Posts filed under ‘Unions’
Ed Schultz Says “Krystal Ball” is a “Democratic Strategist”
When I worked on Outfoxed and at the Newshounds for lo those five years, I watched Fox “News” claim that every Tom, Dick, Harry and Jane it slapped up on the screen was a “strategist.”
You wouldn’t believe how pitiful the credentials of some of those “strategists” were. I.e., they had no business whatsoever being sold to We the People as experts.
So when I happened upon The Ed Show tonight on MSNBC and I saw Ed talking to a woman named Krystal Ball — who he billed as a “Democratic strategist” — I had to know more.
Krystal Ball? Seriously? Didn’t that name alone make Ed’s bookers just a teeny weeny bit suspicious?
Guess not.
This is from KrystalBall‘s website:
About Krystal
Krystal Marie Ball is a 29-year-old former Congressional candidate and current Democratic Strategist; in addition to being a Certified Public Accountant, software engineer, small business owner and mother. Krystal was recently named by Forbes Magazine as number 21 on the magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in the Mid Term Elections” list.
So, Krystal Ball has been a lot of things in her 29 years and one of her proudest accomplishments is ingratiating herself into the 1% club with bazillionaire Steve Forbes (a 1%-er extraordinaire).
Hum.
Ed Schultz claims to be a man of the people but he touts a “Democratic strategist” with a dubious background who’s on Steve Forbes’ — Steve Forbes’! — favorites list?
Hey Ed: Read this to learn more about your gal pal Krystal.
Unions Die Another Death
Afscme Chief to Step Down After 30 Years
Gerald W. McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees for three decades, said on Thursday that he would step down next June when his two-year term expires.
Mr. McEntee, one of the nation’s most powerful union leaders, has also served as chairman of the A.F.L.-C.I.O.’s political committee for 15 years, playing a major role in revamping organized labor’s roles in presidential, Senate and House races.
Under Mr. McEntee, 76, the union grew to 1.4 million members, from 900,000, and became known for its political war chest. Mr. McEntee deployed his union’s and the A.F.L.-C.I.O.’s political funds not just to back Democratic candidates, but also to defeat efforts to privatize Social Security and change Medicare.
“It’s been a long time,” Mr. McEntee said in an interview. “I’m not out of gas; I’d like to see some other people take over.”
McEntee is stepping down after 30 years.
That means he stepped up in 1981.
Seems like a hundred years ago.
I know unions. My husband is a member of the National Association of Letter Carriers and has been since 1977.
Unfortunately, there are no “other people to take over.” Management — via the NLRB and the powers given to it by corporate-owned D.C. Democrats and Republicans — is in control. Unions have been emasculated. No wonder McEntee’s retiring and no wonder he’s “out of gas.”
So are unions.
For all intents and purposes, they’re dead.
Corporations rule.
To Mr. McEntee: Thanks for serving our country.
Mitt Romney is Such a Kidder!
Oh my God, this has got to be our quote of the day if not of the entire campaign season thus far:
Mitt Romney, November 3, 2011:
Mitt Romney, under fire from all sides on the issue of his consistency, said Thursday he has been as consistent as possible while still being human.
“I’ve been as consistent as human beings can be,” Romney said in a meeting with the editorial board of New Hampshire’s Seacoast Media Group.
Hahahahahaha!
Let’s see:
October 7: Mitt Romney says Occupy Wall Street is “dangerous:”
October 12: Mitt Romney says he “understands” the Occupy Wall Street movement:
January 14, 2008: If we could “get all of our citizens insured…if we can do that nationally…”
July 4, 2011: “One thing I’d never do would be impose a state’s plan on the entire nation.”
October 25, 2011: Mitt Romney Flip Flops on Supporting Unions:
And that’s just the last few months.
Gezus.
“A Parade of Human Debris”
Look at this great picture of the New York City Labor Chorus singing union songs this afternoon at the NYC OccupyWallStreet rally:
(Via.)
Oh, and on his radio show today Rush Limbaugh referred to the people in this picture as, “a parade of human debris.” Got that? Look at those good people. A parade of human debris.
One more thing: Check out this photo of “We Are The 1%” signs hanging in the window of the Chicago Board of Trade:
Image: USAanon/"T"/OccupyChicago
(Via.)
You Won’t See This on the “Liberal” Media
I’m willing to bet you didn’t hear about this yesterday (I didn’t):
Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Over 700 hundred [sic] Continental and United pilots, joined by additional pilots from other Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) carriers, demonstrate in front of Wall Street on September 27, 2011 in New York City. The pilots want to draw attention to the lack of progress on negotiations of the pilots’ joint collective bargaining agreement ahead of the one-year anniversary of the corporate merger close date of United and Continental airlines.
More photos here.
If 700 Teabaggers gathered anywhere to do anything the “liberal” media would be all over it.
NYPD: Arrest the Bankers!
How many bankers or Wall Street hedgefunders have been arrested since they crashed the economy?
Two or three if I’m correct and they’re all underlings; sacrificial lambs so-to-speak.
Yet today: 80 people arrested at ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protest
About 80 people have been arrested as demonstrators who were camped out near the New York Stock Exchange marched through lower Manhattan. The “Occupy Wall Street” protest is entering its second week. Demonstrators said Saturday that they are protesting bank bailouts, the mortgage crisis…
The thing that hits me in the gut about this is that policepeople who are being denegrated by the D.C. establishment, which is owned by the banking establishment, are dragging people off who are on their side for God’s sake.
I mean, Wall Street hates unions (i.e., as in the NYPD).
They want to take away union workers’ pensions and here the NYPD is, working on behalf of the people who want to destroy all they’ve worked for. But yo, thanks to the “liberal media,” they’re clueless.
Geezus!
Democrats Walk Into a Bitter Pill That Could Kill 100,00 Union Jobs
This is a smart, pithy ad. I was tempted to say that I’d change one thing — that it wasn’t congress per se that wants to destroy the Postal Serivce, but Republicans — yet dumbass Democrats helped create this mess so yeah, that “the congress” got us into this fix is a fact:
Demcorats suffered from Stockholm Syndrome during the Bush years, and, frankly, they still are.
Florida Pizza Drivers Form a Union
Finally, some good news for a change:
He said he got on the Internet and found St. Louis labor attorney Mark Potashnick, who worked on unsuccessful organizing efforts by pizza workers in Ohio, Michigan and St. Louis. He coached Pohle on submitting a petition to the NLRB.
Eleven Domino’s employees hoping to make a little more dough and get a bigger slice of the profits have formed the nation’s first union of pizza delivery drivers.
The American Union of Pizza Delivery Drivers won recognition from the National Labor Relations Board over the summer as the bargaining agent for drivers at a Pensacola franchise.
The union organizing drive was started by Jim Pohle, a 37-year-old Domino’s driver who said he delivers pizzas because he likes to sleep late, smoke on the job and listen to the radio.
“When they declared us tipped employees and refused to pay us the Florida minimum wage of $6.40, I was kind of angry. I came home that night and I told my buddy, I said. ‘We are forming a union,”’ he said.
[...]
Rodney Johnson, a regional director for NLRB, said the union appears to be the first of its kind.
In the meantime, the franchise owners have raised the pay of some drivers at their six nonunion stores, Pohle said.
What a wonderful, power-to-the-people story.
Why Would the AFL-CIO/Latino Tweet in English?
Why in the world would the AFL-CIO/Latino send out tweets in English?
Check out their Twitter account here.
Doing stupid stuff like this sure isn’t helping the union movement.
One Last Point Regarding Labor Day
I just saw this and I couldn’t resist putting it up, even though Labor Day 2011 is behind us, because it’s so damn true:
About the Proposed AT&T / T-Mobile Merger
I’m still in the process of educating myself about the ramifications of the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. I tend to be strongly against consolidation because I think competition is a good thing, but on the other hand, I am also very pro-union and the Communications Workers of America is enthusiastically in favor of the deal.
Anyway, if any of you are in the same position, fyi, here’s a statement from the CWA as to why they want the merger to go through.
Oh, and here’s the argument against it from the Department of Justice.
Today is the 30th Anniversary of the Day the War on the Middle Class Began
Remember Ronald Reagan? Remember PATCO. I do. What Reagan did on August 5, 1981 signaled the beginning of the end of the American middle class:
The Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization or PATCO was a United States trade union that operated from 1968 until its decertification in 1981 following a strike that was broken by the Reagan administration. The 1981 strike and defeat of PATCO has been called “one of the most important events in late twentieth century U.S. labor history.”
Yeah, but not in a good way.
On August 3, 1981, the union declareda strike, seeking better working conditions, better pay and a 32-hour workweek. In addition, PATCO no longer wanted to be included within the civil serviceclauses that had haunted it for decades. In doing so, the union violated a law — 5 U.S.C. (Supp. III 1956) 118p. — that banned strikes by government unions. Ronald Reagan declared the PATCO strike a “peril to national safety” and ordered them back to work under the terms of the Taft-Hartley Actof 1947. Only 1,300 of the nearly 13,000 controllers returned to work. Subsequently, Reagan demanded those remaining on strike return to work within 48 hours, otherwise their jobs would be forfeited. At the same time Transportation Secretary Drew Lewisorganized for replacements and started contingency plans. By prioritizing and cutting flights severely, and even adopting methods of air traffic management PATCO had previously lobbied for, the government was initially able to have 50% of flights available.
On August 5, following the PATCO workers’ refusal to return to work, Reagan fired the 11,345 striking air traffic controllers who had ignored the order, and banned them from federal service for life. (This ban was later rescinded by President Bill Clinton in 1993.) In the wake of the strike and mass firings the FAA was faced with the task of hiring and training enough controllers to replace those that had been fired, a hard problem to fix as at the time it took three years in normal conditions to train a new controller.They were replaced initially with nonparticipating controllers, supervisors, staff personnel, some nonrated personnel, and in some cases by controllers transferred temporarily from other facilities. Some military controllers were also used until replacements could be trained. The FAA had initially claimed that staffing levels would be restored within two years; however, it would take closer to ten years before the overall staffing levels returned to normal
And with that, unions were slowly crushed and wage and income protection they fought for on behalf of workers disappeared. And here we are.
Hate Unions?
If you hate unions, I’m sure you never, ever take advantage of any of these 36 things they won for you:
(Via.)
What? You’re looking forward to the weekend? Shame on you because without the unions you wouldn’t have one.
If Your Social Security Check Doesn’t Arrive…
Here’s an ad produced by a coalition of labor unions — AFSCME, SEIU, the NEA and Americans United For Change — that hits Republicans hard (and Eric Cantor specifically) for their failure to come to an agreement on the debt ceiling.
It’s good. And I’m glad to see that Democrats/Progressives are are hitting the air waves. Maybe this ad will give some perspective to Karl Rove’s PAC of lies.
(Via.)
Hyatt Turns Heat Lamps on Workers Protesting in 100º Heat
Man, you gotta love the job creators:
Photo: CBS
Union workers say someone turned on the heat lamps in blazing hot broad daylight Thursday, as they walked a picket line in front of the Park Hyatt Hotel [in Chicago].
As WBBM Newsradio 780’s Mike Krauser reports, workers at Hyatt Hotels in nine cities are walking picket lines Thursday, trying to pressure the hotel into coming to an agreement on a new contract.
We workers? We’re scum to a huge corporation like Hyatt.
Bravo to the AFL-CIO
I am so happy to see the the AFL-CIO, via Richard Trumka, lay down the gauntlet here. It’s way past time for Democratic politicians to stop taking support from unions for granted:
The nation’s largest labor federation is weighing whether to pull political support from congressional Democrats who aren’t doing enough to back labor unions.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka is expected to issue the warning in a speech Friday at the National Press Club.
In prepared remarks, Trumka said the role of unions is not to build the power of any political party, but to improve the lives of working families. He promised that unions would spend the summer holding leaders in Congress and the states accountable
“It doesn’t matter if candidates and parties are controlling the wrecking ball or simply standing aside,” Trumka said. “The outcome is the same either way. If leaders aren’t blocking the wrecking ball and advancing working families’ interests, working people will not support them.”
How Does $2.5 Million an Hour Sound?
My last post was about unhappy Walmart workers being thwarted in their attempt to form a union.
The average salary for an sales “associate,” a cashier or a stocker at Walmart is between $7,000 and $20,000 per year. Hold that thought while you read this:
If your job paid $50,000 a year and you stayed at it for 47 years, your tally for a lifetime of work would be $2.4 million. Not bad — but hedge fund hustler John Paulson pulled down that much last year.
John Paulson
Most of us would consider an annual income of $2.4 million to be a windfall, but it didn’t take Paulson a full 12 months of work to pocket his windfall — or one month, a week, or even a day. That’s how much he made an hour. Yes, Paulson could’ve worked one single hour in 2010 and hauled off a paycheck equal to what a typical household gets for a lifetime of work.
Now guess who gets the lower tax rate — the $50,000-a-year family or the $2.4 million-an-hour Wall Street man? Right. Thanks to a loophole big enough to drive an armored truck through, billionaire hedge fund dealers like Paulson escape the usual 35 percent tax rate, instead paying (at most) 15 percent.
That’s more than wrong — it’s immoral. In Washington, Wall Street-backed Congress critters are working fervently to kill Medicare and defund everything from education to environmental protection — all on the grounds that the only way to cope with the growing federal deficit is to bulldoze programs that Americans count on. But look behind that lush hedge over there, and what’ll you find? The 25 biggest hedge fund dealers who took $22 billion in pay last year. If just these 25 guys were taxed at the 35-percent rate, Congress would have an additional $4 billion this year to use for filling the deficit hole, rather than gleefully throwing sick seniors into it.
Republicans are doing everything they can to make life even better for people like Paulson and worse for us working stiffs, i.e., such as making it impossible for us to unionize to try, TRY to improve our lot in life. They think we’re asking for too much and we’re just too darn uppity.
Remember FDNY? Firefighters Are Pissed (As They Should Be)
Quickie:
Remember the firefighters — FDNY — who walked into the ashes of the twin towers on 9/11? Remember how everyone thought of them as heros?
Ten years on, they’re fighting mad because the politicians who kissed their ass back then are trying to destroy them now:
The International Association of Fire Fighters has grown into a political powerhouse in the Nation’s Capitol and in state houses, county and city halls across the country.
Over the past decade, the symbolism of our profession and the image of our fire fighters and paramedics decked out in this union’s trademark gold and black have become one of the most sought after endorsements in politics at every level. We have grown what was a modest federal Political Action Committee (PAC) into one of the top federal PACs in the nation.
Last election cycle, FIREPAC was in the top 1.1 percent of the more than 7,100 federally registered PACs in terms of dollars raised and was the 10th largest PAC in candidate contributions. It was also one of the most bi-partisan PACs.
In total, we spent close to $15 million in the last election cycle on behalf of federal candidates and both political parties, helping to elect those who support us and defeat those who oppose us.
But the attacks launched at our members since the November 2010 elections have changed the landscape.
Extreme right-wing conservative and so-called Tea Party politicians are coming after fire fighters, paramedics and all public workers with a vengeance across the United States. They are attempting to take away basic American rights like collective bargaining and your right to negotiate for a good quality of life for your families. They are working to eliminate your pensions and retirement security. They want to silence your voice by gagging you with legislation they call Paycheck Protection. They are taking away the long-held right of dues deductions from paychecks to try to weaken the finances of our union. They want to hurt all unions and drive down wages and benefits with Right-to-Work laws.
Not only are extremist Republicans trying to destroy us — too few Democrats are standing up and fighting for us.
Over the past two years, politicians from both parties have failed to address our issues in Washington, DC. Now, anti-labor members of Congress and their allies are championing measures that would undermine pension security, tax employer-sponsored health benefits, force newly hired fire fighters into Social Security and attack federal fire fighters. And with no pro-fire fighter legislation likely to be advanced in the 112th Congress – it’s time to take a stand.
Bravo. I am so on their side.
BREAKING: Not All Republicans Have Ice in Their Veins
I’m guessing you heard about the mural depicting Maine’s labor history that Maine’s Republican Governor, Paul LePage removed from the state’s Department of Labor headquarters last month.
Fast forward to today, and we learn that some of his fellow Republicans are raising money to get it back and to put it back up:
Republicans in northern Maine have raised $2,300 in online contributions so the state can buy a disputed labor mural from the federal government.
The Aroostook County Republican Committee this month launched a website to raise $60,000 so the state can take ownership of the art work.
The U.S. Department of Labor says the state should return federal money used to create the mural because Gov. Paul LePage violated terms of the federal grant used to pay for it when he had it removed from the state Labor Department headquarters.
Yeah, I know, this is probably politically motivated but still, it isn’t often that Republicans break rank with their coldhearted leaders.
Pete Seeger on Unions and Being an American
Pete Seeger, in a phone interview with the Associated Press in early March, commenting on Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s anti-union politics and the pro-union demonstrations that took place there:
“Maybe the Republican governor, he’s done us a favor by bringing the problem to national attention.
“It shows the whole country how much we need unions. We may end up thanking him.”
[...]
“The average American, I think, looks upon unions as a standard way of doing business. Just like you pay rent, you pay taxes, you also get paid a decent wage because of unions. It’s not because of the generosity of the employer.”
[...]
“It shows me that Americans are still Americans. You don’t become an American by saluting at the right time or singing the national anthem at the right time.
“You become an American by using the rights which the Constitution gave us.”
Bravo. Pete Seeger with a point of view that is never heard in the corporate media.
He’s a national treasure now and he has been for 70 years.
2,000 Protestors March on Koch Industries’ D.C. Office
Remember that Tea Party “rally” in D.C. last Thursday? You know, the one where so few people (200 max is what I heard) showed up Fox restored to blaming the lack of attendance on the weather? Yeah. That one. If you watch the cable “news” channels you heard about it.
Fast forward to today. Let me know if you hear about 2,000 — 2,000! — people marching on Koch Industries’ D.C. offices. I bet ten bucks the “liberal media” won’t mention it (nor will Fox). They’re freezing us out.
(Video via.)
Bravo to each and every marcher. Seems to me marching and protesting is the only “voice” we have left:
The phrase consent of the governed has been turned into a cruel joke. There is no way to vote against the interests of Goldman Sachs. Civil Disobedience is the only tool we have left.
We will not halt the laying off of teachers and other public employees, the slashing of unemployment benefits, the closing of public libraries, the reduction of student loans, the foreclosures, the gutting of public education and early childhood programs or the dismantling of basic social services such as heating assistance for the elderly until we start to carry out sustained acts of civil disobedience against the financial institutions responsible for our debacle. The banks and Wall Street, which have erected the corporate state to serve their interests at our expense, caused the financial crisis. The bankers and their lobbyists crafted tax havens that account for up to $1 trillion in tax revenue lost every decade. They rewrote tax laws so the nation’s most profitable corporations, including Bank of America, could avoid paying any federal taxes. They engaged in massive fraud and deception that wiped out an estimated $40 trillion in global wealth. The banks are the ones that should be made to pay for the financial collapse. Not us. And for this reason at 11 a.m. April 15 I will join protesters in Union Square in New York City in front of the Bank of America.
“Special Interests”
Tweet of the day from drgrist:
That, and referring to Workmen’s Compensation and Social Security — which workers pay for via deductions from their paychecks — as “entitlements.”
Tea Party Rally Thursday — Pay Attention to Your TV
Calling all news and media junkies:
The political movement that drove a busload of freshman lawmakers into office last fall will be revving up small-government feelings again this Thursday.
The Tea Party Patriots want to encourage Congress to keep pressing the pedal down on budget cuts with a noon rally on Capitol Hill.
“Members of Congress have abandoned their service to the people by passing continuing resolutions instead of cutting the $100 billion budget,” said Tea Party Patriot representatives Mark Meckler and Jenny Beth Martin.
Tea Party notables Michelle Backman and Mike Pence will be on hand to ratchet up support. The gathering will take place at the Robert A. Taft Memorial, northwest of the Capitol building.
Let’s pay attention to the “news” on the “liberal media” Thursday and watch for coverage of this event, bearing in mind that when 80,000 to 100,000 people gathered in Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday, March 5 there was literally no coverage on either MSNBC, CNN or Fox. No, I didn’t watch all day but I flipped around throughout the afternoon and didn’t see a thing.
If the “liberal media” lands on Thursday’s rally and gives it many minutes or even hours of coverage, especially if there are only a few hundred people there, be prepared to be pissed.
American Corporatocracy 2011
This headline just about sums it up as to life in the United States, circa 2011: After Paying Zero Income Taxes, GE Plans To Ask Its Union Workers To Make Wage And Benefits Concessions.
Last week, the New York Times reported that, despite making $14.2 billion in profits, General Electric, the largest corporation in the United States, paid zero U.S. taxes in 2010 and actually received tax credits of $3.2 billion dollars. The article noted that GE’s tax avoidance team is comprised of “former officials not just from the Treasury, but also from the I.R.S. and virtually all the tax-writing committees in Congress.”
After not paying any taxes and making huge profits, ThinkProgress has learned that General Electric is expected to ask its nearly 15,000 unionized employees in the United States to make major concessions.
This year, 14 unions representing more than 15,000 workers will negotiate a new master contract with General Electric. Among the major concessions GE has signaled that it will ask of union workers is the elimination of a defined contribution benefit pension for new employees, a move the company has already implemented for its non-union salaried employees. Likewise, GE is signaling to the union that it will ask for the elimination of current health insurance plans in favor of lower quality health saving accounts, a move the company has already implemented for non-union salaried employees as well.
In addition, General Electric may ask some workers for a wage freeze…
The reason the righties are vilifying unions is in part so their buddies in high places can do what GE wants to do here and the public (hopefully) won’t care because damn those union workers. They’re overpaid spoiled brats. Thing is, if this story comes to the fore in the “liberal media,” they’ll leave out a critical fact – the part about GE paying zero taxes and getting a $3.2 billion dollar credit (which means our tax dollars made up the difference).
It’ll be all about the supposedly coddled union workers.
The Fake David Koch — Ian Murphy — Is Running for Congress
Yep, Ian Murphy, the proprietor of the BuffaloBeast.com and the guy who pranked Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker a few weeks ago in a phone call during which he pretended to be the anti-worker zillionaire, David Koch, is running for a seat in the House of Representatives.
He’s running as a Green Party candidate in New York’s 26th Congressional District. Here’s his campaign website: MurphyCanHasCongress.com.
He’s an introductory video Murphy released on Wednesday. Lighthearted yes, but hey, I agree with everything he says:
I’m angry about where this country’s going. And I’m angry about where the Republicans and the Democrats are taking it.
I’m angry that the only people with a voice in this country are those who can afford it.
And I’m angry that the billionaires create their wealth not through a hard day’s work, but by stealing from those who do.
I’m angry that not one Wall Street crook has gone to jail for wrecking the economy.
I’m angry that we’re still wasting vast treasure and lives on foolish military occupations.
I’m angry because my campaign manager thought I should wear this goofy sweater.
Here’s the audio of that now-famous call to Walker, Wisconsin’s little punk of a governor:
Good luck Ian. You’ve got guts.
(Thanks Scott!)
When a Tree Falls in the Forest…
Hey, did you hear about the big pro-union demonstration in Los Angeles yesterday? Me neither.
Christina House / L.A. Times / March 26, 2011
Alarmed by recent union losses in a Wisconsin labor battle, thousands of organized workers marched through downtown Los Angeles on Saturday, vowing to fight a similar fate here in cash-strapped California.
Police estimated between 5,000 and 8,000 people attended the protest, which ended in a packed rally at Pershing Square. The event comes in response to the Wisconsin Legislature’s approval of a bill this month that curtails the collective bargaining rights of many unions and follows a weeks-long battle.
Marchers cheered speakers such as Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa; Maria Elena Durazo, secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor; and Mahlon Mitchell, president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin.
Now, we all know if 5,000 to 8,000 Tea Partiers rallied, that story would be told and retold all weekend long by the ah, liberal media.
(H/t Cathy.)
The F-Word?
When is it OK to use the F-word?
Now?
Now?
Now?
Geez Louise! All of the above!
Happy Friday (thank a union).
(Thanks NA.)
Paul LePage — Follow the Crazy
Follow the goings on of Maine’s crazy Republican Governor, Paul LePage (yikes, is he French?!) here, at the best website I’ve found for that, Maine Political Pulse.
