Two things:
1. There should be a federal DoJ investigation for conspiracy of violation of civil rights by the U.S. Atty for the Western District of Wisconsin.
Ian Murphy: Right, right. Well, we’ll back you any way we can. But, uh, what we were thinking about the crowds was, uh, was planting some troublemakers.
Walker: You know, the, well, the only problem with that — because we thought about that. The problem — the, my only gut reaction to that is right now the lawmakers I’ve talked to have just completely had it with them, the public is not really fond of this.
"[W]e thought about that ... "? So placment by Wisconsin executive branch of agents provocateur was discussed. This needs investigation.
2. These 1,000s of workers referenced by Walker are not going to be laid off [passive voice]; Walker is actively scheming to lay them off in a politically timed fashion. Not criminal but repulsive.
The question should not be "Why do they get benefits when we have none?" Instead it should be "What happened to our pay, our benefits, and our rights?" Lower and middle class America should stand up together and demand to unionize in more jobs than what we have now, and demand their rightful piece of the pie.
I am a municipal attorney, and very much believe that local government is the bedrock of our democracy.
Further gutting the regulatory ability of government is the real goal of the attacks upon state and local government employee pensions, I believe. It is the career government employee who, at least once in a while, has the knowledge, institutional memory, relationship networks and will to stand up and take on the most powerful of the regulated companies and people. It takes some experience and maturity to regulate effectively when it really matters.
The defined benefit pension is a very important tool in retaining skilled employees in government despite lackluster salaries. Without the pension benefit--which in North Carolina is pitched toward 30 year careers--government would be a training ground where more highly skilled employees would serve 3-4 years before leaving for more lucretive private industry jobs.
Without the pension benefit, I probably would have left government long ago for private enterprise. As a municipal attorney for over 15 years, I see each day how valuable my institutional memory is. Many times those we do business with and regulate make the assumption that no one remembers the history on a matter, and that they can slide around on the facts. My memory and my files save the tax payers money.
Open, accurate information is so important as the basis for true democracy. Honest disagreement and debate are a tonic to democracy. But as is attributed to Patrick Moynihan, "You’re entitled to your own opinions. You’re not entitled to your own facts."
Thank you to CMD, and in particular to Lisa Graves, for providing us with facts. I appreciate your work very much.
While I fully support the unions and strikes that might happen if the bill passes, don't let unions be the distraction that allows them to sneak other issues through. They'll concede to the unions, and the pass the rest uncontested, such as the following:
16.896 Sale or contractual operation of state−owned heating, cooling, and power plants. (1) Notwithstanding ss. 13.48 (14) (am) and 16.705 (1), the department may sell any state−owned heating, cooling, and power plant or may contract with a private entity for the operation of any such plant, with or without solicitation of bids, for any amount that the department determines to be in the best interest of the state. Notwithstanding ss. 196.49 and 196.80, no approval or certification of the public service commission is necessary for a public utility to purchase, or contract for the operation of, such a plant, and any such purchase is considered to be in the public interest and to comply with the criteria for certification of a project under s. 196.49 (3) (b).
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