Euro Patent Office prez's brake line cut – aka how to tell you're not popular

Re: Uplifting

Why be thankful when you can be violent and still play the victim?

Re: Uplifting

The pool of people with the right education at the right level (about a third of the examiners have a PhD) who also speak English and German and French is tiny. That is the reason salaries are what they are.

Re: Uplifting

How do you know that we're overpaid for what we do? Do you even know what we do? I'm assuming not.

Comparing us to national offices is disingenuous to say the least, as we operate under very different circumstances. We work in three official languages, the national offices don't. Most of us live abroad, which brings all kinds of extra expenses, which people working for their own national office don't have.

And if you had the slightest idea about what was really going on at the EPO, you would realise that it has very little to do with money and everything to do with basic human rights. But hey, why let the facts bother you?

Re: Uplifting

At the national office it is only required to work in your mother tongue, not in three languages of which none might be your mother tongue. Also in the national office you do not need to leave your home country.

The point is that workers had a contract with the EPO. The EPO is not respecting that contract, and has changed the contract unilaterally (no agreement with personel representatives). This would be unthinkable in a national setting, but at the EPO this is common practice. Employees have no independent court to go to. The first two appeal steps are internal, and as such not independent. The final step is going to the ILO who generally upholds the decisions because there is no equivalent protection as granted by national laws. And that is where the problem lies. Employees of the EPO are European citizens, who in their home countries have civil rights, but find out after joining the EOO that they have far less civil rights there.

Peter2, I can tell that you are not a saboteur by trade.

I imagine turning the lights off in the building for a couple of minutes to provide cover of darkness is all that is needed.

In the men's room with the lead pipe by Colonel Mustard.

I downvoted you, not because I don't agree, it's that your suggestions won't work.

"Like adjusting the brakes so the pads don't grip the wheel"

He would notice right away - I press my brakes early on to stop the bike from rolling off whereever. You would feel the lever distance and pressure right away.

"then supergluing them in place"

You do realise that a form of superglue is used as a threadlocker? And a loose seat would be immediately obvious by twisting? Would be a good idea otherwise..

"cutting most of the spokes"

Going on what spoke setups I've seen, it would become really obvious by the wheels becoming bent.

"What was actually done just sounds like petty vandalism"

The basis of that would be ideal: Don't make it look like vandalism, and lean towards making it look like an accident. Because accidents happen you know...

Ironically it's our unsackable, senile, old boys who provide the sanity the UK's political system....

Totalitarian oligarchs don't give up their power easily

So why do you expect the governments of individual European states to voluntarily relinquish their power to appoint Commission members?

> nepotism and old boys' club back-scratching that makes the EU

You really think the UK/England/Scotland/Wales/NI is any better? It's pretty intrinsic to the nature of power that these things are going to happen.

The EPO is not an EU institution but a separate intergovernmetal institution. If it was part of the EU the EU laws would apply, employees would have access to a real court and the situation would not be such a mess.

Here is the PROTOCOL ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE EUROPEAN PATENT ORGANISATION

http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/epc/1973/e/ma5.html

Re: Can't we give him to the USPTO?

Tsk. You can say a lot about Trump, but 'power-mad?' Get real, that's Mrs. Clinton's schtick. Don is all about himself. I doubt that the prospect of presidential power over a lot of lesser people excites him that much. I mean, if you aren't concerned about others, why should you care about ruling over them to the point of madness?

It's the insecure folks who lust for power, so as to feel less insecure. That's Hillary!

The difference between genius and stupidy?

Genius has limits.

Bullet proof bicycle already patented.

He wouldn't be pedaling. The chauffeur would be doing the hard work.

Re: He's no Einstein...

Haha, you're so funny, what with your cleverly placed air-bunnies and your inflated ego.

What gives you the right to imply that no-one "works"at the EPO. I, along with my colleagues, work very hard. Harder than other people? Who can say? That's subjective. But to imply that we don't "work" is just plain ignorant, and makes me glad that I don't have to "work" with you...