Now they want to put Union Picketers in Prison...
By louisehartmann
Mistreated workers are screwed in Georgia, where the Peach State has opened a new front in the war on working people. This week – legislation was passed by a state Senate Committee that would criminalize union picketing outside places of business. The new law would definite union picketing as, “interfering with the resident's right to quiet enjoyment," and hits union picketers with jail time.
The law also applies ONLY to unions and labor organizations. One of the main opponents of the legislation is Fulton County Sheriff Ted Jackson who said the law would, “overburden an already stressed prison system,” and that the role of the police shouldn’t be to, “police free speech.” The war against workers is getting truly nasty - first they cut the right to bargain, then they cut wages and pensions, and now they want to put union picketers in prison.
Welcome to the Plutocracy.
Comments
#2
Doesn't this law amount to a Bill of Attainder? And shouldn't it therefore be unconstitutional?
#3
The plutocrats are overreaching yet again. On the one hand the powers that be are overturning laws that protect workers and the environment through organizations like ALEC. On the other hand the powers that be ignore laws against torture and spying and assassinating citizens. If they just ignore some laws why do they put so much effort to overturn other laws? Could it be that they are afraid that “we the people” might demand accountability some day? You betcha!
#4
Our CWA UNION contract expires around april, and at least some picketing activity is typical during the contract negotiations.. Seems like interesting timing, because we negotiate a new contract every 4 years.. I wonder if other contracts are nearing negotiation time..
#5
Quote The Lordy Grand Old Party Sovereign:...interfering with the resident's right to quiet enjoyment...This sounds like the attitude of an absolutist sovereign indeed. These are little sunkings. Welcome in the 1600s!
Or, as I said above, Warsaw Pact apparatchiks. Who often felt like little sunkings too.
Here we go again!
#6
This post reminds me of my days spent at the Walter A. Reuther Center in Black Lake , Michigan. A conversation I heard on the show they were talking about overtime pay. As I remember it, the overtime rule was instituted as a penalty to corporations working their workers more than 40 hours/week.Most people today think its so they can make more money which is only half true.I may be wrong but I don't think so. More people should know this, but the school textbook printers want to bury all of the Union struggles and effects.
#7
Who are these nameless public servants on the Georgia state Senate Committee? The non-union sweatshops in Georgia are anxious to know, because they fully intend to honor such political support by giving hiring preference to the offspring of these morons.
"interfering with the resident's right to quiet enjoyment"
"For true patriots to be silent, is dangerous"......Samuel Adams, 1766
#8
My dad witnessed the Gate 4 brutality in 1937. A terrible story. Are we returning to the past?
http://www.thehenryford.org/exhibits/fmc/battle.asp
#9
Clarissa Smith
RE; Well, this reminds me of the
I watched Thom the other night on TV. He said the difference between humans and other mammals like chimpanzees is that human’s alone share knowledge. “Such as young children working together to solve a puzzle”. Thus sharing in society is exclusive to humans but not other mammals. (An obvious veiled suggestion about socialism) ….. WRONG ….
Chimpanzees are troop oriented and territorial. Just as humans are family and community oriented. Chimps are tool users, not by instinct but by shared learning in their troop. One troop may be skilled at sticking twigs in termite mounds to piss off the termites. Then when they extract the twigs they’re covered in tasty termites. The entire troop shares this skill within its community. But another neighbor troop may lack this knowledge. It remains that many mammals in the world share and teach information, such as bears and seals to their offspring. But the chimp troop does not share with other troops. “It’s a survival of the fittest strategy to protect the group”.
Dolphins and killer whales and many other mammal species evolved to share information within small family populations but not universally. Hunting techniques in particular are diversified throughout the world and are a result of shared learned behavior in small groups - not some mandated “world view” Orca government.
The socialist ideology actually applies more to ants and bee colonies, and the Borg on Star Trek. Where the greater good of the hive, or nest is the rule. And thus individuals have little value. ......But insects are pure instinct, - “Sorry bees, make me some honey and shut up”!
Nature was not designed to be to be universally equal, and sadly we humans aren’t either, even if some “silver pony tail radicals” from the 60’s disagree.
Humans are incredibly competitive by nature, and to just ordain it not so by political ideology does not change it to be so. No matter what kind of society mankind creates, it will always develops into a common denominator.
“Survival of those who want the least amount of discomfort and the greatest amount of power and wealth”.
And that’s why the founding fathers created the constitution. “To create a society where it had the best chance to survive and benefit EVERYONE UNIVERSALLY by preventing tyrants from taking over.
Liberal socialism is tyranny.
#10
Clarissa,
You keep throwing libertarians in the same pot as communists and other totalitarian ideologies. Libertarians are the opposite of what you’re discribing. Your socialist liberalism is simply propaganda to try recruit more liberals with disinformation.
This is why I abandoned the liberal movement years ago. Because it relies on dishonesty to move forward. If an ideology has to deceive to install itself in power, then what does that say for what it will do when it gets power?
What is a Libertarian?
lib er•tar i•an adj.
lib er•tar i•an•ism n.
1. One who advocates maximizing individual rights and minimizing the role of the state.
2. One who believes in free will.
Webster's definition:
libertarian: A person who upholds the principles of individual liberty especially of thought and action.
Libertarian: a member of a political party advocating libertarian principles.
Libertarians believe in, and pursue, personal freedom while maintaining personal responsibility. The Libertarian Party itself serves a much larger pro-liberty community with the specific mission of electing Libertarians to public office.
Libertarians strongly oppose any government interfering in their personal, family and business decisions. Essentially, we believe all Americans should be free to live their lives and pursue their interests as they see fit as long as they do no harm to another.
In a nutshell, we are advocates for a smaller government, lower taxes and more freedom.
Are Libertarians liberal or conservative?
Libertarians are neither. Unlike liberals or conservatives, Libertarians advocate a high degree of both personal and economic liberty. For example, Libertarians advocate freedom in economic matters, so we're in favor of lowering taxes, slashing bureaucratic regulation of business, and charitable -- rather than government -- welfare. But Libertarians are also socially tolerant. We won't demand laws or restrictions on other people who we may not agree because of personal actions or lifestyles.
Think of us as a group of people with a "live and let live" mentality and a balanced checkbook.
In a sense, Libertarians “borrow” from both sides to come up with a logical and consistent whole -- but without the exceptions and broken promises of Republican and Democratic politicians. That's why we call ourselves the Party of Principle.
How large is the Libertarian Party?
In terms of political activity (i.e. number of candidates, access to the ballot, and elected office holders), the Libertarian Party is the third-largest political party in America. We’re active in all 50 states and have more than 250,000 registered voters.
What kind of offices do Libertarians run for and hold?
Around the nation there are Libertarian mayors, county executives, county council members and even a Libertarian sheriff! Libertarians also serve on school boards and in hundreds of local offices. In 2008, more than 15 million votes were cast for Libertarian candidates around the nation.
While we are most successful at the local level for now, we run candidates at all levels of government, even President of the United States.
Our elected Libertarians are hard at work saving you money and protecting your civil liberties. In fact, Libertarians saved Americans over $2.2 billion in 2004 alone.
What kind of people join the Libertarian Party?
People like you. People who used to be Republicans, Democrats, and independents – from all walks of life. They realize that libertarians the only political party working for their best interests.
Those who join realize that, unlike the two major parties, we place the interests of our nation ABOVE the interests of our political party. While the Republican and Democratic parties exist to maintain their own power, we exist to grasp power for the benefit of you and millions of other Americans across our nation.
#11
Got this e-mail today regarding the last column of a journalist who is retiring. Totally says it all. Scroll down and read all the taxes we pay, which the Republicans think we don't pay taxes.
A very interesting column.. COMPLETELY NEUTRAL.........Be sure to read the poem at the end.
Charley Reese's final column for the Orlando Sentinel...
He has been a journalist for 49 years.
He is retiring and this is HIS LAST COLUMN...........
Be sure to read the Tax List at the end.
This is about as clear and easy to understand as it can be. The article below is completely neutral, neither anti-republican or democrat. Charlie Reese, a retired reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, has hit the nail directly on the head, defining clearly who it is that in the final analysis must assume responsibility for the judgments made that impact each one of us every day. It's a short but good read..... Worth the time. Worth remembering!
545 vs. 300,000,000 People
-By Charlie Reese
Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.
Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?
Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?
You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.
You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.
You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.
You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.
You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.
One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.
I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.
I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.
Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.
What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.
The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? John Boehner. He is the leader of the majority party. He and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want. If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.
It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.
If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.
If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.
If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it's because they want them in Iraq and Afghanistan ...
If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.
There are no insoluble government problems.
Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.
Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.
They, and they alone, have the power.
They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.
Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees...
We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!
Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.
What you do with this article now that you have read it... is up to you.
This might be funny if it weren't so true.
Be sure to read all the way to the end:
Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table,
At which he's fed.
Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.
Tax his work,
Tax his pay,
He works for
peanuts anyway!
Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.
Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.
Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries
Tax his tears.
Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass.
Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.
When he screams and hollers;
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.
Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid...
Put these words
Upon his tomb,
'Taxes drove me
to my doom...'
When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge Tax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
Sales Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax
STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
"What in the heck happened? Can you spell 'politicians?"
I hope this goes around THE USA at least 545 times!!! YOU can help it get there!!!
GO AHEAD. . . BE AN AMERICAN!!
#12
"The Tax Man: You just docked?
Popeye: I has.
The Tax Man: Ah ha, let's see here, that'll be 25¢ docking tax.
Popeye: What for?
The Tax Man: Where's your sea craft?
Popeye: It ain't no sea craft, it's me dinghy and it's under the wharf.
The Tax Man: Ah ha. ahh-ha. This your goods?
Popeye: They is.
The Tax Man: Yeah. You're new in town right?
Popeye: If you call this a town, yes.
The Tax Man: Well, first of all, there's 17¢ new-in-town tax, and there's 45¢ rowboat-under-the-wharf tax, and one dollar leaving-your-junk-lying-around-the-wharf tax, so all together, you owe the Commodore $1.87.
Popeye: Uh, who's this Commodore?
The Tax Man: Is that the nature of question? There's a nickel question tax."
http://www.great-quotes.com/quotes/movie/Popeye
Oh, yeah, there is a Cat license fee as well. Can't wait till they say I have to have a Hummingbird License.
Oh, and be sure to pay your "God" tax....tithes..what 10%? I just heard a televangelist...Jerry Falwell (on a 2006 documentary currently being shown on Sho called "Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders" by indie filmmaker James D. Scurlock) tell his flock that he knew how hard it was for people today, who can't even pay their bills and are deep in debt, but he warned that if you fail to tithe you will be making a big mistake because by tithing, even though you are starving, you will experience the magic of God's grace and he will miraculously make you solvent again. These A-holes are worse than tax men. They are disgusting leeches...bloodsuckers who have no shame.
http://www.sho.com/site/movies/movie.do?seriesid=0&seasonid=0&episodeid=...
This movie just makes my blood boil and seethe with hate for all of those cockroaches who screw people out of their money. Elizabeth Warren has a say as well...always love listening to Elizabeth Warren!
Time to go back to me spinach!
#13
So did the Nazi's .
#14
The right to strike and protest should be universal.Unions wouldn't need to exist if every business was run as a co-op.In our hierarchical system, where some bosses recieve thousands of times the compensation of grunts, unions MUST be allowed to exist.The hoarding of wealth isn't healthy-money needs to flow.
#15
The ideas and goals of libertarians are simply asocial. In a functioning society, freedom at any expense isn't possible. Because it destroys any society. Communism isn't working, libertarianism isn't working as well. Both are extreme theories that don't work in reality. We have traffic rules and we need rules in economics as well. Everything else leads to chaos.
#16
Actually to #10:
My striking point why I like liberals better than libertarians: Liberals are kinder and fit better to the message of Jesus Christ. Jesus did NOT speak for the successful, he was anti-materialistic. Jesus advocated sharing, as liberals do.
Furthermore, I love the people on Stephanie Miller's show. I love Stephanie, I love John Fugelsang, Hal Sparks and all the others, as I love their message. Same goes for Thom. So if I'm actually in love with these people and their attitude and message: How could I not advocate all this?
Yes, I believe firmly in the righteousness of the liberal message. It is wholesome, it is sane, and it is good and reasonable.
#17
Someone needs to moderate the trolls.. We are having a serious discussion on the posibility of peaceful protesters gettting arrested, and someone posts an encyclopedia post unrelated to this discussion... I dont want to censor conservatives, but perhaps someone needs to try and figure out which are trolls (obscuring the discussion, or adding so much crap that it makes people tune out of the thread)..
Clarissa said "Liberal socialism is tyranny."
I dont care about the chimpanzee point (right or wrong). All I can tell you for sure is your reasoning is exactly backwards.. Liberals endeavor to give people freedom and choice.. While the common denominator of conservative economics is to funnel all the profit and resources up to the top 1-percent (borg like structure).. Ironically, it is conservative economics, letting big business do whatever it wants, that is turning our society into a borg like structure, where the drones (workers like most of us), dont matter (rather only trickling the money up matters)..
IS THERE A CONNECTION TO OWS?
We had cops attacking peaceful protesters in America.. I saw a cop with an industrial size tank of tear gas spraying protesters sitting down with cameras.. I saw an unconscious protester (apparently the war veteran whom the cops shot in the head with a rubber bullet).. And when other protesters tried to help the unsonscious person, the cops threw a grenade into the group.. Now, they are trying to change laws to put peaceful protestrs in jail? We live in a diuctatorship, and I am amazed that conservatives support this.. Seems liberals and conservatives both should unite on this point..
#18
Economically, all conservatives do "ecactly" the opposite of jesus's words right out of the bible.. I am at a loss how so many Christians cannot see this obvious hipocrisy.. Because many times the bible can be difficult to interpret, but jesus' words are very clear in this case..
#19
What has this topic here got to do with chimps? I didn't watch that TV program and have no clue whether you got it right. In the past you often did NOT (Russian revolution ect.). If a radio and tv host talks many hours daily, there will always occur errors. In Thom's program this happens very seldom, because he really seems to love truth and accuracy. As I saw, it seems you don't appreciate this that much.
Today it's well known, animals are being taught by their parents. If you adopt a seagull, it's impossible to teach it how to survive. I can speak for that as mother of a disabled herring gull for almost 18 years.
Quote Liberty-First:Liberal socialism is tyranny.So Jesus was a tyrant? Because Jesus was pretty much speaking like a liberal, and not at all like a libertarian. Jesus wants you to share with your neighbor. Jesus tells you NOT to worship personal materialistic success!
You actually wasted a lot of words on instisting on America being a Christian country some other day. What for? You don't really share Jesus' ideas. So why kill so much time for something you obviously don't believe in?
#20
Are you DRUNK???? I quoted Liberty-First and criticized him for that!
Pshaw, friendly fire in my back. What a hoax.
#21
Well, that pretty much sounds like a direct attack. Much like President Obama attacking private citizens. Both situations are wrong. As long as they are picketing quietly then there is no reason for residents to be bothered.
-
There is no need for a casino law to throw people in jail for picketing, unless of course they are actually causing a commotion in front of somebody's home.
#22
The German Nazi racism and its resulting ideas was the peak of ideological human insanity. You can't compare anything to that. It's simply wrong. It doesn't work anyway, because everybody has been comparing the Nazis to anybody.
Whereas comparing libertarianism to anarchism makes a lot of sense. Because both ideologies adovacate extreme freedom and deny government. Which in any case leads to chaos and finally to the monopoly of those who have the most power. The outcome isn't different from Communist dictatorships, as I said above.
#23
Well, ya know, upon hearing this news Obama would gleefully chime "States' Rights!"
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Well, this reminds me of the other, once Soviet-communist-ruled, Georgia. The Bolsheviks fought free unions too.
This fits fairly well into my current topic: showing how similar in nature libertarianism and Leninist communism are. And this proves me right. Both, communism and libertarianism, suppress free unions.
President Reagan argued pretty much like in the Leninist Russia at that time: Workers wouldn't need unions, government would care for their rights.
Ha! Libertarian/Soviet-bolshevist government monopoly: Liberty only for the monopolists. That's libertarian!