Strengthening Constitutional Self-Government

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Economy

Life After Unions

Michael Moore isn't the only liberal who adopts a pro-union facade in public but hypocritically refuses to work with the over-paid racketeers in private business practices. An employer even larger than Michael Moore is now shunning unions: New York City.

Unions' share in city construction has dropped from over 85% to about 60% in recent years. And, taking a cue from Wisconsin's curbing of public unions, New York companies are "demanding large concessions" from unions and negotiating for "a 25 percent cut in labor costs, by reducing benefits and changing some work rules."

Liberal New York can't be accused of partisan animosity against unions. The Big Apple demonstrates that the turn against unions (public and private) is founded upon economics, not politics. Companies are becoming less and less willing to pay 30% higher costs simply to appease union bosses - at a certain point, the bad publicity and bad blood threatened by turning one's back on unions is still good business.

Unions have a window of opportunity to preserve their relevancy, or I expect this trend of disinvestiture to continue.

Categories > Economy

Discussions - 15 Comments

Michael Moore is a hippocrite. Take Bowling for Columbine. He uses the movie as a case for gun control, but he owns guns. He makes movies critizing American capitlists, but he lives in $4 million dollar apartment in upper Manhattan. He has a lot in common with our bus driver president. Do as I say, not as I do.

As far as the unions. Their time has come and gone. Cities and counties in California that are broke from pensions and salaries are laying people off (there was a very sad article about a city work in Orange County who committed suicide after receiving his pink slip along with 50 or so other city workers) in small numbers here and there which will eventually lead to more massive layoffs as those cities/counties are no longer able to meet their pension commitments. What are this cities/counties doing to make up for the layoffs - easy - they are contracting the work out. This will be the future of state/city/county governments.

California has been a blue stupid state much like New York and Illionis for over 40 years. Proof positive that liberal/progressive/socialism/Democrats theories and policies don't work.

Democrats/Liberals/Progressive/Socialists believe that capital is evil and that government is the way to solve problems. Well, can you hear the flushing sound of a toilet. Read this one and weep from corruption via the Stupid States CALPERS corruption - for those of you who don't know what CALPERS is - is the the largest retirement/penion fund for state workers: Here you go Liberals:

A 17-month investigation also found that Federico Buenrostro Jr. — along with former pension fund board members Charles Valdes and Kurato Shimada — strong-armed a benefits firm to pay more than $4 million in fees to consultant Alfred J.R. Villalobos, who later hired Buenrostro.

Buenrostro and Valdes raked in millions of dollars each in supposed commissions and finder's fees while pressuring the government run pension fund to invest in their pal's firms and businesses. And even after taking in millions in illicit income, J.R. Villalobos has declared bankruptcy claiming he owes more than $5 million to Nevada casinos.

You could've stopped with "Michael Moore is a hippo."

What I find striking is that leftist/liberal/progressives (take your pick of labels) like Moore and lesser-knowns such as colleagues of mine have no problem with (or no awareness of) the glaringly obvious double-standard they employ, and the generally inconsistent thinking they rely upon.

A co-worker of mine swears he'd pay $30/hour for help if he had his own business. Yet he complains bitterly if a beer is more than $2. He tips like a miser. So he's obviously unwilling to ... you know ... enable a "living wage" by paying the higher prices that implies.

Oh ... I forgot ... silly me ... that's for other people to pay.

"You could've stopped with "Michael Moore is a hippo.""

Oh yeah, that'd be some top-shelf humor, alright - for 3rd graders.

That makes Moore himself a 3rd grader? "Rush Limbaugh is a Big, Fat Idiot" sounds like a title a 3rd grader would come up with.

Again with fat jokes? It's a form of bigotry, folks. Let it go. Given the obesity epidemic we are facing, it's pretty clear that being overweight isn't simply a personal, moral failing. Given a calorie-rich environment, an enormous percentage of homo sapiens will consume too much, and our biology is predisposed to pack on the fat (which, in a different environment, would be a necessary survival trait). Michael Moore is an awful person; Chris Christi is a great leader. Both are fat. So what?

Unions were, once upon a time, a necessary correction for a labor market filled with powerless immigrants and a government relatively indifferent to the fate of the working man and woman. In some sectors (say, meat processing), this may still be true, but it's definitely NOT true for the public sector. Time to end this lunacy.

Let me have men about me that are fat;
Sleek-headed men, and such as sleep o' nights.
Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look;
He thinks too much: such men are dangerous.

In regards to union-- unsurprisingly, the market eventually tries to correct expense problems. Some unions are bad for some business (as is treating your employees poorly), and thus need correction.

That makes Moore himself a 3rd grader? "Rush Limbaugh is a Big, Fat Idiot" sounds like a title a 3rd grader would come up with.

Pay attention, Joe. Moore didn't write that book:

https://www.amazon.com/Rush-Limbaugh-Big-Fat-Idiot/dp/0440508649/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1300632843&sr=1-1

Okay, then Senator Franken is a 3rd grader.

Moore/Franken = same difference. Both are childish fools.

I'll beat you to the punch, Scanlon. I'm a childish fool as well. But my being a childish fool does not make Moore or Franken less foolish.

I'd rather be a hippo than a Arab lover. Hey I'm still waiting for Craig to start boohoohooing over all them poor Arabs that Obammy is killing over in Lybia.

Scanlon goes after the hippo remark because that is the only thing he can fight about - the rest of the facts on my post he cannot argue. The Stupid State is the bright shining light of progressivism/liberalism/socialism. It is failing - badly Period. End of Discussion.

Must be hard to grapple with your belief system being destroyed.

It ain't over yet.

I predict Wisconsin will fail to enact any real reforms for years, what with various legal challenges to come. And it's at least "probable* that Wisconsin voters will vote back in Democrats to reverse whatever reforms had been enacted.

What it's going to take -- I fear; honestly I do -- is a seismic failure, such as California or New York defaulting. But even that won't make the progressives realize the error of their ways.

No ... sadly ... it's going to take a rather severe destruction of our current society before the progressives are finally driven from their choke-hold on society.

Believe it or not, cg, I didn't even read your comment. (Remember, this isn't your blog; so far, you're just another commenter, but I wouldn't put it out of the realm of possibility that you'll be taken on board as an official blogger here).

Given the sarcasm intended by that comment I'm left to ask: why in the hell do you read this blog if you have so little regard for the articles or the comments?

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