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Friday Morning News Roundup

There are many lessons to be learned and studied from the disaster that is characterized generally as Hurricane Sandy. One of these lessons that I’ve been studying has to do with the two hospitals which were evacuated. One of the best articles that I’ve read so far was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. This is clearly worth a read.

For weeks, I’ve said that there really is no fiscal cliff. The heightened rhetoric that we’ve seen in the media by pundits and politicians can only be categorized as nauseating. First of all, Congress is already cutting $1.5 trillion in fiscal spending over the next 10 years. Secondly, non-defense discretionary spending is projected to fall to historically low levels if Congress does what it does best, which is nothing. All of the thoughtless yammering over the “devastating” impact of allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire is typical Washington hype. The percentage of small businesses which will be affected is minuscule. Yet, we are led to believe that hundreds of thousands of mom-and-pop businesses will instantly go belly up if the Bush tax cuts were allowed to expire. Horse hockey. I’m afraid that the Democrats on Capitol Hill seemed to have little or no capacity to articulate reasonable and thoughtful positions on the budget. Our argument has to consist of more than the fact that the wealthy can afford to pony up a little bit more money.

A complete Internet and cell phone blackout in Syria shows the extent that some governments will go to in order to suppress the free flow of information.

Once again, the “Stand Your Ground” law is in the news. It appears that a 45-year-old Florida man shot and killed Jordan Russell Davis over some loud music. From reports that I’ve read, it appears that Michael David Dunn approached Davis and his friends at a convenience store, asking them to turn their music down. An argument ensued and eight to ten shots were fired. Davis ended up dead. Michael David Dunn is claiming that he felt threatened and was therefore justified in using lethal force under the Stand Your Ground law. If you think aspects of this sound familiar, I think you’re exactly right. (more…)

By ecthompsonmd|2012-11-30T20:25:20-04:00November 30th, 2012|Economy, Foreign Affairs, Healthcare, Living wage, Party Politics|Comments Off

Winning elections

Originally, more than a week ago, it was unclear exactly what was going on in Wisconsin. A new Republican governor, a tea party candidate, was trying to extract concessions from a union. No surprises here. Everyone assumed that Wisconsin, like all other states, was in financial peril. Nothing could be further from the truth. As a matter fact, Wisconsin’s budget was just fine before the governor started giving away tax cuts to businesses. Let’s be clear, business tax cuts do not stimulate the local economy. Business tax cuts make business leaders happy. States hope that happy business leaders will expand their businesses within the state and hire more employees. Past experience has shown us that this is not necessarily the case.

I’ve edited a couple of Rachel Maddow shows to hone down to the crux of the problem. The problem is that unions support Democratic candidates. That’s the problem. If you’re able to break the union, you’re able to break the funding mechanism of Democratic candidates. This is what the crisis/showdown in Wisconsin is all about. Watch the video:

One of the talking points that the right-wing has used during this crisis in Wisconsin was that the union workers were paying almost nothing into their pensions and paying almost nothing for healthcare. That was their argument. They didn’t go the extra step and find out that union workers in Wisconsin get paid less. It would be completely different if union workers in Wisconsin got paid at the same rate as nonunion workers. This would make their total compensation much higher than their private-sector colleagues. Reality tells us that the union workers are receiving less in salary and less in total compensation. So this government giveaway that Republicans are pushing is a crock.

By ecthompsonmd|2011-02-23T14:51:18-04:00February 23rd, 2011|Business, Living wage, Party Politics|Comments Off

Labor Day History & Links

Today is Labor Day.

All work merits respect. We should treat other working people with respect. How we treat other working people is a mirror of the extent to which we respect ourselves.

( The picture above was taken by Danny Cornelissen for the portpictures.nl website.)

Here is a history of Labor Day from the U.S. Department of Labor.

From that history–

“Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. More than 100 years after the first Labor Day observance, there is still some doubt as to who first proposed the holiday for workers. Some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a cofounder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.” But Peter McGuire’s place in Labor Day history has not gone unchallenged. Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded the holiday. Recent research seems to support the contention that Matthew Maguire, later the secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. What is clear is that the Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic.”

Here is the web home of the AFL-CIO.

Here is an American labor movement history timeline from the AFL-CIO.

Here are a number of women’s labor history links from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. It is a very good list.

Here are black labor history links from AFSCME.

The history of labor in the United States is your history. Work is the time and effort of your life. We need the wages and benefits we earn at work to be able to live decent lives.

There is also an International Labor Day. International Labor Day, or May Day, marks the Haymarket Riot in Chicago in 1886. Please click here to learn more about the Haymarket Riots and the Haymarket Trial.

Respect for working people involves understanding that the goods you buy must be sold for a fair price if the people who make and sell those goods are to receive a fair wage and good benefits. Selling these goods at a fair price also helps your employer stay in business.

Respect for working people does not stop at the American border. Cheap goods we purchase in America are often produced by underpaid and poorly treated workers in other nations.

Labor Day is, for many at least, a time to get a break from work.

It is also a time to reflect upon what it means to be a working person in a nation and a world where the rights of workers—to the extent they exist at all—are under ceaseless strain.

( Photo above by Holger Hubbs.)

By admin|2010-09-06T10:32:18-04:00September 6th, 2010|Economy, Living wage|1 Comment