There will be people who are bothered or even offended by the inclusion of the word “dumbass” in the title of this post. Those who are not aficionados of the Cluttered Desk in particular may be surprised by its use in such a prominent fashion. Those who are familiar with this blog, however, may rest…
The Student Athlete Dilemma is Older Than We Thought
The football stadium at my alma mater Fort Lewis College has been, since its construction in 1958, known as the Ray Dennison Memorial Field. I had no idea why it was named that way; the reality is I never even wondered about it until several days ago. I happened to come across, via Facebook, an…
Will Aging Bring Workers' Comp To Its (Artificial) Knees?
There was some irony that the webinar I attended yesterday occurred on the same day I scheduled what will be the first of two total knee replacement surgeries I will have this year. Aging can be a funny thing. If you asked me how old I feel in my mind, I would tell you I…
Bob's Top Ten Predictions for 2021
From time to time over the years, I have pulled out my prognosticative pen and scribed what I believed were 10 events most likely to occur in the year laid out before us. History has not been kind to these efforts. The reality is, I suck at prognostication. I have been wrong far more than…
Workers' Comp, Now You're Cooking with Induction
We recently went through a complete kitchen remodel. It was a comprehensive project that stripped the kitchen to the studs in places and included tearing out and replacing 600 square feet of tile: both in the kitchen and adjacent areas. It was a delightful affair that left my wife and I, along with our two…
The Elections Are Over – What's Next for Workers' Comp?
This week, with Congress certifying Joe Biden as the 46th President of the United States and the special election in Georgia shifting power in the Senate, the long and harried election of 2020 has come to a close. As the dust settles, we view the shifting power base in Washington and the new initiatives and…
Overthinking COVID and Workers' Comp
Last week, in his blog The WorkComp Writer, Thomas Robinson addressed yet another aspect of the ongoing COVID episode as it relates to workers’ compensation. In his post “Do Employers Face Additional Liability for COVID-19 Vaccination Side Effects?,” Robinson discusses a question that was put before him by a member of the legal community. The questioner…