There’s so much more where these stories came from, reports on another labor-friendly legislation or regulation, and always the same theme, more burdens on emerging private companies. None so horrendous at first glance, none without far reaching consequences – and none without numberless counterparts, assaulting any entrepreneur – who just wants to do honest hard...
Recent reports on union activity from around the web through November 12, 2010: Super-sized pensions, and a doomsday scenario by Bob Sullivan, November 12, 2010, MSNBC In New York, a 44-year-old firefighter retires with a $101,000 a year pension, for life. Near Chicago, a parks commissioner quits and begins collecting a $166,000 pension – a...
History has taught us the threat of extinction invokes a strange caged animal affect on fraudsters in governments, businesses and institutions that face obsolescence or have outlived their usefulness. The passing of fascism and decline of communism because of their oppression of human rights, and the demise of passenger railroads and land line telephones due...
Last week’s Election 2010 Blog explored the possibility of potential election fraud. Coincidentally, states such as Nevada (See E-mail Shows Illegal Activity in Reid’s Campaign) were considered to be high risk for election fraud, and they remained blue states despite the red wave that swept over the rest of the nation. It is important to...
A recent Wall Street Journal article pointed out that the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has become the biggest political spender in the 2010 election campaign – thus far having spent $87.5 million. Two other public employee unions have chipped in another $84 million (Service Employees International Union – $44 million and...
On September 18th, my 57th birthday, I drove to my mother’s grave as I have done every year since she passed away from a massive stroke on Thanksgiving Day, 1990, at the young age of 59. Some may think this sentimental, and others quirky, but for me it is an opportunity to revisit memory lane...
Recent reports on union activity from around the web through Oct. 26, 2010: Unions the Real Big-Money Culprits This Election Season By Mark McKinnon, The Daily Beast, October 24, 2010 The out-of-control big-money donors this fall aren’t the U.S. Chamber of Commerce types, as the White House would have you believe. Mark McKinnon on the...
Recent reports on union activity from around the web through Oct. 19, 2010: County Caves to Union Threat By Troy Anderson, Daily News, October 19th, 2010 Despite learning Tuesday that Los Angeles County faces a $26 billion tab over coming decades to cover pension and retiree health care costs, the Board of Supervisors delayed pursuing...
Recent reports on union activity from around the web through Oct. 12, 2010: The Paralysis of the State By David Brooks, New York Times, October 12, 2010 Sometimes a local issue perfectly illuminates a larger national problem. Such is the case with the opposition of the New Jersey governor, Chris Christie, to construction of a...
Working from the bottom up, it is virtually impossible to extract accurate figures to quantify just how much money public sector unions spend on political activity. For example, money spent at the state level on politics, as tracked by the National Institute on Money in State Politics, or, in California, as tracked by the California...
Within the next few days the U.S. Senate may consider Senate Bill 3194, the “Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act,” that will require states to grant collective bargaining rights for all public safety workers, including police, firefighters and emergency medical workers. Residents of California have had a front row seat to witness the consequences of allowing...