Posted on 02/18/2011 6:49:25 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
The old so-called Wisconsin Idea was that government would collaborate with experts drawn from the states university system to craft progressive legislation. The new Wisconsin Idea is that the state is broke.
Gov. Scott Walker is bringing austerity to the intellectual breadbasket of American progressivism, and seeks to break the grip of the public-sector unions in a state that had a large hand in empowering them. His effort could become a national model for recalibrating the relationship of state governments to the unions that are bankrupting them.
To attempt this anywhere brings yelps of outrage. To do it in Wisconsin, practically the inventor of liberalism as we know it, adds insult to injury. Its a little like heaping abuse on the Kennedys in Massachusetts, or telling Texans to forget about the Alamo.
[snip]
This savagery has been directed at a governor who invariably says the state has good, hardworking, decent employees. But hes frank that the state cant continue to give its employees free and cut-rate benefits. I dont have anything to negotiate, Walker said the other day, not by way of bravado, but in a flat statement of penury.
Walker supports denying public employees with the exception of police and firemen the ability to engage in collective bargaining over anything but wages. This would make it harder for unions to boost compensation with ever-more-generous benefits that, in the near term, dont seem to cost anything. And he wants to end the practice of the state deducting union dues from the paychecks of its employees. Unions would have to collect dues themselves, and state employees might opt not to pay dues at all. Walker, in short, wants Wisconsin to stop participating in a conspiracy to fleece itself.
(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...
For one thing, Walker's proposal lets police and firefighter unions retain their collective bargaining rights and, thereby, their institutional clout, even though their taxpayer-supported pensions are among the most generous in the state. Not coincidentally, a number of police and firefighter unions supported Walker in the last election, and such unions tend to endorse more conservative candidates than, say, teachers' unions. So what Walker is really doing is going after unions that support Democrats.[end excerpt]
JUST ONE PROBLEM WITH HIS ARGUMENT
Alabama just did this with teachers' paychecks. It will decimate the teachers union.
Not a good time for educational Luddites.
As an aside, I remember in college when professors used to deliver the same lecture class after class. Even then I asked why this lecture wasn't just recorded, in quantity, on video tape and made available at the library. The university was insulted. Now that we have youtube, computer programs, and the internet, perhaps the university won't be so insulted when change is forced upon it.
you weren’t suppose to notice these minor details...
It will decimate union political activism through confiscated wages.
Right On!!!
Interesting. Jared Loughner, the Tucson shooter, wasn't expelled from Pima Community College until after he made a video calling the college a "genocide college." All the other stuff scary, crazy things he did in class never rose to the level of expulsion but insulting the institution did.
It’s “workers’”, not “workers,” you schmucks. Can’t even spell.
wow...that’s a great idea
Currently, the Dems fled to prevent a 3/5 quorum (which is needed for tax and appropriations bills).
If the Repubs were serious, they would declare a quorum for non-appropriations legislation (only majority needed, which they have), and pass the "no-dues-deduction" as a stand-alone bill for the Gov to sign. Then pass the various anti-civil-service provisions as stand-alone, non-appropriations bills.
I don't think they will, because I don't think they're serious. i think they want to posture without actually passing anything which would get unions pissed off at them.
This is one reason why it is so hard to privatize public functions that are largely "preventive" or "responsive" in nature. New York City used to do this back in the 19th century, and they had to put a stop to it because they ended up with competing fire companies running around setting fires just so they could work more.
“The intellectual breadbasket of American progressivism?”
I just threw-up in my mouth a little bit.
In light of the fact Walker has the Republican votes lined up to pass his proposal, how can you possibly say that? The Democrats left town so the Republicans couldn't vote and pass the bill.
I'm not sure if you read my posting. There is a need for a 3/5ths quorum ONLY for tax/appropriations bills. For bills that do not involve Wisc spending money, only a simple majority is needed for a quorum.
All the Repubs need to do is word their bills as non-appropriations bills, pass them, and send them to the Gov for signature. Bills like removing a need for the state to forward union dues is not an appropriation.
[And he wants to end the practice of the state deducting union dues from the paychecks of its employees. Unions would have to collect dues themselves, and state employees might opt not to pay dues at all]
Those state employees really are useful idiots to be out there opposing this. Wonder how many of them would be pleasantly surprised when the union/Democrat fleecing of their paychecks stop?
[i think they want to posture without actually passing anything which would get unions pissed off at them. ]
The unions are already pissed off at them and support Rats every election anyway. What do they have to lose?
I don’t agree. I think they’re “all in” now — backing down is as good as resigning at this point.
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