Public+Employees+Unions

Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Jobs - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Even the NYT Noticing that Unions Losing Friends and Allies

July 6, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

You know its bad for unions when even the New York Times publishes a story reporting that Big Labor is losing friends and allies in formerly well controlled political spheres. But such is the times in which we live where fiscal disaster is highlighting the illicitness that is unions in general, but public employees unions in particular. (You know our mantra here: Unions are antithetical to good government)

For the Times Steven Greenhouse writes that Big Labor is finding new critics among “old allies in elected office.”

Greenhouse reports the words of former union member turned New Jersey State Senator Stephen M. Sweeney who has turned against his former compatriots in Big Labor and its unnecessarily high compensation packages. “At some point, you reach the limit of your ability to pay,” he told the Times.

One State Senator in Jersey isn’t the only apostate against unions.
Continue reading “

Even the NYT Noticing that Unions Losing Friends and Allies”

Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Government - Illinois - Illinois State Government - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Illinois Has Stopped Paying Its Bills

July 5, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

Illinois is broke. So broke it can’t pay its bills. Yet on it goes stiffing its creditors and it’s making me wonder why I bother to pay my bills at all. If the state can get away with thumbing its nose at its bill collectors, why can’t I? Oh, yeah. I’m not a Democrat. Unlike them, I’m expected to pay my bills. I forgot for a moment there. Oh, and I’m not a union member, either.

According to the Times story Illinois owes its schools, rehab centers, and childcare obligations $5.01 billion. And there’s no payment in sight.

Then there is the state employees pension plan that is underfunded by 50 percent.

Also, as the state legislature left the Capitol last month for its summer break there was no budget settled upon.
Continue reading “

Illinois Has Stopped Paying Its Bills”

Budget - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Government - House of Representatives - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Democrats Continue to Use Tax $ to Pay Union Members to do Union Business

July 2, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Once again Democrats decided that it was a good idea to pay workers of federal employee unions 100% of their salary to do union business during work hours instead of doing the job they were hired for. That’s right, instead of paying these federal employees to do the job we the people hired them to do, Democrats are paying these workers to do union business during the workday. It’s on YOUR dime, folks.

The bill was HR 3251, The Federal Employee Accountability Act of 2009, and it would have stopped this practice of paying off union thugs to do nothing on our dime. Gingrey claimed that it would have saved the federal government $1.2 billion in wasted wages that are now given as a gift to union members. This bill was introduced by the Congressional Republicans to get rid of the union sop, but Democrats with their majority pushed this illicit union payoff through to a win for continued graft on a federal level.

The GOP leadership featured this bill on its YouCut.com website. A video featuring Georgia Congressman Phil Gingrey explained what it was all about.
Continue reading “

Democrats Continue to Use Tax $ to Pay Union Members to do Union Business”

Business - Cook County - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Education - Government - Illinois - Labor Law - Liberals - Regulation - Warner Todd Huston

Worst Teachers Rewarded by Unions, New Teachers Abandoned

June 29, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Last week the Chicago Tribune published an editorial detailing the biggest reason why unions as they have operated in the U.S. for decades are an illegitimate venture. The Trib published a plea to new Chicago teachers union chief Karen Lewis not to protect the bad teachers under her charge and to help the younger teachers that haven’t yet proved to be bad for kids by allowing the bad ones to be laid off without complaint.

The Trib’s editorial called the practice of keeping bad teachers “dancing lemons,” revealing the sad practice of shuffling bad teachers around the system instead of firing merely because they may have tenure on the job. While new teachers are automatically laid off due to budget cuts, teachers that have a disciplinary problem or a troubled history are kept because they’ve been on the job longer. This is wrong and reflects badly on the union and teachers alike, not to mention that it leads to a bad education for our kids.
Continue reading “

Worst Teachers Rewarded by Unions, New Teachers Abandoned”

Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Jobs - Liberals - Pensions - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Our ‘Unions are Bad for America’ Theme is Resonating

June 14, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

For those of you that have come to the blog often, there is a constant theme: unions are antithetical to good government. We’ve been saying this here for years, of course, but over this campaign season I think that meme is beginning to gain real traction because stories echoing this sentiment are everywhere these days.

Jay Ambrose has another such piece at Real Clear Politics this weekend.

Ambrose says that public employee unions are bankrupting both the state treasuries and the federal government so that their “members can live much better on average than those of us in the private sector.”

Spot on.
Continue reading “

Our ‘Unions are Bad for America’ Theme is Resonating”

Budget - Economy/Finances - GOP - Government - House of Representatives - Illinois - Illinois State Government - Pensions - Public Employees Unions - Republicans - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

ILL. GOP Demotes Two That Voted for Giant Pensions Loan

June 12, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Two of the three Republicans that broke with party leadership and voted in favor of the Democrats idea to take out a massive loan to shore up the union pensions of state employees have been demoted from their party positions.

Danville area Representative Bill Black had his role as deputy minority leader taken from him by GOP leader Tom Cross over the “yes” vote on the pension bailout loan. Similarly, Representative Bob Biggins of Chicago-area Elmhurt was removed as minority spokesman for the House appropriations committee.

Both Republican representatives thumbed their nose at the party establishment and voted for the bailout supported by Democrats. curiously enough, before their Democrat supporting votes both had also announced that they are retiring from state government this year.

What this shows is that neither of these two were ever solid Republicans that always voted their conscience. Only when they’d decided to hang up their career did they all of a sudden start voting against Republican interests. Only now that they don’t have to stand for election does their true, liberal selves come out.

It would not be surprising if Black and Biggins start voting for all sort of left-wing garbage as their last days in office draws neigh.

Sad to see long Republican careers end in such hypocrisy, isn’t it?
Continue reading “

ILL. GOP Demotes Two That Voted for Giant Pensions Loan”

Budget - Capitalism - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - Free Trade - Government - Jobs - Labor Law - Liberals - New Jersey - Public Employees Unions - State Government - Taxes - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Teachers Union Extorts Parents for Campaign Cash

June 10, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

The indispensable Mark Hemingway of the Washington Examiner recently caught another union outrage. This time it’s the teachers union in New Jersey trying to extort cash from parents directly, as opposed to merely extorting cash from parents through their taxes.

Hemingway alerts us to a New Jersey parent that was aghast that the NJ teachers union would be so blatant as to send a letter home with her child suggesting a novel new way to raise funds for teachers.

As both she and the letter she handed me stated, my daughter was to accomplish chores around the house with the goal of being paid by me for those chores the sum of $20. She would then have to hand the full $20 over to the school to make up for the shortfall in their overall budget which, ultimately, disallowed the kids to go on yet another class trip.

This parent was so incensed at the “mandatory” aspect of the fund raising letter that she called the school to complain. She was assured that despite all the rhetoric about it being mandatory, it was just a “suggestion.” The parent was, of course, skeptical of the later claim.
Continue reading “

Teachers Union Extorts Parents for Campaign Cash”

Children - Democrats/Leftists - Education - Government - Liberals - Movies - Public Employees Unions - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

A Review of Film ‘The Lottery’: ‘Heartbreaking,’ How Unions are Destroying Education

June 10, 2010 by

-By SkyBluez

(Ed’s note: Sky_Bluez is one of my favorite Twitter pals and she wrote a great review of The Lottery, the film we discussed on Tuesday. It was originally posted on her blog The Song Remains the Same.)

Last night I saw The Lottery a documentary about the problems with traditional public schools in disadvantaged areas. The film follows four families who enter the lottery to get a chance at having their child leave their low performing public schools in Harlem and the Bronx and attend a much better performing charter school. The documentary shines a light on how the local Democrat political establishment and teachers unions throw road blocks at every turn and make it extremely difficult for more of these well performing schools to be available for parents who want them.

The film is very well done. You can’t help but feel invested in these children as Ameenah translates for her deaf mother, or Christian gets frustrated working on his addition with his father, or Greg Jr. Laments not wanting to go to “house #2” to visit his dad in prison. All three of these children are raised by a single parent and face great hardship . Then there is Eric Jr. who has better circumstances. Eric has two involved parents. His father is a Union bus driver and mother is an aspiring teacher. This family is torn because they are union supporters, but still want the best for their children, which is not public school.
Continue reading “

A Review of Film ‘The Lottery’: ‘Heartbreaking,’ How Unions are Destroying Education”

Anti-Americanism - Business - Children - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Education - Freedom - Government - Labor Law - Liberals - Marines - Massachusetts - Military - Public Employees Unions - Regulation - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Union Bullies U.S. Marine

June 9, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

In the upside down world of unions, if you aren’t on their side you are an enemy to the country… even if you are U.S. Marine of 20 years service and have been a highly recognized teacher in a ROTC program for 14 years. Because he refused to become a union member and has accrued $500 in unpaid dues the union thugs at North High School in Worcester, Massachusetts had retired Major Stephen L. Godin fired from his ROTC teaching position.

“It just seems crazy that they’re gonna fire me over $500,” said Maj. Stephen L. Godin, senior naval science instructor at the Naval Junior ROTC Unit of North High School. “Everyone’s talking about finding good teachers – I haven’t missed a day in 14 years.”

It is crazy, especially considering the reason why Major Godin refused to join the union. He isn’t just a hide-bound, anti-unionist — not that these aren’t good reasons themselves. He has a dang good reason for not wanting to join the union.
Continue reading “

Union Bullies U.S. Marine”

9/11 - Anti-Americanism - Budget - Communism - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - GOP - Government - House of Representatives - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Republicans - Security/Safety - Socialism - Unions - Warner Todd Huston - Western Civilization

Harry Reid’s Push To Nationalize ALL Cop/Firemen Unions

June 2, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

Senate Democrat Majority Leader Harry Reid is quietly trying to nationalize rules governing every police, fire and first responder union in the nation. Through the benignly named Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act (H.R.413) Reid wants all first responders represented by collective bargaining rules emanating from Washington D.C. Naturally he thinks that it is necessary as a matter of national security.

Reid is pushing this monstrosity as a major sop to his union supporters who will greatly benefit from nationalized rules for police and fire unions. This plan would replace with federal rules all state laws on collective bargaining between state and local governments and their first responder unions and would greatly empower unions to dictate pay scales and benefits on a national level.

Imagine the loss of control that local governments will face when first responder unions no longer have to deal with local rules and laws but can force a federal one-size-fits-all style rule on all local governments. Local governments will no longer be able to determine pay scales and benefits and will lose control of their own ability to budget. Reid’s plan will also completely remove the ability of voters to have any say in local matters as a top down control from Washington will rule the day where it concerns local police, fire and other first responders.
Continue reading “

Harry Reid’s Push To Nationalize ALL Cop/Firemen Unions”

AFL-CIO - Campaign Finance - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - Government - IRS - Liberals - President - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

IRS Asked to Review Unions’ Political Donations

May 29, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

The Washington Times is reporting that the Landmark Legal Foundation is requesting that the Internal Revenue Service review all the millions being spent by Big Labor on Democrat political campaigns during the 2010 midterm elections.

As we discussed earlier this week, Big Labor is spending at least $100 million on the upcoming elections — actually even more because we have no numbers reported by the AFL-CIO. Landmark is worried that this giant blanket of money could possibly raise questions of legality.
Continue reading “

IRS Asked to Review Unions’ Political Donations”

Business - Chris Christie - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Jobs - New Jersey - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

New Jersey Teachers Threw Away Decades of Goodwill

May 28, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

The New Jersey Star-Ledger has a wonderful little editorial excoriating New Jersey’s teachers for having destroyed their own reputation with the public because of their petulant behavior towards Governor Chris Christie’s attempts to balance New Jersey’s over spent budget.

Take a gander at this…

Once the patient darlings who nurtured our kids, teachers now look like insensitive, out-of-touch, can’t-think-for-themselves union robots who, when forced to face economic realities, clung to an insulting sense of entitlement, heartlessly sacrificed the jobs of colleagues, called the governor naughty names and used students as political pawns.

Ouch!
Continue reading “

New Jersey Teachers Threw Away Decades of Goodwill”

Anti-Americanism - Budget - Government - Judges - Law - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Society/Culture - Teachers Unions - The Law - Unions - Warner Todd Huston - Western Civilization

The End of Our Legal System: Judges Joining Unions?

May 26, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Unions are meant for one thing and one thing only: to “get” for its members. They have one purpose and that is to take as much from an employer as they can take, to get as much money and benefits as they can get away with. Unions are not interested in assuring quality workmanship, they are not interested in offering quality to customers, and they most certainly aren’t interested in efficiency and modernization. Unions have but one purpose, to extort as many goodies as possible from an employer regardless of what it does to a business or a profession. Unfortunately, in the State of New York, judges are looking to “get” from the Empire State’s taxpayers regardless of what it might do to our legal system.

The New York Post reports that New York judges are toying with the idea of throwing in with the New York teachers union, New York State United Teachers, so that they can engage in collective bargaining.

One activist judge in particular is behind this effort according to the Post. Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Arthur Schack is a former teacher, member of the United Federation of Teachers has been agitating for a pay raise for quite some time.
Continue reading “

The End of Our Legal System: Judges Joining Unions?”

Business - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Jobs - Liberals - North Carolina - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

As We Suffer, Gov’t Salaries/Jobs/Union Pyoffs Grow

May 24, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

The City of Charlotte, North Carolina is still suffering an unemployment rate hovering around 12 percent. Jobs are hard to come by if you are a resident of the region, unless, of course, you work for the city government. Despite the hard times fatcats in government are still partying like it’s 1999! In fact, city salaries are likely to grow finds the Charlotte Observer.

For a whole year Charlotte City workers suffered under a pay hike freeze, but now the hard times are over as the City has announced that not only will the luxurious raises return, but more and more workers will be added to the rolls.

Let the celebration continue.
Continue reading “

As We Suffer, Gov’t Salaries/Jobs/Union Pyoffs Grow”

Children - Democrats/Leftists - Education - Government - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Rights - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Our Anti-Religious, Anti-American, Arrogant Schools

May 21, 2010 by 2 Comments

-By Warner Todd Huston

Two stories from this week shows how out of control our fetid schools have become. In New York a young boy is suspended because he dared to carry his Catholic rosary beads in school and in Virginia a principal refused to allow a mother to take her own child out of school to go to a doctor’s appointment scheduled months ago. Both reveal an arrogance of school administrators that is sure to outrage any liberty loving American.

In the first case in New York’s Rockland County, young Jason Laguna, a former Altar Boy and proud Catholic, faces suspension merely because he dared to carry his rosary beads in class. School thugocrats claimed that the rosary beads marked young Mr. Laguna as a “gang member” and pronounced that he should be punished for such a violation.

In the second case in Chesapeake, Virginia, a school principal told a mother that she would not be “allowed” to take her own daughter out of class to take the girl to a doctor appointment that had been scheduled for months. How did this arrogant cuss of a principal imagine he had the right to deny a parent the ability to control her own child’s appointments? Why he sent a letter home saying so, that’s why.

It is amazing that we are living in an America where religious children in New York can be persecuted for their religious practices or a country where a Virginia mother is barred from taking her own child out of class for a doctor appointment. But this is the arrogance of our school administrators in stark relief. This is the Orwellian world in which we live, a world where mere school employees imagine that they have the despotic powers to summarily control the lives of the children under their care and the power to deny parental rights at any given time.

These stories prove that our mis-educational system is completely out of control and has crossed the line from a system serving the citizens to one imagining itself to be wholly unaccountable to them.
Continue reading “

Our Anti-Religious, Anti-American, Arrogant Schools”

Barack Obama - Business - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Education - Government - Jobs - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - Republicans - SEIU - Taxes - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Obama’s $23 Billion Teachers Unions Bailout

May 17, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

As the rest of us in America lose jobs by the millions, Obama wants to spend another $23 billion more of your taxes on public employees in a teacher bailout plan proposed by Senator Tom Harkin (D, Iowa).

Harkin wants this new public employees bailout in order to prevent teachers layoffs, a concern echoed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. “We are gravely concerned,” said Duncan in a letter to Congress, “that ongoing state and local budget challenges are threatening hundreds of thousands of teacher jobs for the upcoming school year.”

Oh, Duncan had all sorts of recommendations for Congress on this newest bailout.
Continue reading “

Obama’s $23 Billion Teachers Unions Bailout”

Business - Capitalism - Card Check - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - EFCA - Government - Public Employees Unions - Senate - Taxes - Tea Party - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Union News: Card Check Not Dead Yet

May 9, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Wondering if a bad liberal idea is dead is sort of an amusing prospect. After all, liberals have been carrying around the stinking carcass of socialism and communism like a dearly beloved child still maintaining that it could work because it just hasn’t been tried right yet. So, saying that card check isn’t dead is sort of a given because bad liberal ideas never die, they just lay in wait like a highwayman ready to waylay an unsuspecting public at a later date.

Still, card check isn’t, dead I mean. And AFL-CIO chief Richard Trumka is reminding us of that in stark terms. He might realize that getting it passed legitimately and standing on its own like an acceptable idea is not going to work but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t still scheming to fool the public once again.
Continue reading “

Union News: Card Check Not Dead Yet”

California - Democrats/Leftists - Government - Jobs - Liberals - Public Employees Unions - State Government - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Unionists Threaten CA Business Owner Over His Letter to the Editor

May 3, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Apparently all one need do to cause Police and Firemen and their union supporters to violate their oath to protect the citizenry these days is to question their union. Union thugs in California proved that to be true in Napa Valley last week when a local business owner had the temerity to exercise his free political speech in a letter to the editor that was published by the St. Helena Star newspaper.

In the letter, Napa Valley Winery owner Dario Sattui of V. Sattui Winery made the mistake of “venting” about the overly generous union contracts that the public employees of his town had “negotiated” with compliant, left-wing politicians.

“I thought I was doing well in the wine business. Had I had any real brains I would have become a firefighter. What a racket they have. While I respect the work they do and the inherent dangers, they are greatly overpaid, work only two days a week (a third of which they sleep) and get to retire at 50 years old at 90 percent of their pay after working 30 years. I don’t blame the firefighters. Good for them for getting as much as they can. The blame goes to the politicians and the government administrators. What do they care? It isn’t their money.”

In response cops and firemen in California, or their supporters at the very least, let him know that they hoped his business would be destroyed both economically AND by fire. So much for these “public servants” and their oath to protect the public.
Continue reading “

Unionists Threaten CA Business Owner Over His Letter to the Editor”

Budget - Crime - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Michigan - Public Employees Unions - Security/Safety - State Government - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Michigan Firemen Setting Fires Over Union Anger

May 2, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston


Why was this story not national news? Outrageously, firemen in Flint, Mich. went about the city setting fires instead of putting them out last month and all because their union wasn’t happy with job layoffs. In a vain attempt to stop the layoffs, these union criminals went around setting fires to try and scare Flint’s residents in order to goad them to tell city officials to rescind the layoffs.

Imagine the breach of trust that this represents between firemen and the citizenry? What next, will Flint policemen commit murders and armed robberies in like manner to the criminal activities of the union inflamed foremen of the city?

Is this where unions have taken the safety of our cities?
Continue reading “

Michigan Firemen Setting Fires Over Union Anger”

Budget - Business - California - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - Jobs - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - Senate - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Mickey Kaus, Union Fighter?

April 24, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

For the Washington Post’s Post Partisan Blog Charles Lane’s somewhat irreverent, perhaps even dismissive treatment of the admittedly quixotic Senate campaign of journalist Mickey Kaus painted the would-be candidate as a union fighter. Interestingly, he isn’t far off the mark, which is odd for the fact that Kaus is a pretty straight down the line liberal.

Could Mickey Kaus be the “harbinger” of a new, mildly anti-union Democrat that might replace the sold out, in-the-back-pocket sort of Democrats we’ve seen for decades and decades?

Recently City Journal writer Steve Malanga wrote a great piece detailing how the public employees unions are killing California. “The unions’ political triumphs,” Malanga wrote, “have molded a California in which government workers thrive at the expense of a struggling private sector.”
Continue reading “

Mickey Kaus, Union Fighter?”

Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - Government - Illinois - Illinois State Government - Public Employees Unions - State Government - Taxes - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

AFSCME Official’s Threats

April 23, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees chief Henry Bayer addressed a rally of Illinois unions members on April 21. During his harangue this man revealed the exact sort of logical disconnect in which union thugs everywhere wallow.

Bayer noted that 10% of the workforce in Illinois is out of work. OK, then what was his prescription to solve this situation? More taxes! How even higher taxes on the few lucky enough to have a job could help enlarge the workforce is the $64,000 question. The answer, of course, is that it can’t.

Catch this complete lack of common sense and logic in Bayer’s spittle specked rant…

“… so they (the legislature) can’t do their job, ‘you know we can’t raise taxes because people are hurting.’ And they are absoroo…lutely right. People are hurting. But let me ask you this: if we raise revenue for senior programs will it hurt the elderly? If we raise revenue for childcare will it hurt working families? If we raise revenue for community colleges and universities will it hurt students? If we raise revenue for programs for the disabled will it hurt will it hurt those individuals who get those services? If we raise revenue for public safety will it hurt our communities? If we raise money for schools will it hurt our kids? Yes people are hurting that’s why we need a tax increase!”

If this isn’t the most stupid blather I’ve yet heard from a union tough, then I’ve never heard any. Where does this guy think all those taxes are coming from if not the very people he invokes? Does he think no one that he is interested in pays state taxes? The very people he mentioned are already losing their services because government has spent itself into a hole the size of the Grand Canyon!
Continue reading “

AFSCME Official’s Threats”

Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Education - Elections - Government - Michigan - State Government - Taxes - Tea Party - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Warning to Mich Teachers Unions: ‘The Time to Stand up to the Unions Has Arrived’

April 23, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Universally, teachers unions cry for more money and insist on raising everyone’s taxes to get it. And in an era when government spending needs to be reined in, unions are dinosaurs in the modern age, outmoded and wasteful.

Kyle Olson of the Education Action Group, an education reform organization based in Michigan, spoke to the Lansing, Mich. tea party rally on April 15. He had a few warnings for the profligate spenders in teachers unions.


Continue reading “

Warning to Mich Teachers Unions: ‘The Time to Stand up to the Unions Has Arrived’”

Budget - Business - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - Government - Illinois - Illinois State Government - Jobs - Pensions - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - State Government - Taxes - Tea Party - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Union Thugs at Capitol Demand Illinois Gov’t ‘Raise Our Taxes’

April 22, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

In the late morning hours of April 21 dozens of rented buses streamed into Springfield, the Illinois capitol, and began spewing out hundreds of tax-gorged union thugs. It was as if the Illinois Hog Producers association had pulled up to the capitol and thrown wide the doors to their livestock carriers.

Some estimates say the unionists mounted some 15,000 participants all there to wave their professionally printed signs and wear their gang colors… er, I mean wearing their T-Shirts bearing their union’s signature colors.

And what did they want? They wanted the Illinois legislature to raise taxes on everyone in the state so that those few union members could get even more undeserved bennies, richer pay scales and even higher pensions than anyone in the private sector could ever expect — all things they already enjoy.

But, a protest is all American, right? These guys are just like the tea partiers, aren’t they?

Not so much.
Continue reading “

Union Thugs at Capitol Demand Illinois Gov’t ‘Raise Our Taxes’”

Britain - Democrats/Leftists - Government - Jobs - Liberals - Pensions - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Brit Union Strike Over Severance Pay Might Soon Hit in U.S.

April 22, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

A few weeks ago several British civil service unions launched a two-day strike over cuts in severance pay that the government authorized for workers that were let go because of reductions in the government work force (called a “redundancy cut”).

The cap in “redundancy pay,” said British government unions, could see workers losing a third of their “entitlement.”

Government officials said that the new pay scheme could save the government £500 million. Starting in April “anyone earning £30,000 or less will be entitled to a maximum of three years’ pay or £60,000, whichever is lower.”
Continue reading “

Brit Union Strike Over Severance Pay Might Soon Hit in U.S.”

Budget - Business - California - Capitalism - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Jobs - Public Employees Unions - SEIU - State Government - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

How Unions Are Destroying California

April 21, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Steve Malanga of City journal has a great piece detailing how California’s public employee unions are destroying that once great state.

Malanga starts by repeating the ominous warning to the politicos at the state capitol in Sacramento made by a Service Employees International Union chief. “We helped to get you into office and we got a good memory” the official said on to California’s pols. “Come November, if you don’t back our program, we’ll get you out of office.”

To me this is reminiscent of the warning by the old Soviet Union’s Nikita Kruchev who said that “we will bury you.” Only, the SEIU has far more power to bury our governments than the old Soviets had!
Continue reading “

How Unions Are Destroying California”

Anti-Americanism - Budget - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Government - Liberals - Pensions - President - Public Employees Unions - Taxes - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Unions’ Big Shift to Government

April 13, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Unionism is failing miserably in this age of a greater world market and an increase in competition for business across the globe. More nations than ever have left behind the 18th century and are taking bold steps into a world made smaller by technology. No longer is but a handful of nations leading the world in manufacturing while the rest wallow in abject poverty. This greater competition is increasing the standard of living in nearly every corner of the earth but because there is so much competition, unions in the U.S. are dying out.

American unions are not conducive to the 21st century and companies shackled by them are finding that either unions have to lose their once overpowering control over production or the businesses simply have to shut their doors as foreign competitors beat them up in the world market place.

But these antiquated, jobs killing unions won’t go quietly into the night and they’ve found their path to existence: government. Unions are growing wildly in the public sector because there are no market forces to curb their excesses.
Continue reading “

Unions’ Big Shift to Government”

Budget - Business - Children - Economy/Finances - Education - New Jersey - State Government - Teachers Unions - Unions - Warner Todd Huston

Teachers Union Prays for the Death of NJ Gov. Christie

April 10, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

Sadly, wishing for the death of a political opponent is so typical of the left. Pol Pot, Stalin, the Democrat sponsored KKK, the chief tool used by such folks has been terror and violence. While obviously not as murderous as the aforementioned, unions have also been a violent force in history. And in New Jersey, the teachers union has lived down to the violent tendency unions have always evinced.

With a memo to its membership, the New Jersey Education Association prayed that its political opponent, Governor Chirs Christie, would die. The memo featured this:

“Dear Lord … this year you have taken away my favorite actor, Patrick Swayze, my favorite actress, Farrah Fawcett, my favorite singer, Michael Jackson, and my favorite salesman, Billy Mays. … I just wanted to let you know that Chris Christie is my favorite governor.”

Nice sentiment, eh?

But this sort of violence infused, hate-speak is so typical of unionism. Whether in the rarefied air of the teacher’s lounge, or the backroom of some smoke-filled auto worker’s union hall, this sort of violence is espoused with gusto by unionists everywhere. And it is given a pass by Democrats, excused with a wink and a nod.

And they say that the Tea Party folks are hate-filled and violent! Show me a Tea Party advertisement, event advertisement, or newsletter with such a sentiment emblazoned across it.
Continue reading “

Teachers Union Prays for the Death of NJ Gov. Christie”