I am so weary of the unrelenting attacks on workers in this country. I'm afraid that, even with President Obama in office for a second term, nothing will improve because there are still too many Republicans in power. I'm fed up with the childish vendettas the Republicans are waging because they lost the election. When will they grow up and start caring about the country, instead of their egos and their power trips? Most likely never. Until Tea Party types and Neocons are voted out of office, this country will never improve. Let's face it: we don't stand a chance against the big money guns the Republicans are wielding. It may take the country completely collapsing before stupid voters wake up and stop putting Tea Partiers and Neocons in office. Until that happens, I don't think anything will get better.

THIS is THE problem we have with government. MEDICARE drastically needs reform (I am 72, using it). However, in our dysfunctional divided government it is part of a game of words. It's all or nothing, fought tooth and nail -- I assume by people who have no idea how it is implemented in practice. It's a concept (or 2 self-serving concepts), neither of which have anything to do with reality, Medicare in practice. Meanwhile, healthcare distribution is a mess, financing is worse.

One tribe wants singlepayer, the other tribe (per their patrons propaganda) wants it privatized. Meanwhile we have the worst convoluted mish-mash of a camel-istic system designed by a long-series of committees (half adding poison-pills to sabatage it, others compromizing just to get anything). It's the worst "system" I could possibly imagine.

My complaint: despite a tone of bureaucratic paperwork, it is almost impossible for the ultimate consumer (the patient) to understand much less have any affect on cost-control. Invoices if available are unintelligible, with gorsely inflated prices denied, retracted, paid -- always with some left for me to pay (on top of my Medicare contribution, my "advantage" supplement and my Copay. It's a mess and the overall healthcare system "In accordance with Medicare requirements ..." is utterly beyond reason and control.

Don't get me wrong, I think Social Security works great (Money in; 3% Admin, Money out). Exceptionally clean and simple. It works great. Fine-tuning, can easilly account for demographic ebbs and flows, without destroying everything. I'd have no problem with increases or cutbacks -- based on receipts and disbursements -- as long as the safety-net is still there. Get real.

However, Medicare and the US Healthcare Finance/Delivery Systems are a horrible mess. Quality-of-care can be excellent (IF you have coverage, or use the Emergency Room access); however, the Financial Admin Management side of healthcare is insane. Pricing and reimbursement are beyond any words I can muster. Medicare's botched-up cost control totally messes the whole system.

So, when I hear utterly silly simplistic slogans like: "Medicare on the table" and "Medicare off the table" -- I just shake my head wondering if there is any hope for EVER cleaning up the mess, getting anything resembling a rational US Healthcare System.

Unfortunately, not in this civil-class-war climate, not in my lifetime, I fear.

My hope is to work well past 65 (hopefully to 85 or older) so as to not need to take my Social Security benefits. But, I like knowing that they will be there in full at 65 just in case I can not is very comforting. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to receiving my Medicare benefits at age 65 (8.5 years from now) so that I can stop being gouged by the private health insurance companies. For Social Security just end the cap of just over $100,000 and tax every dollar of earned income. Let Medicare get Rx at cheaper prices. Perhaps even lessening the time protection for patents on new drugs to make generics available at an earlier stage would be worthwhile. Perhaps a complete overhaul on the way medical services are billed would make sense to allow doctors to bill for their time instead of just things done or other ways that would be fair to the health services professions and providers.

The GOP is Playing hard ball Chicken with the 98%, again. GOP Leaders act as if the election did not change anything. They fail to examine more carefully the total votes of all third Party candidates, who showed well. The numbers change dramatically whey examined with Democratic vs Republican and primarily Republicans numbers drop greatly. Democrats whold their own. But it also shows how right wing has lost substantial credibility with its base. As you compare total number that went out to vote.

It is high time that we begin to talk seriously. Any Changes to Medicare should be to lower the age for eligibility a couple of years to allow those close to retirement to take their benefits without penalty and leave work space for younger people.

THe same goes with Social Security's Eligibility age. In the same vein, any discussion of cutting benefits should be out of the discussion as this is a stand on it's own merits. IF anything, the ceiling that caps who pays into Social Security should change with all persons with earning, and income paying a percentage. instead of the cap at the top at $100,000.

Talks of ending the 2006 "Drain on Postal Services profits by funding the Retirement 75 years in advance should be terminated. A portion of that money should go back to restoring the black line on the balance sheet and the plans for converting the fleet into an electric/solar energy fleet implemented. with no further closing of Postal Offices. This helps greatly as it would guarantee that Services and jobs are preseved.

Defense budget must be discussed as it is the major cause of the Debt. Starting with subcontracting of services to Para-military entities. Especially, in the case of helping to rebuild after desasters such as Katrina. Return this work to the Services of the Coast Guard and regualr Services. Who are paid at a more reasonable rate. The Rich must pay their fair share and we must allow the top 2% to end their gauging of the wealth created by workers that they hord in other parts of the world. Only those who have a proven plan written which brings jobs and factory work back to the states should receive a one-time reduction in taxes for reinvesting money that ws stored in foreign banks.

It strikes me as funny...

The same people that agree with the Supreme Courts ruling that Corporations are a People and money is its voice are anti-union and want to abolish collective bargaining.

Hhhhmmmmmm...something strange go'en on here!?

Detroit, 34.5% on Food Stamps, 45.7% not in labor force. Is this not a "Wasteland"?

My thoughts about the unions; Early on in life my feelings were a mix of emotions. Some good, some not good. Now, rereading the Bill of rights in the First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. Intrinsically holds all the elements that we the people should really care about and how this amendment is connected to an assembly of an elected body called a union. The irony is that the overall disrespect we the people have for the unions are parallel to effect of what is in our government representatives. The people’s attitude sucks. The reason why unions have slide in support.

Yes, the amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, thereby making it feel a lot out of place to call someone brethren, or brother, with such a feeling as to be religious. Perhaps those are the individuals who are really masquerading as a union official. But really not. We know in our hearts that there are plenty of representatives in unions that don’t give a shit! The types you talk to about in issues that breach a local contract. The hypocrisy is staggering, where we know the running front union official my very well end up in management. Think about it if the company can find a person to make the worker happy and in line chances are they found a person for their first line management team. Ah La congressional or senate representative quits and goes to think tanks for political or becomes a lobbyist.

Also, abridging the freedom of speech, to reduce the length, to cut short; to curtail, to omit. As Omit Romney, for laughs just had to throw that in. Even in assemblies on the streets is it not a curiosity that a public emissary is not sent out to meet for free speech and air grievances. But a Journalist, a corporate journalist, devoted to a six figure salary schmoozing on the air waves all the while watching we the people as unionized police beat assemblies, or occupies movements in the street over their heads with batons and spray with pepper spray. We the people get slap around or torture in the streets while the corporate media get profits in commercial ads. An extraordinary screwed up system with total disrespect for those core elements of the constitution. The "new media" (not miss spelled), knows it, but asks why the country is so upset. Why are people taking of lives for stupid reasons?

Then, infringing on the freedom of the press, where Fox news owned a huge amount by the Wahhabi Arabs highly and likely influence the programming of news to fill the hate mongers besides Rush Limbaugh or Dennis Miller or other hate radio specialist that lie, or outright antithetical to the constitution, meaning they are obstructionist that work in the system of the constitution itself. The current Republicans need the constitution as it stands, and the Democrats the way they are. Just think about it otherwise how could they become billionaires by any other means. Its delightfully simple when you think about it. Republicans need sappy dumb Democrats to be rich. There are millions out there and they know it!!! That’s why we need unions.

am4dms12 I don't know if what you say is true or not, but if it is that is a management/quality control problem that you describe. It is the responsibility of the plant management to put out a good product. Management has to make sure they put the right person in the right place and train them to do the job they are being paid to do. If they can't get enough quality people to do the work, that will force them to offer more money to their new hires in an effort to get better quality employees. Then everyone's boat gets lifted in the rising tide.

Unfortunately in most businesses lately it has been a falling tide. I've been caught in both rising and falling tides, and those of us in the energy business right now are in a rising tide. But it has not always been that way, believe me.

That's true, Ken, there would likely not be any more jobs anywhere else either.

I just watched an interview of Michael Hudson, the economist, on the Max Keiser show. Very scary!

Michael Hudson, the economist, says that we have a "fiction economy" that has no real collateral to back up our savings in the banks. The government and the banks believe that all they have to do is make the public believe that the "fiction economy" is not fiction and that it is necessary to pay down the debt by sacrificing social programs, breaking labor unions, increasing taxes on consumers, and canceling the pension fund debt, etc., in order to save the system. But, in reality, what they are doing is transferring large funds from the 99% to the 1%. It's "the greatest rip off in history all wrapped in the fiction that the debt can be paid." The debt cannot be paid and it won't be paid. But they are using that as an excuse to rob the 99%. The government will end up saying only the bottom 99% will have to pay the debt but the top 1% won't have to pay any of the debt.

The Obama administration's plan is to cut worker's wages by 30%, take away social security, medicare, and other social programs and cancel pension fund debt. The reason why the Obama administration has been able to raise so much money from major financial criminals....Eric Holder has promised that no rich campaign contributors will go to jail..no banker will go to jail..only the small fry will. William Black has said that the only criminals arrested was when Bernie Madoff walked into the police headquarters with his hands up and said "I surrender".

http://michael-hudson.com/2012/07/beyond-fictitious-capital/

The giant sucking sound you now hear in that part of the country are all the jobs moving from Ohio and Ilinois to Michigan and Indiana.

You've said it so well . but lets see what tricks the opposing teams have up their sleeves ,we all know the good that the unions have done for the labor force in this country but, somehow they've turned things around and now the general labor keeps hearing the lies and untruths and somehow they believe it .