Here's an old line that always makes me smile, especially on weekends: "Beer is proof that God exists, and wants us to be happy and enjoy life." Maybe it's the German or the New Orleanian or the New Orleans Irish Channel St. Patrick's Day Marching Club member in me that has always responded to that saying, or maybe just the imp. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, we know there really is no proof. Oh, calm down. For I also know it is the Catholic in me that insists so; insists, in fact, that we take belief on faith.
We know from the historical record, however, that human social progress is possible. We know that it has occurred in fits and stops, and, yes, has at times slipped backwards most regrettably. But the darkest of times have only proven that a new breakout of enlightenment is never foreclosed. The problem arises from social progress being possible and not foreordained, as things are proclaimed to be in the supernatural sphere. Hence, it always takes a push. And I mean a push from us, real people, not beneficent merciful overlords of the eternal ether.
That's where you come in, my friend. Unless, you for some reason have laid your human heritage and endowment on side the road, there is more to do than eat, breathe, and exist. The other creatures with which we share this planet know nothing of these things, and so are subject to unaddressable abuse from members of their own orders, as well as ours. We all know how ugly that can be. And, unfortunately, we also see how ugly and punishing we can be to one another.
So, if you can't bring your smug and satisfied self to join or support the activists in the commons today, at least have the decency not to kick them. They're the only real friends you have. Just thought this was something you should know.
New Orleans Labor Voice
Monday, October 31, 2011
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Long Day
Just a couple of late Saturday night (umm ... maybe early Sunday morning) thoughts for the heck of it before turning in.
Regular readers have noticed that there has been no reference to President zerObama here in a couple of months. That's because the Prez lately has been acting as if he actually wants his presidency to add up to something. I say acting advisedly because he either was acting before, when all he could think to do was bow and scrape to Boehner and McConnell, or he's acting now while running around the country sounding like a Democrat. In any event, the way I see it, there's nothing to be gained by slapping someone who's acting better than he did in the past.
Also, I can't help but wonder how many more modern day hippies, like former service member veterans of the so-called war on terror in places like Iraq, will the gendarmes have to shoot in the head with tear gas canisters before the OWS protesters are seen as serious people, and not just spoiled brats.
Regular readers have noticed that there has been no reference to President zerObama here in a couple of months. That's because the Prez lately has been acting as if he actually wants his presidency to add up to something. I say acting advisedly because he either was acting before, when all he could think to do was bow and scrape to Boehner and McConnell, or he's acting now while running around the country sounding like a Democrat. In any event, the way I see it, there's nothing to be gained by slapping someone who's acting better than he did in the past.
Also, I can't help but wonder how many more modern day hippies, like former service member veterans of the so-called war on terror in places like Iraq, will the gendarmes have to shoot in the head with tear gas canisters before the OWS protesters are seen as serious people, and not just spoiled brats.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Why Teachers' Unions?
You hear that question all the time. But it's not really a question at all. No, invariably it's the opening salvo of a diatribe against hard working professionals, which quickly degenerates into the vilest of ad hominem attacks. You know, the charge of selfish concern for only themselves and callous disregard for actually educating the kids, and on and on, blah, blah, blah.
This crap usually comes from folks who themselves, or their ideological predecessors, have been on a mission to destroy public education in this country since the Brown vs. The Board of Education decision, which brought about public school integration. It has taken them a while, but they stand on the verge of total victory.
That is what the Charter Schools movement is all about. End of story. We are facing the imminent prospect of its complete take over of the public school system statewide, as a result of the current round of BESE (Board of Elementary and Secondary Education) seat elections. If only one more of the movement's candidates wins in the runoffs next month, there will be a "super majority" of them on the Board, and they will pick John White as State Superintendent. He is so bad, he even favors extending tax funded vouchers for private school tuition. R.I.P. public education, done deal.
I have resisted getting too deeply into this fight because I have long thought it lost, at least for the foreseeable future. But if more commotions like that which took place at the Algiers Charter Schools Association meeting last night occur, I might be proven wrong. Hope so.
Get a load of the following quote, which we picked up courtesy of The Lens blog site, Algiers Charter Schools considers revoking teacher pensions, from their Board Chairman, Charles Rice, regarding the now abandoned attempt to pull pension coverage away from the teachers:
“We as a board have an obligation to make sure that these schools are financially viable,” he said. Later, he mentioned that in his industry – his day job is Entergy, Inc.’s chief executive officer – employers make decisions about employee retirement at will, and the employees are rarely notified before the fact. The crowd jeered at his statement.
Mind you, these miscreants (the board) had secretly pulled the funding from and participation in the Louisiana Teachers Retirement System when they filed the most recent Charter renewal form with the state. They did it in the dark, with no public announcement or input. When the teachers were later notified of the move to end their participation in the program, an ad hoc group consisting of a representative from the legal profession, a local broadcast personality, the general public, and a great many of the teachers came together at the board meeting to question the legality and propriety of the change. They succeeded in forestalling the attempt to strip teachers of this benefit, a move aimed solely at maintaining the vulgar profitability of the Charter operation, euphemistically known as the financial viablity of non-profits partnered with money making business interests. But this kind of spontaneous grassroots effort to challenge abusive authority is rarely victorious, and usually sees its accomplishments kicked aside shortly after the fire, smoke and enthusiasm of the initial skirmish dissipates.
That's why teachers need unions. Any more questions?
UPDATE: Please visit The Lens blog site and story referenced in this piece to read a complete report of the meeting by Jessica Williams, as well as two later technical corrections she made to the initial story.
This crap usually comes from folks who themselves, or their ideological predecessors, have been on a mission to destroy public education in this country since the Brown vs. The Board of Education decision, which brought about public school integration. It has taken them a while, but they stand on the verge of total victory.
That is what the Charter Schools movement is all about. End of story. We are facing the imminent prospect of its complete take over of the public school system statewide, as a result of the current round of BESE (Board of Elementary and Secondary Education) seat elections. If only one more of the movement's candidates wins in the runoffs next month, there will be a "super majority" of them on the Board, and they will pick John White as State Superintendent. He is so bad, he even favors extending tax funded vouchers for private school tuition. R.I.P. public education, done deal.
I have resisted getting too deeply into this fight because I have long thought it lost, at least for the foreseeable future. But if more commotions like that which took place at the Algiers Charter Schools Association meeting last night occur, I might be proven wrong. Hope so.
Get a load of the following quote, which we picked up courtesy of The Lens blog site, Algiers Charter Schools considers revoking teacher pensions, from their Board Chairman, Charles Rice, regarding the now abandoned attempt to pull pension coverage away from the teachers:
“We as a board have an obligation to make sure that these schools are financially viable,” he said. Later, he mentioned that in his industry – his day job is Entergy, Inc.’s chief executive officer – employers make decisions about employee retirement at will, and the employees are rarely notified before the fact. The crowd jeered at his statement.
Mind you, these miscreants (the board) had secretly pulled the funding from and participation in the Louisiana Teachers Retirement System when they filed the most recent Charter renewal form with the state. They did it in the dark, with no public announcement or input. When the teachers were later notified of the move to end their participation in the program, an ad hoc group consisting of a representative from the legal profession, a local broadcast personality, the general public, and a great many of the teachers came together at the board meeting to question the legality and propriety of the change. They succeeded in forestalling the attempt to strip teachers of this benefit, a move aimed solely at maintaining the vulgar profitability of the Charter operation, euphemistically known as the financial viablity of non-profits partnered with money making business interests. But this kind of spontaneous grassroots effort to challenge abusive authority is rarely victorious, and usually sees its accomplishments kicked aside shortly after the fire, smoke and enthusiasm of the initial skirmish dissipates.
That's why teachers need unions. Any more questions?
UPDATE: Please visit The Lens blog site and story referenced in this piece to read a complete report of the meeting by Jessica Williams, as well as two later technical corrections she made to the initial story.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Spooky Stuff
This morning, The Times-Picayune tells us, finally, that the billionaire mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, has put over $100,000 of his own money into the election to fill BESE seats here in Louisiana. Of this, $5,000 went directly to Kira Orange Jones, and $100,000 went to a PAC which backs her and other Charter School/privatization supporters . These sums are the legal limit on both scores, no telling what else is going on behind the scenes in plutocrat circles.
Mind you, it's quite late for even this tiny bit of information to be coming out, seeing as how the first primary vote was held last Saturday. So, I guess we shouldn't expect the Picayune will "uncover" much of any hidden or newsworthy shenanigans regarding the remaining 100 million dollars plus in FEMA funded school reconstruction yet to be expended in New Orleans in advance of the runoffs next month. Think maybe that kind of monkey business and patronage potential is what has drawn Mayor Mitch Landrieu away from his willingness to personally take on murderers in the street long enough to campaign vociferously for Kira Orange Jones, who apparently needs a ventriloquist to speak her mind?
Regardless, this battle is fundamentally over the question of whether the well-off and warped among us will succeed in remaking public education in the image of the rich and privileged. It's scary enough that these guys won't need any weird costumes for Halloween. And we can talk about the stealing from and abuse of the public purse later, when this monstrosity of an election ends.
Mind you, it's quite late for even this tiny bit of information to be coming out, seeing as how the first primary vote was held last Saturday. So, I guess we shouldn't expect the Picayune will "uncover" much of any hidden or newsworthy shenanigans regarding the remaining 100 million dollars plus in FEMA funded school reconstruction yet to be expended in New Orleans in advance of the runoffs next month. Think maybe that kind of monkey business and patronage potential is what has drawn Mayor Mitch Landrieu away from his willingness to personally take on murderers in the street long enough to campaign vociferously for Kira Orange Jones, who apparently needs a ventriloquist to speak her mind?
Regardless, this battle is fundamentally over the question of whether the well-off and warped among us will succeed in remaking public education in the image of the rich and privileged. It's scary enough that these guys won't need any weird costumes for Halloween. And we can talk about the stealing from and abuse of the public purse later, when this monstrosity of an election ends.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
The BESE Runoffs ... Or Sudden Death Overtime
Herewith a brief comment concerning the most significant issue to be decided in the next round of voting. It is offered in response and with my thanks to a commenter who correctly identified it in remarks elicited by my earlier post on the results from the first primary balloting.
Without question, the filling of the BESE seats still up for grabs will determine the fate of public education in Louisiana for at least the next generation. Unfortunately, I think the outcome is easily foreseen, as well as terrible. Jindal and the other charter schools promoters/privatizers only need one more victory to control the selection of the next state superintendent, and complete the job of disinvesting in public education, thereby destroying it. And along the way finish off the the teacher's organization, while freezing their pension benefits in order to sell off the massively well endowed reserve fund to profit their own political contributors and advance their agenda.
With New Orleans Mayor Landrieu completely complicit in all of this, can the outcome really be in doubt?
Without question, the filling of the BESE seats still up for grabs will determine the fate of public education in Louisiana for at least the next generation. Unfortunately, I think the outcome is easily foreseen, as well as terrible. Jindal and the other charter schools promoters/privatizers only need one more victory to control the selection of the next state superintendent, and complete the job of disinvesting in public education, thereby destroying it. And along the way finish off the the teacher's organization, while freezing their pension benefits in order to sell off the massively well endowed reserve fund to profit their own political contributors and advance their agenda.
With New Orleans Mayor Landrieu completely complicit in all of this, can the outcome really be in doubt?
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Plutocrat Populism
The title of this post is the shortest and best way I know to summarize Louisiana politics today. But it sounds so contradictory, you say? Well, you say right, my friend. The good news is that such a phony imitation of real politics can't last, so you won't have to wait very long for it to get better. And, no, this doesn't mean my eternally optimistic nature has me blind to all the terrible and hurtful consequences which we will continue to suffer for having allowed things to degenerate so badly. It simply means the internal political dynamic will drive the process in a more open and meaningful direction, one in which we can expect to see real choices in elections again, up and down the ballot. Clearly, this election did not offer anything like that.
While there were a few races that did matter to the general public, most were mere stand-in contests between Jindal and Vitter for control of the state. We all know Louisiana has become a one party state again. And that this time it's Republican. But what it has yet to evolve is a consolidated power center among the plutocrats. So, it is not a truly factional type of politics under a single party umbrella, as it was during the Long and anti-Long days. In those times, the factions represented broad and entrenched social and economic interests, not just personalities.
We are not there yet, but we are headed that way. Jindal won this round over Vitter, but Vitter and Jindal will likely be exchanging addresses in the next few years. Vitter will be back in Louisiana because there is no opportunity for him on the Washington stage (his scandal foreclosed any greater national leadership ambitions), and Jindal will be seeking a national role. It remains to be seen if Jindal can hold power over the state while away, as Huey once did. After the plutocratic internecine squabbles are settled, the people will have a larger opening to fight for real issues again. But this time the anti faction will be the good guys.
A few genuine issues were in play Saturday, and are yet to be decided; the runoffs will therefore matter, at least a little.
While there were a few races that did matter to the general public, most were mere stand-in contests between Jindal and Vitter for control of the state. We all know Louisiana has become a one party state again. And that this time it's Republican. But what it has yet to evolve is a consolidated power center among the plutocrats. So, it is not a truly factional type of politics under a single party umbrella, as it was during the Long and anti-Long days. In those times, the factions represented broad and entrenched social and economic interests, not just personalities.
We are not there yet, but we are headed that way. Jindal won this round over Vitter, but Vitter and Jindal will likely be exchanging addresses in the next few years. Vitter will be back in Louisiana because there is no opportunity for him on the Washington stage (his scandal foreclosed any greater national leadership ambitions), and Jindal will be seeking a national role. It remains to be seen if Jindal can hold power over the state while away, as Huey once did. After the plutocratic internecine squabbles are settled, the people will have a larger opening to fight for real issues again. But this time the anti faction will be the good guys.
A few genuine issues were in play Saturday, and are yet to be decided; the runoffs will therefore matter, at least a little.
Monday, October 24, 2011
And The Winner Issssss ...
Well, we had an election Saturday in Louisiana, and - save for one close call exception - the politicians won. I didn't get a chance to comment on the event yesterday, as there were far too many must do things to tackle, which had been ignored the previous two days. So, here's a quick assessment.
The turnout appears to have been something on the order of 35%. Of course, that means tight races could have been decided by candidates hauling in second cousins and casual acquaintances. Supposedly, it was the sort of day on which we could have done exceedingly well, were we anything like our enemies claim we are ... that is to say organized. But the bulk of us are just as lame, lazy, disaffected and unconcerned as the average Joe Blow.
Still, the propaganda which tars us as some vast, dark, and dangerous conspiratorial force to be feared and shunned at all costs works very well on the clueless citizen. It almost succeeded in keeping Chad Lauga from making the run-off in his race for district 103 in the Louisiana House. A mere day or two before the vote, Chad was polling in front of the pack by a comfortable margin. But the last minute Republican funded hate mail which went out to targeted white voters eroded 8 points from his lead virtually over night. The mailing labeled Chad a liberal extremist member of and lobbyist for one of the most liberal organizations in the country, the IBEW.
Actually, we all know that is not true, even though I wish it were. Most people nowadays think the SPCA is some kind of devilish liberal outfit because it holds such strange beliefs like we should not allow our house pets and four-legged loyal friends to be tortured and tormented in their lives. Nevertheless, a long day of arduous ground game effort by the relatively few stout and dependable IBEW volunteers, who literally went door-to-door imploring our voters to get out, managed to pull Chad into the run-off, barely. Next month, many more need to do much better or the result will be far worse.
There is much more regarding the dismal state of our one-party Republican rule here in Louisiana which needs to be addressed, but time does not permit now. Coming up in the next post.
The turnout appears to have been something on the order of 35%. Of course, that means tight races could have been decided by candidates hauling in second cousins and casual acquaintances. Supposedly, it was the sort of day on which we could have done exceedingly well, were we anything like our enemies claim we are ... that is to say organized. But the bulk of us are just as lame, lazy, disaffected and unconcerned as the average Joe Blow.
Still, the propaganda which tars us as some vast, dark, and dangerous conspiratorial force to be feared and shunned at all costs works very well on the clueless citizen. It almost succeeded in keeping Chad Lauga from making the run-off in his race for district 103 in the Louisiana House. A mere day or two before the vote, Chad was polling in front of the pack by a comfortable margin. But the last minute Republican funded hate mail which went out to targeted white voters eroded 8 points from his lead virtually over night. The mailing labeled Chad a liberal extremist member of and lobbyist for one of the most liberal organizations in the country, the IBEW.
Actually, we all know that is not true, even though I wish it were. Most people nowadays think the SPCA is some kind of devilish liberal outfit because it holds such strange beliefs like we should not allow our house pets and four-legged loyal friends to be tortured and tormented in their lives. Nevertheless, a long day of arduous ground game effort by the relatively few stout and dependable IBEW volunteers, who literally went door-to-door imploring our voters to get out, managed to pull Chad into the run-off, barely. Next month, many more need to do much better or the result will be far worse.
There is much more regarding the dismal state of our one-party Republican rule here in Louisiana which needs to be addressed, but time does not permit now. Coming up in the next post.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Occupy A Voting Booth
This is election day here in Louisisana. All state and many local level offices are up today. Heading out to put up signs for the AFL-CIO endorsed candidates. Then, will occupy a voting booth for a brief while anyway. Vote now and you may not feel compelled to protest later.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Grocery List
I hope you can read your mother's or grandmother's handwriting. And, oh, by the way, be sure to keep plenty of gas in the car. There is a chance - a very good one in fact - that she either lives in a rural setting without adequate public transportation, or that even if she lives in a place with decent bus service, it really is too much for her to be hustling loaded grocery bags around town on such a conveyance.
Nevertheless, in some states, like Michigan, there are changes coming to the food stamp program which will essentially force all recipients to divest themselves of what little property they may possess, like automobiles, in order to claim benefits. Even bank accounts are going to have to first be drained to the virtual bottom in order to qualify. So, you can see the choices many poor and elderly, perhaps living on only a deceased spouse's partial pension or social security, will face. Get ready for the phone call to go pick up the list and make another grocery run. You probably don't have anything else to do, anyway, right?
Just thought I'd give you a heads-up in case you are among those who figure the poor are simply undeserving dredges who just live off of your generosity and unnecessarily stop-up the check out lines when you're in a hurry. That attitude is exactly why the poor and ever diminishing middle class of the richest country in the world are together living more poorly and desperately every day.
Nevertheless, in some states, like Michigan, there are changes coming to the food stamp program which will essentially force all recipients to divest themselves of what little property they may possess, like automobiles, in order to claim benefits. Even bank accounts are going to have to first be drained to the virtual bottom in order to qualify. So, you can see the choices many poor and elderly, perhaps living on only a deceased spouse's partial pension or social security, will face. Get ready for the phone call to go pick up the list and make another grocery run. You probably don't have anything else to do, anyway, right?
Just thought I'd give you a heads-up in case you are among those who figure the poor are simply undeserving dredges who just live off of your generosity and unnecessarily stop-up the check out lines when you're in a hurry. That attitude is exactly why the poor and ever diminishing middle class of the richest country in the world are together living more poorly and desperately every day.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Simple Cainianity
This is easy. Well, maybe not, but I just love starting out with statements like that because it's the best way to hook accidental Republican/Teacaner visitors and their ilk into reading on. There are few things they like more than easy or simple things.
Take Herman Cain's 9-9-9 proposal for example. It's simple. Of course, it is simply stupid and wrong, at least for the 84% of the population who would pay much, much more in taxes if such nonsense were adopted. So, about right now you're probably thinking I'm going to say the craving of simplicity and/or unyielding stupidity of the Republican/Teacaners is what has Cain polling ahead of Romney and the rest. No, afraid not.
It is something rather more loathsome and lamentable than it is simply lamentable. I have long felt that the Republican/Teacaner nominee would ultimately be the shameless, been on all three sides of every major issue, Mitt Romney. I still do, but would not rule out the possibility of it being the brainless Romney, aka Rick Perry. I feel this way because, out of that truly more entertaining cast of crazies than any ever produced by a SNL skit, Romney and Perry seem by far the more electable. And I usually assume that the evil doers are going to take their best shot when the chips are really down.
But then I remember that last time out the evil doers came at us with McCain and Palin. A pair of knuckleheads that even my two cats, or a combination of either one and my old decrepit dog, could have whipped, and still had lots of time left over to lay around in the sun on the back porch. So, comes the question: Why is one of the more unlikely of this brood now polling on top? Well, it is more or less a holding pattern that puts the whole thing in neutral while the Romney/Perry brawl plays out.
That comes down to a decision between going with Perry, who may not be able to stay awake through a two hour debate, but at least is a gun-toting, hang'em high, good old fashioned Christian. Or take the more alert Romney, who possesses absolutely awesome flip-flopping switcheroo skills, but still can't figure out how to get to a third side of an issue which for this crowd only has two: Christian or something else. In the meantime, Cain enjoys the spotlight for at least being wide awake and simple, as well as a firm adherent of down home Christianity. Hence, simple Cainianity will serve until the Republican/Teacaners divine the true nature of Romney's personal belief system, and make their peace with it or not.
All of this is revealed by the responses of the Republican/Teacaner base, asked to say what comes immediately to mind when each of the following candidates are named:
Cain: 9-9-9
Perry: Texas
Romney: Mormon
The choir is singing, but you better believe it ain't an American tune.
Take Herman Cain's 9-9-9 proposal for example. It's simple. Of course, it is simply stupid and wrong, at least for the 84% of the population who would pay much, much more in taxes if such nonsense were adopted. So, about right now you're probably thinking I'm going to say the craving of simplicity and/or unyielding stupidity of the Republican/Teacaners is what has Cain polling ahead of Romney and the rest. No, afraid not.
It is something rather more loathsome and lamentable than it is simply lamentable. I have long felt that the Republican/Teacaner nominee would ultimately be the shameless, been on all three sides of every major issue, Mitt Romney. I still do, but would not rule out the possibility of it being the brainless Romney, aka Rick Perry. I feel this way because, out of that truly more entertaining cast of crazies than any ever produced by a SNL skit, Romney and Perry seem by far the more electable. And I usually assume that the evil doers are going to take their best shot when the chips are really down.
But then I remember that last time out the evil doers came at us with McCain and Palin. A pair of knuckleheads that even my two cats, or a combination of either one and my old decrepit dog, could have whipped, and still had lots of time left over to lay around in the sun on the back porch. So, comes the question: Why is one of the more unlikely of this brood now polling on top? Well, it is more or less a holding pattern that puts the whole thing in neutral while the Romney/Perry brawl plays out.
That comes down to a decision between going with Perry, who may not be able to stay awake through a two hour debate, but at least is a gun-toting, hang'em high, good old fashioned Christian. Or take the more alert Romney, who possesses absolutely awesome flip-flopping switcheroo skills, but still can't figure out how to get to a third side of an issue which for this crowd only has two: Christian or something else. In the meantime, Cain enjoys the spotlight for at least being wide awake and simple, as well as a firm adherent of down home Christianity. Hence, simple Cainianity will serve until the Republican/Teacaners divine the true nature of Romney's personal belief system, and make their peace with it or not.
All of this is revealed by the responses of the Republican/Teacaner base, asked to say what comes immediately to mind when each of the following candidates are named:
Cain: 9-9-9
Perry: Texas
Romney: Mormon
The choir is singing, but you better believe it ain't an American tune.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
The News From Avondale
Yesterday, Louisiana Governor Jindal and Huntington Ingalls CEO Mike Peters, along with a gaggle of fawning officials and reporters, held a news conference to tell us ... well, they held a news conference to tell us that they wanted to hold a news conference. Sorry, folks there was nothing new. That's the truth.
It is also true that all of the folks present had a self-serving reason to stage the show. Call me cynical, but I'm convinced that's what most news conferences are about nowadays. Jindal is running for Governor, and, even with only token opposition, he naturally wants every bit of positive splash and dash coverage he can get for free. Huntington Ingalls is in the process of shuttering what once was the largest private employer in the state, Avondale Shipyard. And, of course, the press reporters work for the New Orleans Times-Picayune, which has endorsed Jindal for re-election.
What was said by Jindal and Peters at theshow conference was as follows:
--Last summer, more than a year ago, when the announcement came to close Avondale, Jindal and other State officials promised 200 million dollars in corporate welfare if the company would keep it open.
--Huntington Ingalls CEO Mike Peters said that the plan to close the yard is still in place. At this time there are 3,800 shipbuilders still working there, down from 5,000 when the shutdown was announced.
That is all, end of story ... for now. At least nothing got any worse. And maybe that is good news, after all. So, call me inconsistent as well as cynical. More as time permits, or if anything really happens.
It is also true that all of the folks present had a self-serving reason to stage the show. Call me cynical, but I'm convinced that's what most news conferences are about nowadays. Jindal is running for Governor, and, even with only token opposition, he naturally wants every bit of positive splash and dash coverage he can get for free. Huntington Ingalls is in the process of shuttering what once was the largest private employer in the state, Avondale Shipyard. And, of course, the press reporters work for the New Orleans Times-Picayune, which has endorsed Jindal for re-election.
What was said by Jindal and Peters at the
--Last summer, more than a year ago, when the announcement came to close Avondale, Jindal and other State officials promised 200 million dollars in corporate welfare if the company would keep it open.
--Huntington Ingalls CEO Mike Peters said that the plan to close the yard is still in place. At this time there are 3,800 shipbuilders still working there, down from 5,000 when the shutdown was announced.
That is all, end of story ... for now. At least nothing got any worse. And maybe that is good news, after all. So, call me inconsistent as well as cynical. More as time permits, or if anything really happens.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Occupy Yourself
Regular readers already know that I think the Occupy Wall Street protest holds the potential to speak productively about the outrages perpetrated against the people by the plutocrats who have been running this country into the ground for thirty years or more, and who recently have come perilously close to putting it into an economic death spiral. Whether the protest realizes this potential will depend entirely on its staying power and seriousness of purpose. Lord knows there is an appropriately huge and deepening reservoir of dissatisfaction and disillusion with the status quo abroad in the land sufficient to batter down any and all barriers to reform. But social change of any significant magnitude requires direction, discipline, and commitment to practical policy goals; in short, leadership and coherence. And, oh yeah, not taking no for an answer.
I have expressed similar sentiments in other posts, and even suggested that a practical target for the New Orleans manifestation of the protest might be the Avondale shipyard, which is under threat of closure. http://neworleanslaborvoice.blogspot.com/2011/10/occupy-avondale.html
Recently, however, there have been some optimistic developments regarding the possibility of keeping the shipyard in operation. Of course, should the Avondale situation be resolved favorably , other local issues could provide just as sensible and practical a venue for undertaking the type of direct action embodied by the Occupy movement.
And there is yet another sense in which I think we productively can take up this Occupy notion. It is simply the idea of more openly inhabiting our own identity. That is to say, occupying ourselves. Saturday was a pretty good example of what I mean. In the morning, twenty-four labor union members and activists hit the streets with our candidate for the Louisiana House of Representatives in district 103, Chad Lauga. We have been campaigning door-to-door with Chad across the district for weeks. Chad tells me that we have managed to cover the entire area of the district three times. No small feat, as this is the largest, most spread out district in the state. And it has paid off, Chad has a pretty good lead in the race, and may even be able to pull off an unlikely first primary victory without the need for a runoff, despite the fact that there are three other candidates. This just shows what we can do by acting on our common commitment as union members.
In the afternoon, we all attended the New Orleans AFL-CIO Labor Day picnic. It had been postponed several weeks due to the tropical storm which came through here early last month. Despite the dislocation of the picnic in terms of the calendar, there was a very good turnout of union families. And as usual, the event was also heavily attended by local area elected officials and candidates for election. Every year, the picnic gives us an opportunity to invite labor friendly office holders and office seekers to join us, and meet face to face with a large number of union members and their families, so as to get a genuine sense of the broad range and reach of the our movement throughout the community. It is the best chance we get during the year to make a human impression on our representatives in office. And it really makes a difference. We are transformed from some faceless organizational label into real people they can see and hear and understand will be out voting on election day, as certainly as they come out for the Labor Day picnic.
Moreover, there are countless times and countless ways in our daily lives when we all can promote and advance our common goals and concerns simply by more openly expressing our own identity as a union member or supporter to neighbors, acquaintances, and the people with whom we do business. It might be the most productive way in which you can occupy yourself.
I have expressed similar sentiments in other posts, and even suggested that a practical target for the New Orleans manifestation of the protest might be the Avondale shipyard, which is under threat of closure. http://neworleanslaborvoice.blogspot.com/2011/10/occupy-avondale.html
Recently, however, there have been some optimistic developments regarding the possibility of keeping the shipyard in operation. Of course, should the Avondale situation be resolved favorably , other local issues could provide just as sensible and practical a venue for undertaking the type of direct action embodied by the Occupy movement.
And there is yet another sense in which I think we productively can take up this Occupy notion. It is simply the idea of more openly inhabiting our own identity. That is to say, occupying ourselves. Saturday was a pretty good example of what I mean. In the morning, twenty-four labor union members and activists hit the streets with our candidate for the Louisiana House of Representatives in district 103, Chad Lauga. We have been campaigning door-to-door with Chad across the district for weeks. Chad tells me that we have managed to cover the entire area of the district three times. No small feat, as this is the largest, most spread out district in the state. And it has paid off, Chad has a pretty good lead in the race, and may even be able to pull off an unlikely first primary victory without the need for a runoff, despite the fact that there are three other candidates. This just shows what we can do by acting on our common commitment as union members.
In the afternoon, we all attended the New Orleans AFL-CIO Labor Day picnic. It had been postponed several weeks due to the tropical storm which came through here early last month. Despite the dislocation of the picnic in terms of the calendar, there was a very good turnout of union families. And as usual, the event was also heavily attended by local area elected officials and candidates for election. Every year, the picnic gives us an opportunity to invite labor friendly office holders and office seekers to join us, and meet face to face with a large number of union members and their families, so as to get a genuine sense of the broad range and reach of the our movement throughout the community. It is the best chance we get during the year to make a human impression on our representatives in office. And it really makes a difference. We are transformed from some faceless organizational label into real people they can see and hear and understand will be out voting on election day, as certainly as they come out for the Labor Day picnic.
Moreover, there are countless times and countless ways in our daily lives when we all can promote and advance our common goals and concerns simply by more openly expressing our own identity as a union member or supporter to neighbors, acquaintances, and the people with whom we do business. It might be the most productive way in which you can occupy yourself.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Not So Cheap Thrills
Judging by the ubiquitous media buys, the money being expended on the local and state elections here in Louisiana is a no expletives deleted obscenity. So, it follows that someone very familiar with obscene practices, like U.S. Senator David Vitter, is intimately involved. Vitter is pumping money into fellow Republican Ray Garofalo's campaign in the district 103 House of Representatives race. Enough even for Garofalo to be running ads on television.
That is pretty strong stuff for the first primary of a State House race. Clearly, Chad Lauga has the Republicans scared. Chad has been polling in first place now for weeks, according to a variety of surveys conducted on behalf of candidates in other races. This is a reflection of the fact that Chad is an outstanding candidate, as well as a lot of hard work by Chad and his large team of door-to-door volunteers. We will all be at it again starting early tomorrow morning.
Meanwhile, I think it worth noting that Garofalo's prime commercial interest is in the video poker machine business. No surprise then that Vitter, a well known patron of prostitutes, would have a natural affinity for someone else who makes a living screwing others out of their money.
That is pretty strong stuff for the first primary of a State House race. Clearly, Chad Lauga has the Republicans scared. Chad has been polling in first place now for weeks, according to a variety of surveys conducted on behalf of candidates in other races. This is a reflection of the fact that Chad is an outstanding candidate, as well as a lot of hard work by Chad and his large team of door-to-door volunteers. We will all be at it again starting early tomorrow morning.
Meanwhile, I think it worth noting that Garofalo's prime commercial interest is in the video poker machine business. No surprise then that Vitter, a well known patron of prostitutes, would have a natural affinity for someone else who makes a living screwing others out of their money.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Two Confederated Dunces Or A Pair Of Enemies
Tom Friedman and David Brooks, the double dolts of the New York Times, are back in the Picayune this morning. Oh, did I forget to say, good morning? Yeah, well, sorry about that; let me at least take the opportunity to say get lost to these clowns.
Friedman wastes our time with the idle speculation of equally irrelevant fantasies regarding the nature of the current economic troubles and struggles. One holds that we are entering something called the period of "The Great Disruption" and the other calls it "The Big Shift." Neither has anything to do with anything important, like say, the price of bananas in the French Market. So, I'll let you check that part out for yourself, if you want. But along the way, in muddling through the nonsense, Friedman returns to one of his stock motifs, which is positing as true an obvious falsehood, to wit: the unemployed have been dismissed from the work place by changes in technology and the deterioration of their employment skills set. Friedman says not to worry, though, for anyone can take courses easily on-line, even from such institutions as Stanford , and be employable again just like that. Wow.
Friedman and his ilk have been allowed to write off the unemployed all too glibly in this disreputable fashion for several decades. They just want to dismiss unemployment as a failure of the unemployed. They say the unemployed fell behind the needs of the modern workplace, and are now not rehabilitating their degenerated employment profile. It's all their fault. Uh huh, that's why qualified job seekers currently out number job openings by a factor of five to one.
The other liar, David Brooks, repeats the propaganda of the right-wing plutocratic defense league, something that calls itself the Tax Foundation. This fraudulent outfit exits to invent lies about our unfair tax system, which keeps the rich very rich and the country broke. Today, Brooks picks up one of these lies which claims that taxing the super rich fairly, like they once were during the time of that evil Bolshevik, Dwight Eisenhower, would not make even a small dent in the national debt.
But Brooks is either too stupid or too interested in spreading lies to report that this bogus numbers game is based on only a one year return from a fair tax on the rich. If a Dwight Eisenhower era fair tax remained in place, it would pay down the national debt in the next twenty-five years by over fifty percent. There simply is no other proposal out there which could accomplish so much good, while also restoring so much justice and fairness to our tax code.
Friedman wastes our time with the idle speculation of equally irrelevant fantasies regarding the nature of the current economic troubles and struggles. One holds that we are entering something called the period of "The Great Disruption" and the other calls it "The Big Shift." Neither has anything to do with anything important, like say, the price of bananas in the French Market. So, I'll let you check that part out for yourself, if you want. But along the way, in muddling through the nonsense, Friedman returns to one of his stock motifs, which is positing as true an obvious falsehood, to wit: the unemployed have been dismissed from the work place by changes in technology and the deterioration of their employment skills set. Friedman says not to worry, though, for anyone can take courses easily on-line, even from such institutions as Stanford , and be employable again just like that. Wow.
Friedman and his ilk have been allowed to write off the unemployed all too glibly in this disreputable fashion for several decades. They just want to dismiss unemployment as a failure of the unemployed. They say the unemployed fell behind the needs of the modern workplace, and are now not rehabilitating their degenerated employment profile. It's all their fault. Uh huh, that's why qualified job seekers currently out number job openings by a factor of five to one.
The other liar, David Brooks, repeats the propaganda of the right-wing plutocratic defense league, something that calls itself the Tax Foundation. This fraudulent outfit exits to invent lies about our unfair tax system, which keeps the rich very rich and the country broke. Today, Brooks picks up one of these lies which claims that taxing the super rich fairly, like they once were during the time of that evil Bolshevik, Dwight Eisenhower, would not make even a small dent in the national debt.
But Brooks is either too stupid or too interested in spreading lies to report that this bogus numbers game is based on only a one year return from a fair tax on the rich. If a Dwight Eisenhower era fair tax remained in place, it would pay down the national debt in the next twenty-five years by over fifty percent. There simply is no other proposal out there which could accomplish so much good, while also restoring so much justice and fairness to our tax code.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
The New Cainsianism
For those unfamiliar with John Maynard Keynes, he was a British economist whose greatest work was published in 1936. It is fair to say that his macroeconomic analysis was largely responsible for the unprecedented growth and success experienced by most of Europe and the United States in the decades following WWII. And in fact, it more or less codified and explained the success of the elements of FDR's rather ad hoc, cobbled together New Deal policies, which halted the collapse of the Great Depression. In short, his school of thought, Keynesianism, is the economic foundation of progressivism.
Conservatism embraces a different approach to the subject of economics. I didn't watch the Republican circus last night and have not heard or read any updates on the latest idiocy. But I did hear something from Herman Cain last Sunday which I've been meaning to mention in this forum. And as I'm certain even a stage full of Republican presidential pretenders couldn't match or exceed this gem for crystalline clarity of the deep depravity and greed which defines that political and economic philosophy, this is as good a time as any for a quick comment.
When questioned on the Face The Nation television program as to exactly how his economic plan would bring about an improvement in the economy, Cain responded that his plan would expand employment so much that "the working poor would be able to hold two jobs."
I'm not kidding, he really said exactly that. The problem is he's not kidding either. How about, instead of promulgating a new brand of "Cainsianism" for the rich, we work on designing an economic plan which would produce a result wherein the phrase "working poor" has no meaning. That is, one in which employers could not work people for their own profit, while keeping them poor as a result of insufficient compensation?
Conservatism embraces a different approach to the subject of economics. I didn't watch the Republican circus last night and have not heard or read any updates on the latest idiocy. But I did hear something from Herman Cain last Sunday which I've been meaning to mention in this forum. And as I'm certain even a stage full of Republican presidential pretenders couldn't match or exceed this gem for crystalline clarity of the deep depravity and greed which defines that political and economic philosophy, this is as good a time as any for a quick comment.
When questioned on the Face The Nation television program as to exactly how his economic plan would bring about an improvement in the economy, Cain responded that his plan would expand employment so much that "the working poor would be able to hold two jobs."
I'm not kidding, he really said exactly that. The problem is he's not kidding either. How about, instead of promulgating a new brand of "Cainsianism" for the rich, we work on designing an economic plan which would produce a result wherein the phrase "working poor" has no meaning. That is, one in which employers could not work people for their own profit, while keeping them poor as a result of insufficient compensation?
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Unoccupied New Orleans
The sign pictured below was displayed at the Occupy Wall Street site in New York City a few days ago. It is a very good sign for those of us who are Krugman readers, and agree with his point of view regarding the economic and political problems we face today. Krugman is a Nobel laureate economist who writes a column for The New York Times. He also writes a daily blog which can be followed by simply clicking his name in the list of Links on the lower right hand side of this page.
But it is a good sign for an even larger reason. It indicates a growing recognition of the need to make specific arguments and demands. Otherwise, this movement will have no hope of helping facilitate the implementation of stimulative economic policies which can get people back to work and pick up this flat-lined economy, or of taming and regulating the out-of-control, greed-ridden financial structure on Wall Street, and in the banking system. Leaving a vacancy in the essential role which leadership must play in any successful social movement is not an option.
This is a realization which the Occupy New Orleans activists sooner or later must fully take on board, and grow past their currently nebulous, if noisy, undirected clammor for a cure of our economic and political ailments, while not developing or enunciating prescriptions for a course of treatment.
But it is a good sign for an even larger reason. It indicates a growing recognition of the need to make specific arguments and demands. Otherwise, this movement will have no hope of helping facilitate the implementation of stimulative economic policies which can get people back to work and pick up this flat-lined economy, or of taming and regulating the out-of-control, greed-ridden financial structure on Wall Street, and in the banking system. Leaving a vacancy in the essential role which leadership must play in any successful social movement is not an option.
This is a realization which the Occupy New Orleans activists sooner or later must fully take on board, and grow past their currently nebulous, if noisy, undirected clammor for a cure of our economic and political ailments, while not developing or enunciating prescriptions for a course of treatment.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Does Not Compute
What is the one thing without which the "information age" could not have come into existence? Brilliant individual technology wonks, among whom Steve Jobs was rated tops? Shrewd young risk taking entrepreneurs? Large scale corporate investment? The deregulation and redefinition of the communications industry? The general rise of today's right wing laissez-faire free market political theology? The Reagan Revolution, globalization? No, none of those things. The answer is the science behind the technology of computing.
Science, pure science has driven breakthrough after breakthrough in the high speed transmission of electronic impulses in ever more powerful and smaller miniaturized devices. And the basic science itself was funded and driven in the main by public, that is to say government, spending. To be sure, much of the research which led to the development of critical elements like integrated circuits and semiconductors was conducted in private facilities such as Bell Laboratories. But the long haul financial support necessary to bring these advancements forward came from the public purse.
And that is just shorthand for saying our collective effort as a society. It is the same source from which came the resources to halt the free-fall and avoid the total collapse of capitalism during the 1930s Great Depression, to whip the Nazi menace, to outstrip and wear down the scourge of the Soviet Empire, and to close down the distance between ourselves and the universe beyond. These are among the things that we as a society have been called upon to do in the past, and that short term profit seeking investment could not bring about.
So, with the passing of Mr. Jobs, it seems like an appropriate time to make a clear assessment of the totality of resource allocation and economic decision making which is required to build a decent, strong and successful society today. It is a mistake to overly romanticize and credit the role of mere packaging, marketing, and high profile hucksterism of the sort that Mr. Jobs epitomized. After all, had he and his school age chum, Mr. Wozniak, not had the support facility provided by Jobs' parent's garage or been relieved of the need to get summer jobs for spending money and tuition like so many other kids, they would not even have been able to take advantage of the technology all the rest of us had already paid to develop. And the idea that goverment spending does not play a critical and indespensible role in our economic well being today simply does not compute.
Science, pure science has driven breakthrough after breakthrough in the high speed transmission of electronic impulses in ever more powerful and smaller miniaturized devices. And the basic science itself was funded and driven in the main by public, that is to say government, spending. To be sure, much of the research which led to the development of critical elements like integrated circuits and semiconductors was conducted in private facilities such as Bell Laboratories. But the long haul financial support necessary to bring these advancements forward came from the public purse.
And that is just shorthand for saying our collective effort as a society. It is the same source from which came the resources to halt the free-fall and avoid the total collapse of capitalism during the 1930s Great Depression, to whip the Nazi menace, to outstrip and wear down the scourge of the Soviet Empire, and to close down the distance between ourselves and the universe beyond. These are among the things that we as a society have been called upon to do in the past, and that short term profit seeking investment could not bring about.
So, with the passing of Mr. Jobs, it seems like an appropriate time to make a clear assessment of the totality of resource allocation and economic decision making which is required to build a decent, strong and successful society today. It is a mistake to overly romanticize and credit the role of mere packaging, marketing, and high profile hucksterism of the sort that Mr. Jobs epitomized. After all, had he and his school age chum, Mr. Wozniak, not had the support facility provided by Jobs' parent's garage or been relieved of the need to get summer jobs for spending money and tuition like so many other kids, they would not even have been able to take advantage of the technology all the rest of us had already paid to develop. And the idea that goverment spending does not play a critical and indespensible role in our economic well being today simply does not compute.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
This One's For You
Herewith a quick and perhaps surprising comment on the value of information gleaned from Internet sources. Though I'm sure to some it may sound like damning with faint praise, it actually is a genuine, if grudging, nod of approval. The damning, if there be any from me on this glorious Sunday morning as we enjoy a champagne brunch and prep for another exciting excursion into the ridiculously alluring, fascinating, yet wholly impertinent world of New Orleans Saints football entertainment, will come in the next post concerning the manner in which the "sainted" Steve Jobs really should be remembered.
Earlier this morning, on the Face The Nation political interview program, Bob Schieffer hosted two guests, Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain. I said this will be quick, so I won't trouble you with the radical idiocy of Gingrich regarding the need to hang federal judges before the U.S. Congress. Rather, I want to tackle the way in which Cain is misrepresenting his ridiculous 9-9-9 tax proposal, and the lame failure of revered mainstream media personalities to call him on it.
Schieffer asked Cain if his proposal would represent a tax increase on the working poor. Cain responded that it would not because it would replace the 15.3% payroll tax the working poor currently pay with a 9% tax. This is blatantly and glaringly false, yet Schieffer accepted the lie as if it were Gospel truth. Well, the truth is that the working poor and all working people up to the $106,800 annual income level pay 6.2% in Social Security tax and 1.45% in Medicare tax on their earnings, for a total of 7.65%. Hence, the Cain 9% tax rate for these purposes would come to an increase of 1.35% on the working poor and middle class workers.
The higher 15.3% number reflects the fact that employers are required to match the employee contribution. And that is precisely what this fight is all about. The greedy employers want to escape all responsibility for supporting the social safety net. That fact is part and parcel of every Republican tax scheme that has been advanced, including Cain's phony 9-9-9 proposal. And if anyone seriously wants to argue that employers would raise employee compensation as a result of being relieved of the tax, rather than pocket the windfall so they can buy another Mercedes, you may as well start by trying to convince us that the Easter bunny lays chocolate eggs in our baskets.
But the overriding point of this comment is aimed at exposing the wrongheadedness of the conventional wisdom that gray beard, mainstream media types like Schieffer are reliable journalists who assiduously ferret out the truth. That is a false idol. Most of these made-up, blow-dried clowns are either corporate stooges or declining wretches drowning in their dotage.
We all know to be cautious or sceptical of information obtained from Internet sources. So in a sort of quirky ironic sense, that makes it far more reliable than unquestioned mainstream output.
Earlier this morning, on the Face The Nation political interview program, Bob Schieffer hosted two guests, Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain. I said this will be quick, so I won't trouble you with the radical idiocy of Gingrich regarding the need to hang federal judges before the U.S. Congress. Rather, I want to tackle the way in which Cain is misrepresenting his ridiculous 9-9-9 tax proposal, and the lame failure of revered mainstream media personalities to call him on it.
Schieffer asked Cain if his proposal would represent a tax increase on the working poor. Cain responded that it would not because it would replace the 15.3% payroll tax the working poor currently pay with a 9% tax. This is blatantly and glaringly false, yet Schieffer accepted the lie as if it were Gospel truth. Well, the truth is that the working poor and all working people up to the $106,800 annual income level pay 6.2% in Social Security tax and 1.45% in Medicare tax on their earnings, for a total of 7.65%. Hence, the Cain 9% tax rate for these purposes would come to an increase of 1.35% on the working poor and middle class workers.
The higher 15.3% number reflects the fact that employers are required to match the employee contribution. And that is precisely what this fight is all about. The greedy employers want to escape all responsibility for supporting the social safety net. That fact is part and parcel of every Republican tax scheme that has been advanced, including Cain's phony 9-9-9 proposal. And if anyone seriously wants to argue that employers would raise employee compensation as a result of being relieved of the tax, rather than pocket the windfall so they can buy another Mercedes, you may as well start by trying to convince us that the Easter bunny lays chocolate eggs in our baskets.
But the overriding point of this comment is aimed at exposing the wrongheadedness of the conventional wisdom that gray beard, mainstream media types like Schieffer are reliable journalists who assiduously ferret out the truth. That is a false idol. Most of these made-up, blow-dried clowns are either corporate stooges or declining wretches drowning in their dotage.
We all know to be cautious or sceptical of information obtained from Internet sources. So in a sort of quirky ironic sense, that makes it far more reliable than unquestioned mainstream output.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
The Time Of Our Lives
Yesterday, there were no posts here. Other matters mattered more. It was my wife's birthday. The kids came over and cooked dinner, one of my son's specialities, Chicken Bonne Femme; my older son could send Emeril into retirement. Our family enjoyed it, as well as all of the evening and a good part of the night.
As it happens, the Bill Mahr television program is one my wife likes a good bit, and it was on last night. So, even though Mahr often irritates as much as he amuses me, what are you going to do on your wife's birthday? We all gathered in the den and watched.
Interestingly, Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO was a guest. As usual, he did a good job of speaking on behalf of American workers and outlining a number of things which could be done to generate more and better jobs for us. But there was one hypothetical question Mahr posed which Trumka wisely side-stepped. It is a golden rule to avoid answering hypotheticals in brief public appearances, especially one from an arch political comedian like Mahr. So, I have no beef with Trumka's lack of response, but here is the question and what I wish Trumka had said:
Mahr: What if we don't need to employ as high a percentage of the population to run the economy in the modern day as we did in the past?
My Answer: If the purpose of the economy is to serve out needs, and not to tie us to undue servitude for the greatest part of our lives, then we simply can write the rules of the road in such a way as to define the workweek down to, say, three days. And lower full retirement age to, what do you say, about 45? That would bespeak progress for all, instead of just some, as things stand today. It would allow all of us to participate productively in the economy, while retaining a larger share of the precious time of our lives to enjoy the pursuit of happiness, and not be ensnared by the relentless toil of work.
As it happens, the Bill Mahr television program is one my wife likes a good bit, and it was on last night. So, even though Mahr often irritates as much as he amuses me, what are you going to do on your wife's birthday? We all gathered in the den and watched.
Interestingly, Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO was a guest. As usual, he did a good job of speaking on behalf of American workers and outlining a number of things which could be done to generate more and better jobs for us. But there was one hypothetical question Mahr posed which Trumka wisely side-stepped. It is a golden rule to avoid answering hypotheticals in brief public appearances, especially one from an arch political comedian like Mahr. So, I have no beef with Trumka's lack of response, but here is the question and what I wish Trumka had said:
Mahr: What if we don't need to employ as high a percentage of the population to run the economy in the modern day as we did in the past?
My Answer: If the purpose of the economy is to serve out needs, and not to tie us to undue servitude for the greatest part of our lives, then we simply can write the rules of the road in such a way as to define the workweek down to, say, three days. And lower full retirement age to, what do you say, about 45? That would bespeak progress for all, instead of just some, as things stand today. It would allow all of us to participate productively in the economy, while retaining a larger share of the precious time of our lives to enjoy the pursuit of happiness, and not be ensnared by the relentless toil of work.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
What's Going On ... Marvin Gaye Style
"The arch of history is long, but it bends toward justice." Martin Luther King made that once rather obscure line world famous. It is indeed eloquent, perhaps a little too eloquent. For its sentiments are rather too comforting, inasmuch as they are not true. Would that they were. We would not have the solemn responsibilities bequeathed to us by our common human endowments.
History marches on. But the course is squiggly. The direction is variable. And there is no mystically ordained lean or destination. No, it has to be pulled, and pulled hard, because the enemies of justice are always jerking it over to another track.
Examples of this inconstancy of direction abound in history. There is not just one long road which leads only toward justice. Instead, there are extended stretches of time when all the movement seems permanently progressive, as there are times when everything seems headed irrevocably in reverse. Those are not intrinsic characteristics of our experience, but simply the way in which they come dressed. It is usually the moments of change which most dramatically inform our appreciation of the times in which we live.
Although Lincoln was always personally opposed to the institution of slavery and morally repulsed by it, he was far more temperate on the subject as he campaigned for president, and even after he first was elected. He tried to deflect and defuse the secessionist movement by relying on his legal obligation as President to follow the Constitution, which permitted slave holding in those states wherein it was already the practice. But the press and prosecution of the Civil War, along with the ever growing abolitionist movement and spreading sentiment cleared the path not only for preservation of the Union, but the rapid adoption of the 13th Amendment and the end of slavery everywhere within it.
Similarly, FDR came into office without a significantly different prescription for resurrecting the moribund national economy than that which the Hoover administration had been recommending. Indeed, FDR campaigned as a balanced budget advocate. But by the time he took office, the deepening crisis, together with an avalanche of increasingly serious and sometimes violent protest movements, swung wide the door for new ideas, new approaches, and the New Deal writ large itself.
I will skip over the period of agitation and change of the sixties we all know about, and that was somewhat obliquely referenced in the title to this post. Instead, it is more important to look with eyes wide open at the situation today. We see the transition Obama is making from would-be partner with the predatory powerful back to a promotion of policy initiatives aimed at realizing a desperately needed progressive approach to the problems of the day. We also see the nascent spark of life returning to a left-of-center oriented movement of the type which holds the potential to fuel a turn and ride back in the direction of justice. We should not let it stall or be driven into a ditch.
History marches on. But the course is squiggly. The direction is variable. And there is no mystically ordained lean or destination. No, it has to be pulled, and pulled hard, because the enemies of justice are always jerking it over to another track.
Examples of this inconstancy of direction abound in history. There is not just one long road which leads only toward justice. Instead, there are extended stretches of time when all the movement seems permanently progressive, as there are times when everything seems headed irrevocably in reverse. Those are not intrinsic characteristics of our experience, but simply the way in which they come dressed. It is usually the moments of change which most dramatically inform our appreciation of the times in which we live.
Although Lincoln was always personally opposed to the institution of slavery and morally repulsed by it, he was far more temperate on the subject as he campaigned for president, and even after he first was elected. He tried to deflect and defuse the secessionist movement by relying on his legal obligation as President to follow the Constitution, which permitted slave holding in those states wherein it was already the practice. But the press and prosecution of the Civil War, along with the ever growing abolitionist movement and spreading sentiment cleared the path not only for preservation of the Union, but the rapid adoption of the 13th Amendment and the end of slavery everywhere within it.
Similarly, FDR came into office without a significantly different prescription for resurrecting the moribund national economy than that which the Hoover administration had been recommending. Indeed, FDR campaigned as a balanced budget advocate. But by the time he took office, the deepening crisis, together with an avalanche of increasingly serious and sometimes violent protest movements, swung wide the door for new ideas, new approaches, and the New Deal writ large itself.
I will skip over the period of agitation and change of the sixties we all know about, and that was somewhat obliquely referenced in the title to this post. Instead, it is more important to look with eyes wide open at the situation today. We see the transition Obama is making from would-be partner with the predatory powerful back to a promotion of policy initiatives aimed at realizing a desperately needed progressive approach to the problems of the day. We also see the nascent spark of life returning to a left-of-center oriented movement of the type which holds the potential to fuel a turn and ride back in the direction of justice. We should not let it stall or be driven into a ditch.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Occupy Your Mind
I have learned that there are some subjects about which one cannot say everything that needs saying in one or even more than one blog post. And this one just proves the point, it is a follow-up to the Save Our Shipyard (SOS) and Occupy Avondale discussions.
In the earlier posts, I referred to Northrup Grumann as the owner/operator of Avondale. That was a matter of convenience and a bit of shorthand. To be sure, it is an accurate enough identification, and the most widely understood by everyone in the community. However, the actual legal lineage of corporate maneuvering in this matter is rather more nauseatingly mind numbing. I will visit it here, at least briefly, just to make a point.
For most of its long history, Avondale was an independent shipyard. In more recent times, it was acquired by Litton Industries. During our union organizing campaign in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was sold to Northrup Grumann. This sale caused it to be combined with Grumman's Ingalls yard in Pascagoula, MS. In 2010, Grumann decided to shut-down shipbuilding operations, and subsequently "spun-off" Avondale's operation to Huntington Industries. Now, Huntington operates Avondale and Ingalls, but they maintain a separate corporate identity for each. I warned you this was tedious. But we will leave it now to get to the punch line.
You can see that there are a lot corporate pockets to fill here. And if we let them shut-down Avondale as a shipyard, we are going to fill them. That's right, not only will we lose 9,000 jobs, but the Navy will have to cough-up at least 271 million dollars just to offset the cost of closing. It is a corporate bail-out of the first order, and we are manning the buckets once again. Occupy your mind with that.
In the earlier posts, I referred to Northrup Grumann as the owner/operator of Avondale. That was a matter of convenience and a bit of shorthand. To be sure, it is an accurate enough identification, and the most widely understood by everyone in the community. However, the actual legal lineage of corporate maneuvering in this matter is rather more nauseatingly mind numbing. I will visit it here, at least briefly, just to make a point.
For most of its long history, Avondale was an independent shipyard. In more recent times, it was acquired by Litton Industries. During our union organizing campaign in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was sold to Northrup Grumann. This sale caused it to be combined with Grumman's Ingalls yard in Pascagoula, MS. In 2010, Grumann decided to shut-down shipbuilding operations, and subsequently "spun-off" Avondale's operation to Huntington Industries. Now, Huntington operates Avondale and Ingalls, but they maintain a separate corporate identity for each. I warned you this was tedious. But we will leave it now to get to the punch line.
You can see that there are a lot corporate pockets to fill here. And if we let them shut-down Avondale as a shipyard, we are going to fill them. That's right, not only will we lose 9,000 jobs, but the Navy will have to cough-up at least 271 million dollars just to offset the cost of closing. It is a corporate bail-out of the first order, and we are manning the buckets once again. Occupy your mind with that.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Ours
A modest proposal: On the subject of naming rights, I suggest we go around and publicly proclaim that which more rightfully belongs to us than to anyone else, to be ours. We name everything from Avondale to the Superdome "Ours," and be done with it. Any graffiti artists out there?
Monday, October 3, 2011
Occupy Avondale
A "Save Our Shipyard" (SOS) march and rally was conducted in downtown New Orleans this past Saturday morning. The actual shipyard, Avondale, is located on the other side of the Mississippi river, near the foot of the Huey P. Long bridge. Most readers also are aware of a grassroots movement known as "Occupy Wall Street," an on-going protest in New York City. This effort to confront, critique, and corral the wanton abuse of overbearing and irresponsible financial power is being mimicked in a number of other cities around the country, including New Orleans. Seems to me that if there is any one thing this community needs to keep occupied, especially in these woeful economic times, it is Avondale Shipyard.
Admittedly, the "Occupy" movement has been assailed quite justly by some for lacking direction and well articulated purpose, and for being encumbered by not a few crackpots. But the SOS movement is just the opposite. Its goal is to maintain a shipbuilding operation at the Avondale facility, after the current operator, Northrup-Grumman, pulls out. This could preserve as many as 5,000 direct, well-paying union jobs, and 4,000 more jobs in the community, consequent to the economic boost from keeping the place open. The SOS undertaking is being carried out by a coalition of labor organizations, small business owners, the NAACP, the local Catholic Archdiocese, and various other Churches. It also has the full support of local, state, and federal elected officials from across the multi-parish Metro Area.
What is more, the SOS has the support of Mr. Percy Pyne, a founding partner of American Feeder Lines. Mr. Pyne was in town Saturday morning and participated in the rally. He was a featured speaker. His presentation focused on the strategic importance to the nation of maintaining a domestic shipbuilding capacity. He pointed to the fact that, at present, every export leaving our shores and every import coming in is carried on foreign bottoms. His company is interested in operating Avondale and building American Feeder Ships with union labor, as well as sailing them in full compliance with the Jones Act requirement of American crews. Clicking on the highlighted link below will play a video of Mr. Pyne explaining more of the relevant particulars about his company. And a Goggle search of American Feeder Lines produces more detailed information.
http://youtu.be/2FfJyIc8hsE
A final interesting matter of some note on this subject is the "coincidence" of a story which appeared the day after the rally in the Sunday morning Money Section of the Times-Picayune. It was about a competing company in the feeder line shipping business, CMA CGM, and their dealings with local Port officials. Very interesting. By the way, feeder lines operate somewhat smaller vessels than the mammoth container ships, which today draw far too much water to birth here in New Orleans or at most other U.S. Ports. They are in the business of moving container cargo from intermediate drops in the Caribbean Islands or Mexico and Central America up to the U.S. Ports of the Gulf and East Coasts. The expectation is that, with the 2014 planned opening of the muti-billion dollar expanded Panama Canal, the behemoth ships will be dropping staggeringly greater loads in nearby offshore holding ports, to be moved up by the feeders. This means a huge increase in overall business and a steady demand for new ships. The difference, from what I can see, between American Feeder Lines and CMA CGM is that the former wants to build American ships right here at Avondale, and the other guy is all foreign flagged, built, and crewed.
So, with all due respect to the "brain-trust" of the local Occupy movement, might I suggest you take a look at combining your efforts with the SOS project, and help us all hold on to Avondale. If you're looking for something serious and productive to sink your teeth into, guys, this is it. Otherwise, you are likely to wind up being manipulated into strange, kooky, libertarian/right-wing reactionary nonsense like anti-Federal Reserve agit-prop, and forever lose or lack all crediblity.
Admittedly, the "Occupy" movement has been assailed quite justly by some for lacking direction and well articulated purpose, and for being encumbered by not a few crackpots. But the SOS movement is just the opposite. Its goal is to maintain a shipbuilding operation at the Avondale facility, after the current operator, Northrup-Grumman, pulls out. This could preserve as many as 5,000 direct, well-paying union jobs, and 4,000 more jobs in the community, consequent to the economic boost from keeping the place open. The SOS undertaking is being carried out by a coalition of labor organizations, small business owners, the NAACP, the local Catholic Archdiocese, and various other Churches. It also has the full support of local, state, and federal elected officials from across the multi-parish Metro Area.
What is more, the SOS has the support of Mr. Percy Pyne, a founding partner of American Feeder Lines. Mr. Pyne was in town Saturday morning and participated in the rally. He was a featured speaker. His presentation focused on the strategic importance to the nation of maintaining a domestic shipbuilding capacity. He pointed to the fact that, at present, every export leaving our shores and every import coming in is carried on foreign bottoms. His company is interested in operating Avondale and building American Feeder Ships with union labor, as well as sailing them in full compliance with the Jones Act requirement of American crews. Clicking on the highlighted link below will play a video of Mr. Pyne explaining more of the relevant particulars about his company. And a Goggle search of American Feeder Lines produces more detailed information.
http://youtu.be/2FfJyIc8hsE
A final interesting matter of some note on this subject is the "coincidence" of a story which appeared the day after the rally in the Sunday morning Money Section of the Times-Picayune. It was about a competing company in the feeder line shipping business, CMA CGM, and their dealings with local Port officials. Very interesting. By the way, feeder lines operate somewhat smaller vessels than the mammoth container ships, which today draw far too much water to birth here in New Orleans or at most other U.S. Ports. They are in the business of moving container cargo from intermediate drops in the Caribbean Islands or Mexico and Central America up to the U.S. Ports of the Gulf and East Coasts. The expectation is that, with the 2014 planned opening of the muti-billion dollar expanded Panama Canal, the behemoth ships will be dropping staggeringly greater loads in nearby offshore holding ports, to be moved up by the feeders. This means a huge increase in overall business and a steady demand for new ships. The difference, from what I can see, between American Feeder Lines and CMA CGM is that the former wants to build American ships right here at Avondale, and the other guy is all foreign flagged, built, and crewed.
So, with all due respect to the "brain-trust" of the local Occupy movement, might I suggest you take a look at combining your efforts with the SOS project, and help us all hold on to Avondale. If you're looking for something serious and productive to sink your teeth into, guys, this is it. Otherwise, you are likely to wind up being manipulated into strange, kooky, libertarian/right-wing reactionary nonsense like anti-Federal Reserve agit-prop, and forever lose or lack all crediblity.
There's Something Happening Here ... Or, Out On A Limb
Turning points are as alluring and treacherous as the Sirens who vexed Odysseus. And the risk of plotting a false course rises when all the currents are tossed in a soup of sweaty digital ephemera. So one is well warned to stay tightly tied and braced to the mast when steering a true turn for home in these times. We may be making one right now.
The studied indifference or affected ignorance of the mainstreammedia liars is a good sign. "The Occupy Wall Street" protest is just starting to gain some recognition outside the so-called social networking world, even though it has been underway more than two weeks, and nearly a thousand have suffered arrest and pepper spray. Remember how quick the liars were to combust in flames at the very dawn of the Arab Spring? You have to wonder why it takes them so long to warm up to a domestic resistance movement in the heart of the financial capital of the nation and the world. Of course, the social media has exhibited a mixture of regard ranging from support and encouragement to condescension and derision. This is not surprising, it has ever been the case that change comes about by the actions of those who carry the load under the doleful watch of those who standby and carp.
It is true that much like all other rather spontaneous eruptions and expressions of non-cooperation with the powerful and predatory, this movement has lacked direction and leadership. But that is changing. Organizational support from unions and other progressive groups is coming on board. And we may be in for a real excursion in democratic reform incited by the grassroots once again. As for me, count me in with those who show-up, not the ones who only show-off their aloof disdain for the naive idea that things really can get better.
The studied indifference or affected ignorance of the mainstream
It is true that much like all other rather spontaneous eruptions and expressions of non-cooperation with the powerful and predatory, this movement has lacked direction and leadership. But that is changing. Organizational support from unions and other progressive groups is coming on board. And we may be in for a real excursion in democratic reform incited by the grassroots once again. As for me, count me in with those who show-up, not the ones who only show-off their aloof disdain for the naive idea that things really can get better.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
If You Want It ...
Here it is, the truth. Certainly WWL radio doesn't want it. Nola.com has no use for it. It is also evident the Gambit doesn't either. And I am sure that the rest of the so-called mainstream media has no interest as well, although I haven't heard any reports from sources other than the ones mentioned. But since I was there at the "Save Our Shipyard" rally in New Orleans today, here is the straight skinny.
There were 2,000 plus participants, not the "hundreds" reported by the above mentioned so-called news outlets, unless they intended to say 20-something hundred. Of course, they didn't. But you know that. And it is also true that if Avondale closes as a ship building facility, it will mean the loss of 9,000 jobs, not the 6,500 reported by the liars.
You might ask how I can be so certain of my numbers as compared to those of the liars. A fair enough question. So, here is why. The same head counters who specialize in crowd estimation and control at such minor events like Mardi Gras produced the 2,000 plus estimate, and it was duly reported at the rally. Also, a Tulane professor who spoke at the rally indicated that the multiplier estimate of direct jobs to total overall job production related to Avondale is 1.8, that there once were (the layoffs have already begun) 5,000 direct jobs at the yard, hence, there are a total of 9,000 jobs which would be lost with its closing. Now you know why I call the liars liars. Their reporters were there, too. They saw and heard the same facts I saw and heard, but they reported something different. What is even more unsettling and worrisome is they all report the same fabrication. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, though. After all, WWL radio allows Garland Robinette to stay on the air, Clancy Dubos defends him, and the Times-Picayune failed to blow the whistle on him when he tried to peddle his tainted stories to them.
I am tempted to report that it was a good showing, as I do have a rooting interest here. But even though the showing was not as lame as the mainstream liars would have you believe, I would be just as much a liar if I claimed the participation was what it should have been. It wasn't. In fact, it was disappointing as hell. The weather was perfect. It was a Saturday morning. The event was publicized and pumped up for a good while. The cause could hardly be more signifcant as a local employment issue. And most of the people who have the most to lose in this battle took a dive, or a walk, or a longer sleep, or whatever. But if you are one of them, shame.
There were 2,000 plus participants, not the "hundreds" reported by the above mentioned so-called news outlets, unless they intended to say 20-something hundred. Of course, they didn't. But you know that. And it is also true that if Avondale closes as a ship building facility, it will mean the loss of 9,000 jobs, not the 6,500 reported by the liars.
You might ask how I can be so certain of my numbers as compared to those of the liars. A fair enough question. So, here is why. The same head counters who specialize in crowd estimation and control at such minor events like Mardi Gras produced the 2,000 plus estimate, and it was duly reported at the rally. Also, a Tulane professor who spoke at the rally indicated that the multiplier estimate of direct jobs to total overall job production related to Avondale is 1.8, that there once were (the layoffs have already begun) 5,000 direct jobs at the yard, hence, there are a total of 9,000 jobs which would be lost with its closing. Now you know why I call the liars liars. Their reporters were there, too. They saw and heard the same facts I saw and heard, but they reported something different. What is even more unsettling and worrisome is they all report the same fabrication. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, though. After all, WWL radio allows Garland Robinette to stay on the air, Clancy Dubos defends him, and the Times-Picayune failed to blow the whistle on him when he tried to peddle his tainted stories to them.
I am tempted to report that it was a good showing, as I do have a rooting interest here. But even though the showing was not as lame as the mainstream liars would have you believe, I would be just as much a liar if I claimed the participation was what it should have been. It wasn't. In fact, it was disappointing as hell. The weather was perfect. It was a Saturday morning. The event was publicized and pumped up for a good while. The cause could hardly be more signifcant as a local employment issue. And most of the people who have the most to lose in this battle took a dive, or a walk, or a longer sleep, or whatever. But if you are one of them, shame.
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