Wisconsin is about stealing public utilities

FluffyMcDeath

FluffyMcDeath

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What's that Fluffy? Out of tin-foil? No, I've just been dealing with politicians and politics too much lately so I am even more cynical than usual.

What is going on in Wisconsin? Is it just about busting unions? Well, that is a part of it no doubt, but with Walker in there I doubt that is what it is all about.

For the last 25 years of my life as I have become politically aware there is a pattern I have seen over and over again from the right wing on the level of nations and provinces/states and city. The agenda tends to go along the lines of, make everything secret, hit out at every conceivable target with terrible legislation, salt the works with really outrageous things that people can rail against and that you think would be cool if you could get to pass but that, ultimately, you can live without and then let "compromise" with your nutless opposition by withdrawing the truly awful if they will settle for passing the merely bad.

Plus from what I know already about the Koch brothers, this wouldn't surprise me a bit.
 
The Koch Bros. I don't know much about at all.

What's the deal with them?
(I'm doing a search but would be good to see a Fluffy-summary. :-))
 
Robert said:
The Koch Bros. I don't know much about at all.

What's the deal with them?
(I'm doing a search but would be good to see a Fluffy-summary. :-))
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This is the thing. Very few people know who are the people that rule/own them. I first heard about them in the writings of Greg Palast but snooping around on the net I see there is plenty of material these days. It seems that they have attracted some attention, and I haven't read this New Yorker article yet but it looks promising.

And, also, they've opened a lobbying office in Madison apparently.
 
cecilia said:
http://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/49627885/ShowThread.aspx

a fake koch called the governor and the truth comes spilling out
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I'd just heard about that but hadn't had time to check it out. Sounds like that what I'm going to do next. :)
 
Just a reminder about what is really causing everyone's budget crisis. Unions? No, some really wealthy crooks - who just got their tax breaks extended again.

[youtube:3py692r8]hPV3PF_D24k[/youtube:3py692r8]
 
Robert said:
The Koch Bros. I don't know much about at all.

What's the deal with them?
(I'm doing a search but would be good to see a Fluffy-summary. :-))
Click to expand...
basically the Koch brothers PAID for Scott Walker governorship.

they are his bosses which is why he was pandering to them during the phone call.
 
I know it's in the story I linked to but I thought I'd quote it here:

16.896 Sale or contractual operation of state?owned heating, cooling, and power plants. (1) Notwithstanding ss. 13.48 (14) (am) and 16.705 (1), the department may sell any state?owned heating, cooling, and power plant or may contract with a private entity for the operation of any such plant, with or without solicitation of bids, for any amount that the department determines to be in the best interest of the state. Notwithstanding ss. 196.49 and 196.80, no approval or certification of the public service commission is necessary for a public utility to purchase, or contract for the operation of, such a plant, and any such purchase is considered to be in the public interest and to comply with the criteria for certification of a project under s. 196.49 (3) (b).
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metalman said:
FluffyMcDeath said:
Plus from what I know already about the Koch brothers, this wouldn't surprise me a bit.
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Why the Evil Koch Bros. Must be Stopped: They Support Drug Legalization, Gay Marriage, Reduced Defense Spending.
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Yes, typically libertarian. I can sympathize with a lot of that but they always like to leave out the part where Adam Smith talked about how the role of the government is taxing away excess wealth of individuals to prevent the rise of oligarchs. Preventing excessive accumulation is vital to preserving competition because once you have a small group of oligarchal monopolies they are just as lethal to prosperity as a king or a dictator.

As to the most prosperous countries, yes, they are more morally permissive and the citizen is responsible for consequences of his own actions should they hurt himself, but actions which hurt others are not treated so liberally. The excessive accumulation of power is viewed as a negative because of the very real and negative effect it has on the social fabric and general prosperity of a nation. Prosperous nations do not allow large private accumulations - just as the US once did not allow such things back when it was prosperous. The current wealth friendly climate is not the norm in the US and has always ended badly when it has happened.
 
Egypt was a labour rebellion. Workers do topple governments because, without workers, no work gets done.
[youtube:i8jqx8ao]fTj3yVGFOLE[/youtube:i8jqx8ao]
 
FluffyMcDeath said:
they always like to leave out the part where Adam Smith talked about how the role of the government is taxing away excess wealth of individuals to prevent the rise of oligarchs. Preventing excessive accumulation is vital to preserving competition because once you have a small group of oligarchal monopolies they are just as lethal to prosperity as a king or a dictator.
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The Wealth Of Nations, Book IV, Chapter II, p. 456, para. 10.

There is no art which one government sooner learns of another than that of draining money from the pockets of the people.

The Wealth Of Nations, Book V Chapter II Pt II, p. 826, para. 6.

The proprietor of stock is necessarily a citizen of the world, and is not necessarily attached to any particular country. He would be apt to abandon the country in which he was exposed to a vexatious inquisition, in order to be assessed to a burdensome tax, and would remove his stock to some other country where he could either carry on his business, or enjoy his fortune more at his ease.
 
Republican Politics Cheatsheet.
NnXJZ.png
 
LINK
Number of teachers in Wisconsin: 59,552
Number of millionaires in Wisconsin: 89,977

Average Wisconsin teacher salary: $46,390

Typical wage cut faced by a Wisconsin school teacher if Gov. Scott Walker's non- negotiable give-backs are enacted: $5,567 to 6,958 per year

Continuing average income boost for millionaires in Wisconsin and elsewhere, thanks to the recent extension of 2001 Bush-era federal tax cuts: Approximately $100,000 per year

.....
Allowing Wisconsin millionares to keep 19/20ths of the Bush tax cut would prevent lowering a good number of the middle-class.

Republican war on the middle-class continues.....
 
faethor said:
Republican Politics Cheatsheet.
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Whaaaaahhh!!! Those Evil Republicans!
[youtube:3vxfrz3m]r2hgu_2NWpo[/youtube:3vxfrz3m]

Sacrifices must be made

She must not have heard Obamacare has "end-of-life planning" included
 
oh, those Evil evil teachers !
how dare they try to survive and attempt to do good for society!!

how horrible!!



:roll:
 
metalman said:
faethor said:
Average Wisconsin teacher salary: $46,390
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+Benefits

The average Milwaukee Public School teacher will be receiving $100,005 in compensation this year – $56,500 of that is in salary, and $43,505 is in benefits.

When public school teacher salaries are adjusted for the number of weeks teachers work each year, teachers are among some of the most highly compensated employees.
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Note this is 1 city only, not the entire state. Being as the Statewide average is about $8K less I suspect many other towns are paid less in both salary and total benefits.

I have the question why/how did the City put themselves in this position? It would seem about 30+% of the $100K is healthcare. Let the City get competitive bids and even if they could cut this rate in half to say 15% they'd be close to the private sector. Also, this would save $15K/year per teacher and very few would see this as a 'pay cut' as they'd still have the healthcare benefit.

IMO this speaks to the US System overall. Healthcare is a run away expense. This high rate is likely because the government must buy their stuff from the private market. More should be done to reduce our significantly more expensive care than any other nation. This would increase competitiveness. Governments should be able to start combining healthcare plans for workers. Why could they not include their workers in the 'low income' healthcare plans that are much less costly? Of allow any government worker to use medicare? How 'bad' these plans are or are not is always a discussion point. The net result of the shift would be to lower the healthcare costs for the State and Local governments.

And afterall wasn't this about lowering costs? Let's start getting creative and stop trying to gut more of the middle-class.



FADE: Certainly you'd want to make $100K in a year? When do you think you'll be done with your teaching certificate?
 
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