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Ken Ware: I hadn't heard that about the extra $63 about to be tacked on to taxes for preexisting conditions. Thanks for the heads up...I'll have to look it up. I had suspected, however, that what will happen is that the insurance companies, despite not being able to turn anyone down for a preexisting condition, will still be able to charge a lot more for the premiums for those with preexisting conditions. In addition, I don't think the bill will prevent insurance companies from basing their premiums on age. The premiums currently are based on age, preexisting conditions and other things. The older you are the more they charge.
Kend - I can always count on you to make me wonder about conservatives. Let's live for a moment in the real world. People in Unions are better paid with benefits and a vacation than are the nonunion workers. Many corporations in such industries as Aerospace were unionized and those that weren't had to offer the same pay and benefits as the union corporations to retain good employees. If you were an employee with exceptional skills you often were/are promoted to a higher position. The main reason why these conservative Republican hate the unions is because the unions generally support Democrats that are more labor friendly. You know that and to raise a smoke screen or red herring to avoid that issue is beneath you. When I left the military in the mid 70's I had several offers from union and non-union companies. I choose the unionized companies so I could be represented and to be honest they offered better pay and benefits. When the conservatives say that unions stop companies from firing poor workers that is simply a lie or smoke screen. The people I hear denouncing the unions are people who would join one if it was presented to them. We all know companies and corporations today are only concerned with profit and not with the employee. Otherwise how can you explain the fact that the working man's wages have stagnated while upper management has made out like bandits in terms of their pay and benefits. Republican politicians have tried to destroy private and public worker unions for political reasons and everyone knows that! If it wasn't for the unions these Republicans and the corporations that support them would privatize all public jobs for greater profit for themselves. Teachers, firemen and policemen would all be replaced with the cheapest labor the corporations could find and coerce their employees into voting for the Republicans like the Koch brothers attempted to do. And all the people that work for the government in office jobs would also see themselves replaced with the cheapest labor they could find for more profit. These people who are out to destroy the unions is not because they are concerned with rmployee's having to pay union dues, but rather to stop those union dues from supporting Liberals and Democrats. Only a blind man would think this has anything to do with employee choice! My daughter is a teacher and she belongs to a union. They have the choice of whether any of their dues should go to support political campaigns. It is just a lie that the Republicans spread around like a disease to get people to see unions as the bad guy. As I stated earlier, employees who demonstrate poor work performance can be fired. The only difference between a union employee and a non-union worker is that the union worker is allowed to go through a due process of law before they are fired. In non-union places of work you’re at the mercy and whims of the employer. Show me on person who would rather be a non-union worker, rather than a unionized worker. Good luck on that one. The employees who complain about the unions are usually Republicans who hate the idea that any of their dues are going to support a Democrat. In every union I know about the employee already has the right to state they do not want any of their dues going to support a political party. This whole thing is about busting the unions so they will not support the Democrat Party. And that my friend is why Republicans hate unions. I hope you enjoy your time in Arizona and the sunshine!
I don't know, if a frog had wings he wouldn't bump his as so much.
Hey Skeeter, I think a better question is.... If non union settings are so good... why did the bottom 90% only receive 16% of the total income growth from 1989 to 2007 a trend that is continuing my friend?
Why is the billionaire party always allowed to play offense even when the democrats have the ball? Why in hell isn't the CARD CHECK BILL getting rammed through? Why do we let out of control citizens like the Kochs and DeVos family set the agenda when instead they should be fleeing the country with a sack of jewels?
I'll tell you what, if Obama caves on the so called entitlement cuts, his place in history will be that of the, we held our nose and voted for the lesser of two evils candidate. He needs to go FDR crazy and right now...doesn't he see what's happening? The ball is in his hands, man up to the drunks and teabaggers. They full well know if he caves he will be hated...it's what they want!
The site is acting funny, this is a reply to #11 not #12.
Again, so unreal.
A union doesn't prevent you being promoted. When you lose something collectively you lose EVERYTHING individually. You, as an INDIVIDUAL, are paid less, are less protected, are thoroughly exploited. Unions are because you, as an individual, don't have the power to bargain for a fair contract with your employer. You only have that power when you unite with your coworkers and bargain collectively.
When you are greedy and have no regard for others you stab yourself in the ass.
I sure hope so. The clips I've heard on the radio, of him speaking on the subject, have been encouraging. But in light of his track record, I'll have to see it to believe it. - Aliceinwonderland
How is joining a union, mandatorily, interfering with anyone's "right to work"? Does anyone ever object to joining a union?
My problem with unions is, when you do something collectively you lose something individually. If I work harder than most people shouldn't I make more than them?
DCC of FH what if I want to be a fireman or government worker I have no choice but to join a union, is that freedom?
They'll redirect everything to China.
They don't need us anymore, they don't care what happens to us. I'm suprised they don't try to kill us all like they did the Native Americans.
The fact that this question has to be asked tells us a great deal about the brain washing that has been done over the past few decades. There was a time in America when getting a union job was all any working person wanted. It meant that they would have an decent LIVING WAGE and be covered by a collective insurance for healthcare for themselves and their families. It also meant that if their wife wanted to stay home an be a mother to their children they could afford to do that. Not only did the union lift the boats of its members but non-union shops had to comply with many of the same rules because they were in the market for the same labor force. Union wages made it possible for working men and women to buy a decent little house, a family car, TV, and maybe even a boat. They could afford to have a vacation and it was the union that brought them overtime wages and paid vacation time. The Union often did not bargain for money but rather safer working conditions, dental coverage, and mental health services. They went to the aid of members in trouble with family problems, and addiction. They made it possible to keep your job even if your supervisor did not like you for whatever reason. You could not be brow beaten for fear of being fired. Naturally there were always some who took advantage of the system. Unfortunately those cases stood out like sore thumbs and were used by union opponents to point out that unions made it difficult to get rid of bad employees. No, it was only that the person was given a chance to redeem themselves and the union would stand by them up to a point. In the 1960s the auto companies in Michigan had to send out massive advertising to other countries because their skilled labor force was retiring without replacements. They needed Tool and Die makers, electricians, plumbers, welders, engineers, etc. The ads were in all the foreign press and hiring was being done overseas. Why was that? It was because there was no apprentise programs for the companies to replenish the workers who were leaving. It was the unions who arranged to train American workers for the jobs that would open up when an older work force left.
Our biggest problem has been that many young workers do not remember the struggles and the hardship it was to win the right to collective bargain. The company has the power and the money. Working people have only their time and their labor. The Grapes of Wrath should be must reading in every high school so that young people can understand how it was before unions made workings conditions better. if you don't like unions then I suggest you do not apply for a job that has a union that protects the worker's back.
Because there is now and has always been more workers than jobs companies like to pull the strings all by themselves. They like to think that anyone they hire is lucky to have the job so they should not complain about working conditions or the wages. Before airconditioning many plants did not want to locate in the South because of the heat. Once that was taken care of individual states became like countries bargaining for companies to come and build in their state. More companies meant more employment which it turn supplied the state with more tax revenue. In order to get those companies they promised to give away the store. Promises were made to keep unions out, pay for the infrastructure, charge no corporate taxes for so many years. On and on the promises went but in the end it has helped to kill the LIVING WAGES that Americans needed to support a family in a decent manner and maybe even send their kids off to college. There was no longer money to spare to save for the kids education.
Unions will come back once more and more workers are at the "Brother can you spare a dollar" stage.
michigan min wage $7.40 hr. service (tipped) $2.65!!!!<I think thats what that hot little waitress that showed me life was making back in 1980!!!> Minors 85% of the minimum. When i got fired from my first job in 1979 as a dishwasher a had earned my way up to a whopping $3.35! Man that was the shniz at 16!!! next step? Grill boy/relisher and get to $5.50. an hour! Man the chick would so dig me! Then that fateful day, FAT CHARLIE, "your fired!"...Think about that and try not to cry for the young people today for they truly are screwed!! Back then i could at least pay my rent with one weeks pay and keep mac and cheese in my stomach. A young person tryin to fly solo these days? Tragic indeed...
When i moved away from Michigan i really did mean to return, live someplace like Michigan city, St. Joeseph or Holland maybe even Hilsdale? I'd actually be affraid of what the mind set of folks is back there these days! Pretty sad, my home town had so much industry when i was a kid, 1972. All those dad's going to work everyday, working for an assembly line pay that was such he could get through the day, feed the wife, feed the kids and even get them off to college. All those sons in that home town left behind now just shooting up crack they know they can never go back to what ever it was daddy worked to have. The idiots of America went and sold us all out, bought our poloticians and traded it all away just so we can work for less and less pay. I sure hope the last cereal plant there doesn't burn to the ground they may just send the rest of my home town industry down ol' mexico way....
from "a" investor report that came across my desk..."From the 4th qtr 08 to the 2nd qtr 11, real domestic corp earnings surged by almost 100% while real employee comp has risen by a mere 3%. Got your attention? The world in an effort to satisfy the pigishness of corp greed and the markets will soon all be like America, third world with the highest min wage a whopping $9.04 and hour...So what will the markets do when suddenly no one can afford to consume anymore?
You have to have at least some worldliness to understand that (or lack any to genuinely ask that question).
Let's just say there are many things you don't choose about a workplace when you enter a new job, many of them are not for your benefit, some are. This is one that is.
Obama is no different than the Republicans. He is a Politician and cannot be trusted either. I just read that there are additional costs to Americans concerning his health care bill. There will be an additional tax of $63 a head to cover people with preexisting health problems. Don't get me wrong, I support health care for everyone. But this guy has more tricks in his bag than a magician! I really believe his lack of intestinal fortitude allowed Pharmaceutical companies and big Medical Corporations to stick it to us in his health care bill. Do I trust him to do the right thing concerning the fiscal cliff, NO! I think Palindromedary is rubbing off on me, because I am beginning to think this B.S. between the White House and Republicans is a conspiracy to slide Austerity measures into the budget and then they will blame each other for it. What better way to enact austerity into the picture then to say I had to do this to get that. We got the Republicans (the rich) to go along with higher taxes, but we had to take cuts in various social programs. Mark my word the Poor and the Lower Middleclass will get screwed before this fiscal cliff is resolved. I really hope I am wrong and both sides do the right thing for our citizens and future citizens, those that are going to be born. I had to add that part in; I'm going to be a grand-father in a few months for the first time, so the future means even more to me at this stage in my life! P.S., I really do not trust this government or any Corporation that say they are looking out for our (American Citizens) best interest, now and in the future. I think it is time to start reading this massive health care bill and see exactly who the beneficiaries actually are.
I
I really hope the Az. sun melts through the ice! Sorry if I lumped you in with the level headed, caregiving and civic minded Canadians .I figured out from our conversations you are a stubborn Conservative. Have a great time in Az. and good wishes for the holidays!
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I do not know what in the hell is going on with this blog site but comments keep appearing in the wrong place!
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Mr. Hartmann may want to stop promoting the notion of Reagan arms for Iranian hostages as it appears to have been disinformation: While researching Lyndon LaRouche, was I surprised to read Wikipedia citing LaRouche as first making public the rumor that Iran held off releasing the hostages pending an arms' deal with Reagan. Is LaRouche anyone to be taken seriously? The article contends the rumor was false. Of course, more research is needed.
That Iranians would hold off releasing the hostages for the above reason makes no sense. They desperately needed Americans to realize public opinion was being manipulated to cast Iranians as villains. In fact, and to quote an Iranian student at the time, "Iranians are a peace-loving people," and took no violent measures against us when their country was threatened as they attempted to remove the Shah, their bloody dictator. The hostage-taking was a desperate way to prevent another American coup like the one that installed the Shah. However, the media didn't inform Americans about the Shah's brutality which operated with American governmental support. The Iranians knew Reagan supported American use/control of Iranian oil and labor and was no different in that respect than Carter; therefore had no more advantage in dealing with Reagan than with Carter.
Hear, hear!!
Forced? Really? If you don't want to belong to a union, don't get a job at a union shop.
Realize that the right to work for less bills force unions to represent everyone without that person contributing to the cost of having and maintaining that same union. Fair? Not in the least.
So, identifying this effort as simply an attack on unions is right on target.
... and if this idea was such a good one, why did the legislature apply the poison pill that makes it impossible for a voter referendum to repeal it? You darn well know: the majority in the state would not vote for what the GOP has spawned.
Snyder Overreach? Perhaps so.
Indeed, Snyder may have handed Democrats an early Christmas present. He runs for re-election in 2014. Since President Obama seems intent on despiriting progressives by giving in to entitlement cuts, the Democratic turnout for the mid-year election was due to be low.
Now, we have a ready made inspirational call for a GOTV effort in 2014!
We just have to make sure this outrage does not flow down the memory hole and become confused by the GOP's doublethink.
- Darryl of Farmington Hills, MI