STOP the Attack on Wisconsin's Workers and Teachers

Coming from a family of teachers I can appreciate that...

We have a lot of good-natured discussions about teaching and work.

True enough, there have been a limited Democrats, primarily in the Senate, who have failed to look out for the interests of the Midwest's working class,

But let's not misstate the case. The Democrat-controlled House under Nancy Pelosi passed an astonishing number of bills designed to promote workers' interests. Unfortunately, a record number of bills were left on the table because the Senate failed to act. As Jim Clyburn noted during an interview with Fox News Radio:

“[Senators] tend to see themselves as a House of Lords and they don’t seem to understand that those of us that go out there every two years stay in touch with the American people.”

Senators can afford to be distant for two reasons: (i) a 6-year term provides a lengthy period of time to raise cash; and (ii) there's no limit on the amount of cash that might be raised for an election. Couple these two items with (iii) the fact that over 1/2 of those who serve in the Senate are millionaires, and are thus prone to be less sympathetic to working class interests, and (iv) the ridiculous invocation of the filibuster by Republicans over the last two years, and the result is plain -- a body that largely ignores the plight of America's working and middle classes.

I think it holds true. Unlike the small number of people who seek political information (at places like C&L) and/or have multiple issues that they follow or support, I think most Americans are 1 or 2 issue voters. Its likely that many of these voters never even see their favorite issue discussed in the political discourse, let alone, acted on. Its understandable that these people will fall back and vote for someone who will at least give them some consolation prize; be it lowering some taxes (despite the cost to the state/country), punishing "job-stealing" illegals, persecuting those heathen gays, promising to kill foreigners in a war, or promising to send the kids to a good, private school through some dipschit voucher program. These are people who play the scratch-offs in hopes to win a free ticket so they can play again. If the Dems aren't going to do something for them, they'll vote for the one who will at least lower the tax on cigarettes, or whatever.

"froth from Democrats saying that any vote like that was going to screw up fundraising"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_manifesto

it is just that tad tiring being "The voice of one crying in the wilderness", especially when one has to work for a living. look, 2+2 does not equal 5, until the interests of capital, especially monopoly capital, are dealt with nothing will change; broad swathes of our economy are controlled by a few players and this strangles everything else. if you run a small restaurant you are at a competitive disadvantage, the big chains are dialed into the good deals on food because they are part of a conglomerate, it goes down the line in most every business. contractors and retail outlets are given sales levels to meet or they lose their dealership, this whole economy is centrally planned and controlled, just not for the benefit of the people.

systems fail for a variety of reasons, nothing happens in a vacuum, socialism has supposedly failed because of the collapse of the ussr, and the mixed economies are constantly trashed by the pukes precisely because they are doing better than we are.

the donkey is comprised of a bunch of sold out asses, we are fighting wars for no clearly stated reason, and the electorate is divided along cultural lines mainly over social issues, the ramifications of which no one wants to face. myself, i am just about spent, 40 years of trying to talk sense to people, to get americans to think clearly, and all i get is half-baked, hostile reactions, the people of this country are too narcissistic and greedy to think beyond themselves, this country is failing because it deserves to fail.

any revolutionary, or even reform movement must be more disciplined and indoctrinated than the opposition, hence the emphasis on the dread "propaganda officers", and i am just not seeing it. no charge.

"Americans may have no identity, but they do have wonderful teeth."
Jean Baudrillard

Industries in America, just like industries in all nations, succeed because they give measured importance to a variety of departments: Finance; Human Resource & Personnel; Operations; and Marketing/Advertising. Government, of course, is as much an "industry" as any other enterprise or public service which must retain sufficient funds and provide sufficient products or services to remain afloat for a long-term duration.

From the late 1940's through the early 1970's, the policy of most industries was to, at the very least, embrace a pro-union sentiment, if not a pro-union workforce.

Under the Nixon administration, however (as well as the Congress he worked for), Operations was considered less and less relevant. Business and Government leaders began looking to our Finance departments for all the answers to a greater success.

Finance, of course, sees unions as a huge economic drain to the organization. This is a reasonable assumption. Finance is merely tasked with moving numbers across columns and rows, and tracking the progress of daily profit. And union benefits, of course, are a huge drain on the daily profit.

This would not do!

So the Nixon administration, and later the Reagan administration, began to openly denounce these socialistic cost drains. Business and Government leaders were urged to be wise, and to eliminate them from their organizations, thus providing a lower cost to customers/constituents, and allowing investors (which includes many seniors and retirees) to enjoy more lucrative gains.

And, of course, the approach worked. Since the implementation of anti-union practices, our DOW has exploded, where it hovers today well into the 5-digit range. But is this a success?

You see, Finance makes a very naive assumption. Their entire department works under the guise that Operations will always continue to provide an ever-increasing volume of quality products and services, and their job is merely to eliminate the costs of manufacturing those products and services.

But are industries truly created in ledger books? Are they truly created in mission statements? Does an executive board, or a logo, or the organization's headquarters building define the core of the industry?

No. The core of every industry, is in its Operations. Without Operations, there is no Industry. And an anti-union sentiment, is an anti-Operations sentiment. Indeed, it is, ultimately, an anti-Industry sentiment.

In the 1950's and 1960's, America enjoyed the HIGHEST standard of living. We had the BEST education in the world, the SAFEST communities in the world, we had the BEST jobs, the BEST medical care and ... arguably ... the BEST lives. We also had, a majority of pro-union industries, and our executives were heavily taxed.

It could be argued that unions were too greedy, and that they ultimately cost too much, thus threatening the good fortunes "created" by teams of executives and leaders. Executives and leaders who, interestingly enough, do not actually "create" any of the products or services for which they oversee the supply and sales of.

It could - and indeed, it SHOULD - just as easily be argued, that the elimination of unions, is what threatens those executives' and leaders' long-term investments.

Industries are created in, and sustained by Communities. When your workforce is obligated to follow up and argue unfair health care costs (during business hours); when your workforces' average pay decreases and they have to beg for re-financing on automobiles or homes (during business hours); when your workforce is worried about their future and stays up late reassuring their spouses and children that "everything will be all right"; when your workforces' childrens' education is neglected; when these things happen - the inevitable outcome is, Industry first loses its Community - and eventually, it loses the quality of its Operations.

Both Detroit, MI and Camden, NJ are perfect examples. Both cities were pro-union towns in the middle of the 20th century. Both cities were some of the safest, and most pleasant, cities to live in during the middle of the 20th century. And both cities had a global reputation for creating some of the highest quality products and services in the world.

Nearly all of the primary industries in those two cities were eliminated - because of fears of high cost, and concerns of threats to their organizations' profits. And what first followed was the downfall of the community. What followed next was the downfall of the community.

Today, those two cities are, LITERALLY, the most dangerous cities in the United States. American-made metalworks and American-made automobiles are the laughing stock of the world. And while Lee Iacocca, CEO of Chrysler, was a household name during Chrysler's golden years, nobody knows - or cares - who runs Ford, or Chrysler, or General Motors, today. Why memorize the name of, or trace the business decisions of, a bunch of losers?

Perhaps someone should explain this to Mr. Hahan? Perhaps someone should articulate the concept that - it might not be unions which destroyed Detroit. It might, in fact, be the destruction of unions, which destroyed Detroit.

It might help to think of it as a sort of "domino effect"

While I feel the pain also I don't go blaming Public workers or Democrats.
The blame squarely lies on the FAILED GREEDY POLICIES of CONSERVATISM.
And I see Republicans and Teabaggers as one in the same, sick Bigots who live in fear of ANYBODY WHO DOESN'T LOOK, THINK, BELIEVE OR ACT LIKE THEY DO.

Read this very, very accurate article as it explains sooo much...more at link below

"What Conservatives Really Want
Above all, the authority of conservatism itself must be maintained. The country should be ruled by conservative values, and progressive values are seen as evil. Science should not have authority over the market, and so the science of global warming and evolution must be denied. Facts that are inconsistent with the authority of conservatism must be ignored or denied or explained away. To protect and extend conservative values themselves, the devil's own means can be used again conservatism's immoral enemies, whether lies, intimidation, torture, or even death, say, for women's doctors."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/george-lakoff/w...

"Why the hell isn't our supposed center-left party looking out for all workers' interests?"

That is THE question that every registered Democrat should be asking. Rank and file Democrats need to wake up and realize that centrist sell-outs like Clinton, Obama and almost every Democratic Senator don't give a shit about working class Americans. Since he used them to get elected Obama can barely hide his contempt for them.

The modern Democratic Party became successful when it focused on the economic interests of working class americans. FDR saw to that. Todays Democratic Party must be brought back to that focus by new leaders and the rank and file Democrats are the ones who must see to that.

which they have for quite a while now, who are you suppossed to vote for? As for screwing midwesterners, while that's true, they've been screwing the entire country.

Q: 'Why do a majority of white blue-collar people in this country regularly vote for the GOP in national elections?

A: 'There is a good chunk of "Reagan Democrats" who may not see eye-to-eye with us commie heathen East Coasters on some social issues.'

Employment is a social and values issue to these folks.

These blue collar types see themselves as hard workers, unlazy, as having picked themselves up by their bootstraps, as having earned that paycheck through hard work, and I earned my keep.
I got ahead by working hard.
They suffer from workers resentment.

The taxes they pay they see as part of thier hard earned money and they resent the thought of it going to 'those lazy people on welfare welfare'.
They believe 'why should my tax dollars pay for a lazy person to sit on their ass all day, they should be working hard like I do. I earned my money and so should they.'
The 'nobody gave me nothing for free, I earned my keep, all you have to do is go get a god damned job' types.

Racial attitudes plays a role too, think of Reagans cadillac welfare queen statement.
The teabaggers and Reagan Dems lap this shit up.

In a nutshell, these 'Republican Values' play to these blue collar types.

And I have no idea if, and, or how Democrats or Liberals could ever reach these people.
They're resentful people.

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' So Mr. Hahan, 50, found himself back in Janesville, collecting unemployment for a time...'
When Mr. Hahan went on the public dole...

That was different, it wasn't the same as those other folks, see, he worked hard and paid his taxes, nobody ever gave him nothing for free, he earned his welfare.

...is gonna' get a second term? you know, I've given the republicans the name "republican'ts" and I'll continue to do so. There's no doubt in my mind obama lost my vote in '12 and I blame him as much as the democrats for that starting with pelosi taking impeachment off the table. That right there signaled to the country that the democrats were not serious about this country, its laws and the party's principals. I think its time to start calling the democrats the dumbocrats. That's probably been used before but that's what I'm going to call them from now on.
They can really be just as stupid and corruptible as the other side and they really don't deserve my vote. Bernie Sanders! He deserves my vote and I wish there more like him and less like obama, pelosi, reid, et.al.

"You've gotta give these folks a reason to vote for you".

That phrase will ring a bell for anyone who has read 'Fear & Loathing On The Campaign Trail 1972'.

In it, Hunter Thompson relates it was that advice (nearly word-for-word) that a top campaign aide laid on Edmund Muskie when the senator's campaign was on the ropes. A top campaign aide who had already been paid a small fortune in salary.

Thompson then remarked that, had he been Muskie, he would have had the fool dropped down an elevator shaft.

All we have to choose from is an agressive Republican party and a passive Republican party.

Very well said Brad. The grassroots have to take the party back and sadly that is going to be a very painful experience because to taqke it back you are going to have to utterly destroy it. If Walker gets his way in Wisconsin then that will likely happen as the public sector unions across the Us disappear - there goes the DNC's major funding. So you will need to regroup, take the power away from those DINOs in office now through the primaries and work like hell at the grassroots level to raise money and put feet on the street. Progressives will never have the money to fight Conservatives who have the advantage of the corps able to spend whatever they want unaccountably. Good luck - those of us here to the north of you know that where the US goes eventually we will follow