the conditions of being laid-off is more or less fair enough for those affected, which is everyone. Those who were laid-off were from various departments and positions, from rank-and-file employees to management, VPs and executives. And Yahoo has been transparent enough that they are losing money and that this is the last resort. I'm sure they have done their due diligence when it comes to laying-off people. Due diligence, in the sense that they thought of every possible scenario to save their personnel, hoping to retain them in their current positions. This laying-off is a result of the "recession" that is currently hitting the US. Their situation isn't really that different here. Having clients in the US, the company is also affected. However, instead of saving big with the minimal impact, the company chose the other path. "There's no way my ass is grass. I'm gonna kick somebody else's ass instead, and preferably, my subordinate's." So the company is saving some with the highest impact on its personnel. And it doesn't end there. The company dangled a tiny morsel of hope to those who were affected (criteria based on tenure, instead of performance), and let them fight it out, a la Survivor. This is so the affected will have a chance to stay. Meaning, the company is doing their due diligence, or at least hopes that's how it seems to others. Among the unenlightened, this is their chance to stay. For the wise-enough, this is a proverbial kick in the career balls. So in the land of broken promises and unfulfilled dreams, one can only do so much. That is rant and give the proverbial finger to the proverbial nut-kicker.