in reply to (OT) my first fired experience
I certainly would like for you to name the company, so that everyone else in the Perl community will know not to go to work for them. Word gets around fast on the Internet. Spread the word on places like Facebook, too.
No, I am actually quite serious. I've been in this business for a very long time and sometimes you really do need to fight fire with fire. You can be “disarmingly neutral” when you express the opinion that such-and-so company is not advisable to work for.
Also: bear in mind that, if you are good with Perl as you obviously are, there is always great demand for what you do. The world may be stuffed full of PHP hacks, but it is not stuffed with skilled Perl folks. “Older, but wiser now,” move on.