Breaking along party lines, a Republican-dominated House committee Thursday okayed a proposed rewrite of state unemployment compensation laws – cutting eligibility for Florida’s jobless and making it harder to claim benefits.
Representatives of the state’s business organizations said little, instead mostly just nodding as the House Finance and Taxation committee approved the legislation (HB 7005) on a 16-6 vote. Democrats sided with labor unions and advocates for low-income Floridians who warned that with unemployment nearly 12 percent and more than 900,000 jobs lost since the recession, the legislation could prove punishing to those out of work.
But Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami, said the legislation was needed to help businesses struggling to meet rising unemployment tax rates caused by having shed so many jobs. He likened the relationship between workers and their bosses to a marriage, saying there needs to be some give-and-take.
According to Florida Revenue Department figures, 75,832 employers went out of business last year.
“There is no employee without an employer,” Fresen said. “We have to assure there is a climate where businesses can grow.”
But Rep. Scott Randolph, D-Orlando, said the GOP was effectively advancing a “socialized bill,” because it shifts costs away from businesses by limiting benefits to unemployed workers. In turn, many of these jobless Floridians will be forced onto state Medicaid rolls and other taxpayer-financed assistance programs, Randolph said.
Another Democrat, Rep. Joe Abruzzo of Wellington, said he liked some features aimed at denying benefits to those gaming the system. But Abruzzo said he couldn’t support reducing the number of weeks Floridians could qualify for unemployment pay.
“That, to me, is too much – and too burdensome for families,” Abruzzo said.
The legislation mirrors a proposal unveiled earlier this month by Gov. Rick Scott, which reduces the duration of state unemployment benefits from 26 to 20 weeks, while maintaining the current maximum payment of $275-a-week.
Like Scott, the House plan also would tie benefits to the state’s unemployment rate. The period a jobless worker could receive a check would fall to a maximum of 12 weeks if unemployment hits 5 percent or less.
The reductions would only affect Floridians joining the jobless rolls after the legislation becomes law. Federal unemployment benefits, which currently extend as long as 99 weeks, could still kick-in when state coverage is exhausted. Critics pointed out, though, that the most generous federal standards are scheduled to end this year.
The legislation, sponsored by Economic Development and Tourism subcommittee Chairman Doug Holder, R-Sarasota, emerged from recommendations pushed by a business coalition, including the National Federation of Independent Business, the Florida Retail Federation, Associated Industries of Florida and the state Chamber of Commerce. The Senate version of the legislation is (SB 728) is scheduled to get its first hearing Tuesday in the Commerce and Tourism Committee.
Along with reducing benefits, Holder’s measure also adds new authority for employers to challenge a fired or laid-off worker’s claim. The drive to change the system is prompted by business groups panicking over rate hikes – with this year’s minimum levy scheduled to climb from $25 per worker to $72.10 per worker this spring. Employers pay the full rate.
In June, another $10 will be added to these payments to cover interest owed on the $1.8 billion the state has borrowed from the federal government the past two years to maintain the state’s depleted trust fund for jobless benefits. The Obama administration has proposed allowing states to postpone these interest payments, but ruling Republicans in the House and Senate instead say they are intent on tightening the state’s system.
Holder defended the measure’s attempts at toughening the standards for jobless workers seeking benefits and requiring those seeking benefits to undergo a skills review.
“This is a great way to give unemployed Floridians a hand up, and not a hand out,” Holder said.
–John Kennedy, News Service Florida
elaygee says
Makes you cringe when you think of how stupid the people who voted for these Creepublicans are and that they walk amongst us looking almost like normal people. It’s like a Klan dedicated to lynching the poor and unemployed.
William says
The class warfare just keeps heating up
Some uncomfortable facts:
The US economy is consumer-driven. Around 70% last time I checked.
When money is removed from the consumer’s pockets, be it by way of requiring increased contributions to pension funds, the all-out attack on unions, reductions in benefits from an ever-shrinking social safety net, etc. etc., the inevitable consequence is that business will suffer losses. It is of no benefit to own the store, when your customers do not have the means to purchase your product.. 75,832 businesses lost last year alone puts the exclamation mark on that fact.
Cutting services will never close the budget gap when business, especially big business is given hundreds of Million$ in tax breaks. The math simply DOES NOT WORK. The result of shrub’s tax cuts? 0.5% job growth over 8 years. Don’t believe me? Check with the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
If I am gainfully employed, and am frugal and prudent in my budgeting, I will (hopefully) have some disposable income for discretionary spending. Whatever I buy, goods or services, will create DEMAND. Since there must be a way to satisfy this demand, it will result in JOB CREATION. Someone must supply raw materials. Someone must turn these raw materials into parts. Someone will need to assemble these parts into a user-oriented commodity. Someone must sell the finished product. The cycle begins anew to fill the now empty space on the shelf. That, in a probably over-simplified way, is how it all works. Remove the consumer from the equation and the whole thing collapses.
But that’s not how it works, is it? This is nothing more than another way to transfer wealth upward to the richfilth, who only understand the meaning of one word. MORE. More for them, and less for you.
I recall a picture from years ago. Won the Pulitzer Prize. It was the picture of an utterly emaciated child, hovering at the edge of death. In the background, seemingly waiting for the inevitable, was a fat Vulture. The image so haunted the photographer that he committed suicide.
So here’s the question, boys and girls. Which are you?
Hint: It ain’t the vulture.
Jojo says
I agree William. This guy Scott, a non convicted Felon and his Republican cronies in the legislature better wake up. What are they going to propose when the riots start. Yes, riots. You push people to live in the street and commit crime to survive they are going to bite back. It’s the haves versus the have-nots. Scott is going to destroy this State before he finishes his one term in office. Wait until he institutes a State income tax. Arizona is looking good to relocate for Pensioners. It’s always State workers’ they go after.
Alex says
Our business establishments fail to generate jobs but getting most of the benefits.
Tom Brown says
Instead of giving tax breaks to businesses that are quick to lay off workers, how about tax relief targeted to those that make extraordinary efforts to keep people employed (such as temporarily lowering their profit margin to 1 percent). The governor and his Republican errand boys in the legislature apparently have no understanding of Keynesian economics. And their idea that the unemployment system can get stricter with policing is laughable. They are so swamped now they can barely answer their phones. Well, I guess the state could follow the Red Lobster example shown in the photo and make people stand in line for hours every 2 weeks to get their tiny checks — that might discourage some of the people gaming the system.
palm coaster says
We honest small businesses, and I am the owner of one of them right here in Palm Coast, do not want or need anymore tax breaks or funding or freebies or grants on the back of us local tax payers..like the big greedy corporations want. We do not need grants style Cakes Across America, Palm Coast Data/Continental sold projects that so far did not comply with the 700 local jobs promised, or incoming Koala, or whatever new scam comes around…hungry for funds up front. What we need is our local Government, Chamber and the like not to out source the contracts that we all tax payers fund….as is happening still, while I write this blog! Thousands of jobs will be created here just by stopping the outsource. We are ready to rehire more if you keep our tax payers originated contracts right here in Flagler. Also as a resident taxpayer in Palm Coast I don’t need/want anymore tax breaks from this Governor if its going to cost 6,000 plus more jobs losses for our state employees. We do not need more desperate job seekers in our unemployment agencies with bachelors and masters degrees wondering now when Tallahassee will stop their unemployment checks. We do not need the outsourcing and what we need are these new Tea Parties elected governors to make it even for corporations and the wealthy to pay at least the 39% in taxes that we workers and middle society pay, other than 17% and less.! That is the only way to fix the budget deficits and do not blame our workers for this financial crises caused by the rich Wall Street, Banks, hedge fund managers and our Federal Reserve. Do not attack our workers and unions in your goal to reduce them to the slavery conditions endure by their slaves overseas with the outsource jobs they stole from us here.
I am not a state worker, but I have respect for them, as they are within the fabric of the middle society that make our small businesses successful in our towns. Is not the wealthy or the large corporation, that have it all hired and supplied from somewhere “corporate location” that buys from us, small businesses, but our neighbors, community organizations, local residents and the other small local businesses. I seriously recent the false impression given here in Flagler by the administrators of our elected officials and the number one private outsourcing “the local chamber of commerce” or Enterprise burocracy, demanding all the time more of our public funds to support “one more secretive incoming potential employer that will probably fail the task as the ones named before, did”.
Johnny Taxpayer says
The more I read the comments on this site, the more I am convinced that our public school system has been criminally negligent in teaching even basic economics. What is even more shocking is most on here fail to recognize the inconvenient truth that we’ve tried it “their” way for the past few years, with what results to show for it? A bigger deficit, a longer recession, and more people being laid off. But then again, maybe we just haven’t spent enough, regulated enough, or taxed the producers in our country enough… instead of recognizing what a colossal failure these policies have been, lets double down on the failed policies, let’s spend more money that we don’t have paying people not to work, lets regulate businesses more, so they can’t grow and create the jobs our economy so desperately needs, and while we’re at it, let’s up the taxes on those evil rich people. Which creates more jobs? The Government taxing the evil rich guy even more? Or the Evil rich guy buying an evil rich yacht which immediately generates sales tax to the state, employs a host of individuals at decent wages to manufacture, maintain, ship, market, and sell the yacht?
palm coaster says
Johnny, the wealthy their yachts and the powerful lobbying corporations that all pay less than 17% taxes to zero some of them, have been in control of America since 2000 and here is where we stand today…Are you one of them above? Do some research and see how all of the above have increased their wealth since 2000 without contributing to one job gain! Furthermore most of their gains where thanks to the outsourcing of our jobs by those corporations as “slavery is very profitable” for them overseas. Some need to open their eyes and see the bare reality. By the way, look at the pathetic low sales of yacht companies like our local Sea Ray….about to shut down almost a little while ago…Why because is not the rich that makes their parent company Brunswick successful….is the middle class with their fishing and pleasure smaller watercraft purchases. In the last 5 years thanks to the bight economy created by the GOP to deregulate the powerful benefiting the wealthy while undermining the middle class and the workers deteriorated those big sales. Also the spiraling cost of gas, thanks to the gouging allowed in our country affected those sales…So where are the rich buying their yachts now…probably overseas too. Decline started in 2001 with “The Decider at the helm”
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/26/business/earnings-at-brunswick-decrease-by-half.html
Getting worst later. So where are the rich buying all those yachts to save our manufacturing? Boat sales continuo down as down is our middle class, Sir. How could you believe that America will not cease to exist as we know it since the 50’s by promoting only the success of the wealthy in this country…?
http://www.lakeexpo.com/articles/2010/01/30/top_news/05.txt
And a copy of the statiscis in NY, takes place across America today..If you do not like the NY Times you can research it and find this truth anywhere else.
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/towering_gap_ZtB2eOKBMBSbpMvhoVV9oM
Dorothea says
Johnny, it’s your education that needs an overhaul. Even John Stockman, purveyor of the trickledown economic theory during the Reagan administrator, admits that the theory doesn’t work. Otherwise known as Reaganomics, voodoo economics, or supply side economics, it’s been tried and tried again over the last thirty years, always with disasterous results.
palm coaster says
And sorry, for my typos as my mind clouds on disbelief reading some of the baseless rhetoric rooting for further victories of feudal power, in our so called and supposed to be, Democracy.
Dorothea says
Among the many Republican job killing House amendments to the budget (800,000 jobs in all) gave the axe to the EPA’s scheduled project to clean up the filthy waters of the Chesapeake Bay. May all those yachts set anchor in the bay and make the passengers eat the fish.
lawabidingcitizen says
You people don’t understand that only the private sector can provide jobs. The pubic sector, i.e., cleaning up Chesapeake Bay or any other environmental scam, needs tax payers working and kicking in their taxes to pay for it. Do you think Obama is pulling money out of his ears for these schemes.
Stimulus money was borrowing from future taxes. Can’t work, didn’t work and can never work.
Like it or not that’s the facts.
William says
The only thing about the stimulus was that it was way too small. The deficit is not the immediate concern, jobs are the immediate concern. With income inequality already at absurd proportions, very wealthy people do not need more tax breaks. They have trillion$ among them. Their corporations are sitting on lots of money. Where are the jobs? I’ll tell you where. They’re in some third-world shithole, sent there under the corporate mantra of maximized short-term profits. Master needs a new yacht to stimulate job growth. Yeah, yeah, that’s it.
The stimulus was an opportunity to put people to work repairing our crumbling infrastructure, thereby injecting cash flow into the economy, creating demand; to increase revenue at the local, state and federal level; to reduce the strain of unemployment compensation on budgets. But no. The owners programmed the hologram to screech incessantly Deficit=Death. And the rubes bought it. Thus begins the nut-squeezing by the rabid right, ending in capitulation because, let’s face it, the oligarchs don’t need no stinkin roads because we’ve got helicopters motherfuckers.
And before I hear another word about taxing the rich being the cause of our problems, I invite you to take a stroll down memory lane. The 50’s & 60’s showed, by way of example, that taxing the rich doesn’t cause the world to come crashing in. People had JOBS. They had HOMES. They had a lifestyle where the family could take a VACATION. They had BENEFITS. They had PENSIONS. They had DIGNITY. The US was THE global powerhouse for industry, economic growth, and financial strength. And guess what? There were STILL rich people. Problem was that the vampires never got over their lust for human blood, so they chipped away at any and all vulnerable spots. Slowly, deliberately. And they had a plan. And they got their tax breaks, and their political influence, and their deregulation, and their union busting, and their tax-sheltered accounts in the Caymans. It’s good to be the King.
We, on the other hand. got fucked. In every disgusting way imaginable.
So why don’t you take your bullshit Randian economics and your Laffer curve, and shove them up your ass. You’re not going to sell me those turds. Not now, not ever.
NortonSmitty says
As has been made perfectly clear in the above posts, the trickled-on economic theories we have tried were, just as Stockman said, a Trojan Horse for the rich. All it has given this country is an income gap between the workers and investment class that is the envy of Guatemala.
In thirty years of trying to point the proof of this failure out to the Conservative goose steppers, they can’t admit they have been had by their leaders. To admit this would be to question their religious beliefs they have been taught by Pope Newt the First and beloved St. Ronnie (All Hail the Holy Turdcutter, er Taxcutter, Amen),who was the first proven brain dead Republican president. If not thinking was good enough for the Gipper, by God it’s good enough for them!
Evolution is merely a theory, but cutting taxes on the rich and cutting workers pay & benefits is Gospel!
John Boy says
Johnny, most of the yatch’s you speak of are registered in various place around the world that allow owners, mostly corporations, to avoid all taxs, regulations. You adore Tiger Woods, but his 168 foot Christensen Yatch (made in Eourpe) flies a foreign flag. get your facts right. Go to the USCG site where you can look up ownership of all yacths and you will find very few US flagged vessel, cirtainly not any of the mega yachts owned by CEO’s, sports figures, Hollywood types and politicans.. They are all made in foreign countries and fly foreighn flgs to escape sales tax. The crews working on them all also non US to escape the Jones Act.
Murdock has 6 mega yatchs and none where produced here and all fly foreign flags.
Turn off Rush, Glenn and Shawn.
palm coaster says
Kudos William, well said and those are the real facts. These tugs talking about benefiting the businesses refer only to the wealthy corporations and the rich that prey on our workers, unions and the pockets of all of us middle society and do not represent at all the small business that are the real employers in our towns. I own one of those small business and this lawabiding BSer sure is not defending mine. My business does not need additional tax breaks, grants, relocation expenses paid, a free space location to create jobs, is not driven by greed. I don’t want any more BS tax breaks on the backs of our workers. What my business and all my other colleagues need is these thieves to stop out sourcing our tax payers contracts, over graft. The BSers local and national “Chamber of Commerce’s alias Chambers of Outsourcing and Funding GOP campaigns” need to really support their dwindling members other than demanding more public funds all the time to use in favor of “their big boys corporations” that some zero tax rate and up to only 17% rate, when we all pay at least 39%.
Madison Wisconsin is 1,278 miles from Palm Coast for for me, at my age to drive, otherwise I would be there supporting those workers that represent the intended demise of our Middle Society.
An attack based on lies from this evil Walker, Scott and Christi look alike. yesterday was uncovers that Walker while working in one Wisconsin Cty laid off all the security state woekrs with the lie of budget strains and turned around and hires a private securite at a higher rate, so his budget shortfall was a lie to privatize the service and the manager of that private security was a former convicted fellon. Read about Walkers lies and manipulation here: http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/89160672.html
Lets Tea Party outsider Scott try the same here in Florida and we will be there against his feudal intentions like we did defending the right to keep our Washington Oaks Park open. We better band together good and now, against these thieves before will be too late. These are the results of BuSh..it policies of 8 years on the works!
palm coaster says
Here is the fallout of feudal Walker’s privatization of the security at the Wisconsin State House based on the lies of a budget shortfall. Lets get infomed as he has a nasty record: http://www.uspoliticsonline.com/state-local-politics/65629-so-isnt-gov-walkers-first-rodeo.html
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/113212479.html
some guy says
” in our so called and supposed to be ,Democracy’ So called yup. Supposed to be NO we are supposed to be a Republic
palm coaster says
Yeap “some guy” a Democratic Republic we are supposed to to be and not a feudal GOP communist style tyranny resembling nowadays and promoted by pseudo dictators like Walker, Scott, Christi and Kasich. Down with these bullies against our workers. Recall them all.
William says
Actually if it were communism we might be better off. Marginally anyway.
No, we are sliding into a Fascist Dictatorship, where the interests of government and business are one and the same. And our boy Rick (I forgot Medicare fraud was a crime) Scott speaks the words of a dictator. What’s happening here, in Wisconsin, in Ohio, in New Jersey, is the Koch brother’s wet dream.
Which would, by extension, make the Teabirchers Koch Suckers.
William says
Here is a good example of how more is never enough for the richfilth:
http://www.illiterateelectorate.com/2011/02/with-middle-class-gone-wealthy-go-after.html
. says
wow amazzzing how the libs act when the loose some elections
NortonSmitty says
Wow, no wonder you only use a . as your name as poorly as you spell.
William says
Alert, Alert!
This is significant!
Pierre, you might want to keep an eye on this.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/02/22/wisconsin-protest-internet/
rickg says
Unless you have an income of $1 million or more and have no moral center you are not among those that Republicans would support. I realize that most of you probably make less than $60k a year so you really need some information before you vote again. Please be sure to fully investigate your information. Do not just accept whatever Faux News tells you. Its a lie.
NortonSmitty says
As Jesse Jackson just said (I can’t believe I’m actually quoting him either, so it must be a good one), “The Teabaggers are Turkeys standing up for Thanksgiving”.
some guy says
palm coater wrong again we are not meant to be a “Democratic Republic”
Bayouman says
I seen this coming a mile away,but everyone wants to make thangs out to be a race war all the time.
Look at this guys history,I mean he is a rich crook,people need to do more research on the candidate before
going out and vote. It’s new day and time lady’s and gentleman and the rich has declared war on the poor and middle class people,now what are we going to do about it….Fight The Power!!! Here we go again.
Kevin says
This was written fast so save the immature insults about any typos and grammer:
Dorothea your presumed knowledge of the workings of economics, and most every other topic I’ve read from you, needs an overhaul so I would ease off those typical statements you made to “Johnny.”
The issue is the lucrative “jackpot” type of retirement plans the states are on the hook for is in the tune of hundreds of millions. These lottery sized lifetime prizes earned by people who we’re paid well for doing jobs that hardly justifieed there pay scales when they worked, when they worked. Their efficiency compared to their private counterpart is laughable! I worked for AIG doing the county retirement plans for multiple counties and know in depth the specifics of the lucrative pay scales and simply outrageous benefits many received for half ass work. The state of Florida teachers are the only ones that have the right to really complain however the police and FUCKING WORST OF ALL, FIRE DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES HAVE PLANS THAT CANNOT BE SUSTAINED! These people do not have the most dangerous jobs as they like to blather about, specifically they aren’t even in the top ten jobs when considering danger. They eat, workout constantly, shit, polish and prime equipment, and are interrupted with fires and “stuff” from time to time, at great cost to taxpayers. Sometimes five trucks going to one seen because of the ineffective and inefficient protocals they never put effort into reforming, while raping the tax payer for overtime. Oh yes, lets talk about overtime and its wonderful uses when it comes time for DROP. Understand in California, the average state employee will receive something like a million dollars in pension benefits while the average citizen doesn’t have $63,000 in the bank for retirement! The unions are so adamant in maintinag their greedy positions that they would prefer the newre union people lost their jobs rather than make cuts in their pensions to a degree that is only moral given the greater cause and bigger picture. It is a joke with them and they should be obliterated in terms of their being able to have so much power against the taxpayers who in the end, fund their jobs.
I’ll be glad to speak publicly about what I know in great depth using facts not bullshit like that which pours out of Dorthea head. I’m sure if enough clowns out their wished to challenge me I would give in to the request. If the news covered the issues as they are that being these public unions have crippled municipalities with their jackpot retirement plans and rip-off pay scales for sometimes brainless jobs or for individuals who aren’t worth a schilling. The unions and their members are used by politicians to get their votes then are rewarded at the cost of the private employee taxpayer which is now having their backs broken from the govenrment which has given rise to the tea party movement which is the next story…
I am profoundly amazed that certain people like Van, if you are the Van I somewhat respected after learning more of your thoughts over time at Notebooks, considers someone like Ed Shultz something enjoyable and a person worthy of admiration. He has shown himself to be nothing more than a foaming from the mouth talking head, but more specifically someone who speaks with abundant vitriol, using crude remarks at nearly every blast of his windbag bellows of lungs.
Let me say this as I leave to allow the ad hominem attacks to flow against me as is the normal reaction of some here, that no wonder we cannot NEVER come together on issues that affect our world when people like him, Maher, Olbermann, etc., are routinely worshiped for their gutter-mouthed talents, often times themselves either lying or so demented, they believe what they say. Yes, when it comes to winning the war of ugliness, leftists and their counterparts win the prize every time. I just can’t believe that intelligent people like you Van appreciate him saying that he’d like to have Limbaugh come there to kick his ass. Then using Shultz’s own rationale, you should appreciate me saying I’d like to go there in WI to kick his fat, loud-mouth, with one hard and clean wheel kick for the inflammatory and very provacative rhetoric he states which to millions like me, is very offensive.
As I said there will never be any coming together as long as people like those I mentioned are driving the crazy train certain people here have been riding on. Proof that liberism is a mental disorder is Dorothea’s famous comment that she is privy to WI not actually having a fiscal issues to the degree they claim. Yeah Dorothea, only you would be delusional enough to claim you have proof of some sort no deficit exists. Unbelievable—but not really know that I have learned more about you and some of those like you.
You folks are all jerking each other off about Rick Scott, who I can hardly believe made it into office, thus proving our election process and governement system is a sham, instead of seeing the impending doom. But to socialists, this is the time you’ve waited for your whole life. INstead of those who employed others and became wealthy from their hard earned talents in the private marketplace, there will be the super-elite socialists deciding who gets what and how much is enough for them, while they hold parties in the WH when others are suffering and Rome is burning.
You people make me sick!
Kevin says
Oh I HATE that I wrote that last piece in great haste as I have a date with my wife in literally minutes and here I sit typing…
The DROP for fire departments in various areas allows them to earn and receive a GUARANTEEED 6-7% IN MANY LOCALITIES for up to 7 years. Is this the idea of what supplemental pensions are suppose to be? Letting people get money while they are employed to receive as a lump sum gift when they quit and often times only to return to work again, sometimes in the same district, preventing someone new from having the chance to earn a living. Anyone seeing this as equitable and intelligent is someone that needs a lobotomy. Many if not all public employees, espeically the executive levels, have created systems that are destroying their communities budgets, stealing from the teachers in the long run. Again they are the ones here in Florida who have been shortchanged but they too, share some issues of their own creation. Again, look to CA with its unfunded pesion liabilities in the hundreds of millions, and this as I said is just pension obligations. They have broken and robbed from the system just like the criminals they claim the capitalists have done. They too are criminals based on the degree of manipulation they have used in twisting the sysytem and gaining political favors at great cost to the taxpayer.
All the unions and public employees need to have a major “overhaul”… using the thoughtful words of Dorothea.
palm coaster says
It is hard for me to believe what is said here about our public workers overpaid…I agree with you Kevin that our public VIP administrators and managers are grossly over paid for the current financial crisis were we are al,l supposed to tighten our belts now. But I have some of my friends that are not administrators and or managers on the public sector and their earnings for the risk they take daily does not compensate. One of them is a local Sheriff Deputy that went to work in another county for better pay and more advance opportunity and still after several years is taking college courses at night in order to move and work in the private sector and secure a better retirement when his time comes. Like him teachers and others that I know. I can believe other than bringing on the open here, the Wall Street thieves millionaires bonuses and compensation after we were all forced to bail them out some here keep on hacking at our public employees and their unions instead.. Here some of those workers real earnings next:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/25/wisconsin-workers-overpaid_n_828077.html
Versus the elite bandits below:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/raymond-j-learsy/its-all-about-the-money-j_b_825485.html
NortonSmitty says
Kevin, how in the fuck can we look at the same thing, with the same stats and facts in hand, agree on much of the problem and then veer off into dueling distance on the cause!
First off, the agrreements. I have been saying for years that the Fire Departments have the greatest scam going that I ever heard of, and any Police force in the nation is in close second. The FD job is as you say, sitting around working out and unnecessarily scrambling all of their million $ equipment to fender-benders and broken hip calls in order to pad the stats to show how invaluable they are. “See, we were on-scene and saved lives 3,143 times a week last year, you need us so bad”
But in the Real World, I personally watched the owner of a business in Holly Hill arrested and charged with “Interfering with the Duties of Firefighter or Rescue Personnel”. His felony crime? After watching the Pumper Truck and our heroes stand around on scene for fifteen devastating minutes without lifting a finger to put out the fire that was consuming his life’s work because the supervisor hadn’t gotten there yet to authorize them to put out the fire, he grabbed a hose to do it himself! He was immediately wrestled to the ground and handcuffed by the Police. He watched his business destroyed in handcuffs from the rear seat of a Police car.
But that was in the old days, when we worshiped our 9/11 heroes that died for our country. The difference between then and now Kevin? Asshole Teabag fucksticks are coming out of the woodwork to scream that Our Heroes are now Our Enemies because they get a better benefit package than we do anymore in the private sector. HOW FUCKING DARE THEY NOT GET FUCKED OUT OF THEIR PENSIONS LIKE THE REST OF US!!! The Police? The Thin Blue Line that puts their lives on the line to protect us has the on-the-job actuarial death rate of a mail clerk if you take out traffic accidents. You worked for AIG, you know this is true. (You worked for AIG? You know I can’t let that low hanging fruit pass!)
THAT is what makes me sick Kevin Darlin’! Inconsistent fucksticks like you that are outraged to the point of foaming at the mouth by the Republican/Fox./Corporatist Talking Point of the Day with no actual beliefs. You proudly shout to the world “This is what I stand for and believe to the depths of my soul!!” Until Rush and Uncle Rupert tell me not to. You spineles, souless brainless maggot!
And you have the nerve to open your bailout fed AIG teat-sucking maw to whine about the vitriol of the left? Fuck you! I’lll save you the plane ticket to Wisconsin to Kick Ed Schultz’s fat ass, c’mon over to Falgler Beach and Kick my fat ass. I don’t think you can maggott!
I hope when you are out with your wife tonight you look deep into her eyes and thank God she has such low standards.
G’night Pumpkin.
NortonSmitty says
OK, I apologize for the Maggot part.