More and better hoops

I just heard from my prospective employer. They can't get verification from Basssix or Textworks as to my employment. I begin to question the efficiency of bureaucracy. This is the third or fourth time I've told somebody they are "sole proprietorships." Hello!? There are no W-2s, people. It's all done on a schedule C with a form 1040. It's transparent. Hasn't anybody had a business before? Of course not. That's why they're working for somebody else. HireRight, the company my prospective employer pays to snoop and snitch on possible hires can't seem to deal with this.

But wait, there's more. They changed the level of experience required for the position to 10 years. But, *gasp* I don't have a degree, so I must have 16 years of experience. Odd. I don't feel any dumber. I'm not certain what I was supposed to have picked up in those six extra years that somebody was able to soak up in four years while spending Daddy's money at college, but I'll play the silly game. Now my resume is coming back. Again. And I'll have to set the Wayback Machine to Prehistoric and come up with months and years for employment so long ago that I begin to despair about coming up with the information.

Tell me again why I want to work for these people. I need to hear it. Ahh, yes. Filthy lucre. Engorging myself at the public trough. I love government contracts. If this were private sector work, it would be so much simpler. Can you write? Can you edit? How little can we pay you to do so happily? Welcome aboard. Sheesh.