Month: March 2017

PSEA Corrupts Pennsylvania, Teachers Would Quit It If Able

PSEA Corrupts Pennsylvania, Teachers Would Quit It If Able

PSEA Corrupts Pennsylvania, Teachers Would Quit It If Able By Sen. Scott Wagner

I have reported over the last several years in my email updates the power public sector unions have in Harrisburg and that these unions are essentially running Pennsylvania because of their power and influence.

There are two distinct types of unions: private sector unions and public sector unions. 

The first union group would be private sector unions, commonly known as the trade unions.

Trade unions represent electricians, plumbers, steelworkers, bricklayers, carpenters, equipment operators, steamfitters, and glass installers – mainly construction related workers.

The second union group would be classified as public sector employee unions.

Public sector unions represent school teachers and government workers.

The Pennsylvania State Education Association, commonly known as the PSEA, represents approximately 180,000 Kindergarten through 12th grade teachers throughout Pennsylvania.

Two other public sector unions that represent workers at the Department of Labor and Industry, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the Department of Environmental Protection are the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, commonly known as AFSCME, and the Service Employees International Union, commonly known as the SEIU union. 

The PSEA represents approximately 180,000 K-12 school teachers in Pennsylvania. Each teacher pays approximately $800 per year in union dues to the PSEA.

Therefore on an annual basis, the PSEA collects approximately $144 million from 180,000 school teachers.

It is hard to know exactly how much of the $144 million is used for political purposes in Harrisburg and how much is used for bargaining and representation of the teachers.

I have seen first-hand the amount of money spent on political contributions to House and Senate members in Harrisburg and the amount spent on lobbying.

Penn Live reported in May of 2016 that $500 Million Dollars was spent on lobbying in 2015. Click here for the article: http://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2016/05/monday_morning_coffee_lobbyist.html

The PSEA is the most powerful union in Harrisburg and to collect approximately $144 Million Dollars per year in dues makes the PSEA a very large enterprise.

At PSEA headquarters in Harrisburg there are several hundred employees that are paid by the teacher dues collected. 

 The best way to describe the PSEA’s headquarter in Harrisburg would be to say that this is where the PSEA Union Bosses have their offices.

There are many great teachers throughout Pennsylvania who do an excellent job of teaching our children and would rather not be a member of the PSEA, but they do not have a choice, and if they had the choice a large majority of teachers would elect not to pay dues to the PSEA.

The PSEA is also a member of the National Education Association commonly known as the NEA, and the PSEA pays dues to the NEA.

The NEA is based in Washington D.C. and had a budget of more than $341 million for the 2012-2013 fiscal year.

The operation of the PSEA and the NEA are large enterprises; just think that there are 49 other states in America that have teachers unions also that collect dues from their members.

It would be safe to say that teachers in schools throughout America pay several billion dollars in dues combined to teachers unions. 

Teachers unions have become big businesses and yield extreme power over their members and in the states they operate.

Some quick research reveals that the NEA actually is very clear that they represent teachers and do not represent the children because the children do not pay dues.

 Click here for three articles:

 http://dailysignal.com/2011/07/02/nea-convention-reminds-us-it%E2%80%99s-about-union-power-not-children/

 http://nation.foxnews.com/culture/2011/02/23/teachers-union-big-wig-says-its-not-about-kids-its-about-power

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/06/the-failure-of-american-schools/308497/

 In the above articles, NEA officials actually make statements – “It’s Not About Kids, It’s About Power” and “When school children start paying union dues, that’s when I’ll start representing the interests of school children.”

These are very powerful statements that make it crystal clear that union bosses at state levels and the national level are in the game for power and money, and not the children.

It is unfortunate because a large majority of the school teachers in Pennsylvania do care about their students and would drop out of the PSEA if they had a choice but they don’t have that choice because of the power of the PSEA.

The PSEA  uses teacher dues collected to fight every effort that would result in solving the pension crisis and any initiative to eliminate school taxes on real estate in Pennsylvania.

In order for the teachers in Pennsylvania to stop being represented by the PSEA, it would require a decertification effort, initiated by a single teacher or group of teachers, but the PSEA will never let that happen, because the PSEA is all about power and money. 

Sen. Wagner represents the 28th District in the Pennsylvania Senate.

PSEA Corrupts Pennsylvania, Teachers Would Quit It If Able

Obamacare Fix Should Be Simple

Obamacare Fix Should Be Simple — Debate rages about how to fix the Obamacare disaster.

Some Republicans understandably want to keep the program’s massive Medicaid expansion. Medicaid is the “government insurance program for those whose resources are insufficient to pay for health care“. Many now have health insurance who didn’t before. Taking it away is something that would likely come back to bite.

Of course, Medicaid is a disaster in itself so hold that thought.

Then there is the employer mandate. Employer-provided health insurance had a value of $17,545 for a family in 2015. It would be a serious blow to working people if it were to disappear. Of course, company health insurance plans were widespread before the mandate. Ironically, they may become less widespread as businesses increase the use of part-timers and independent contractors and automation to avoid the mandate so hold that thought.

And then there are the mandates to guarantee insurance for those with pre-existing conditions, and for adult sons and daughters, which President Trump has promised to keep.

The knot appears impossible to unravel and it is. That, though, makes the solution simple. Cut it off entirely and re-splice the loose ends.

Switzerland has an indisputably successful health care system. It has an individual mandate as per Obamacare but limits it to accidents, illness and pregnancy. If one wants things extra, one can pay find policies beyond the mandate and pay extra.

There are subsidies for those who can’t cover the minimum.

If the U.S. were to adopt such a system, Obamacare, Medicaid and Medicare could be abolished and the swamp-filling bureaucracies that run them could be drained. As the policies would be purchased by individuals, the government wouldn’t have the chance to play with the money.

Regarding business, don’t just end the employer mandate but treat health benefits as taxable income. Cold? Does your employer pay for your home, clothes and groceries? Once people get used to buying their own health insurance just as they do their home, clothes, groceries and other insurance, the cost will drastically drop as they shop. Employment will boom as will living standards.

Obviously, insurance should be allowed to be sold across state lines.

Obamacare Fix Should Be Simple

Obamacare Fix Should Be Simple

 

Alec Baldwin H8er

Alec Baldwin H8er — Clueless Hollywood hack Alec Baldwin says he is going to stop his Saturday Night Live impersonations of Donald Trump.

“Trump just overwhelmingly lacks any sportsmanship, he remains, bitter, and angry, and you just want to look at him and go, ‘You won!’” Baldwin said. . . . “The maliciousness of this White House has people worried. That’s why I’m not going to do it much longer, the impersonation, I don’t know how much more people can take it.”

It is impossible to mock people like Baldwin. His self-centered universe inures him to being shamed for hypocrisy or cruelty or anything else that causes guilt in the normal.

In 1998, Baldwin suggested Republican leaders be stoned to death and their wives and children killed.

Really. He suggested this. On national TV.

Here it is:

The best way to treat people like this ass is to turn him off. You will be happier if you did. You don’t need him in your life.

Alec Baldwin H8erAlec Baldwin H8er

William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 3-7-17

Daisy Greville Daisy Bell — Daisy in the 1892 hit “Daisy Bell” was Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick. The Countess will be forever part of history as her song was the first demonstration of speech synthesis when sung by an IBM 704 at Bell Labs in New Jersey in 1961.

Here is the history-making IBM version:

William Lawrence Sr Omnibit 3-7-17 Daisy Greville Daisy Bell

Daisy Greville Daisy Bell -- Daisy in the 1892 hit "Daisy Bell" was Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick. The Countess will be forever part

Mark Levin Chastises Brian Stetler

Mark Levin Chastises Brian Stetler — CNN’s Brian Stelter merely did what he was born to do, namely defend the deep-state establishment, when he graspingly sought to defend the Obama Administration against charges that it used national security protocols in a futile attempt to stop the election of Donald Trump.

Radio host Mark Levin, who grew up in Springfield, Montco, takes him to task regarding his hypocrisy and failed journalism in this open letter:

Did you listen to my show on Thursday, before President Trump tweeted? Did you watch my appearance on Fox and Friends Sunday morning? I know you are ticked I did not appear on your show, despite your numerous requests. Your ad hominem attacks about “right wing” radio host and conspiracy theory stuff … incredible.

I simply put together the stories that YOUR profession reported, on the public record. Do you deny there were two FISA applications? Do you deny the first was turned down? Do you deny the second was approved? It’s called the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. It is about surveillance. The fact that we cannot discern all the details because of the secrecy, except for what the media have revealed and selective leaks by the government, should cause you to want to know more, not to trash those who point it out.

And yes, we can make several logical implications based on events and experience. A FISA application is a big deal. One, or two in this case, that involve campaign surrogates, or a server or computer related to a candidate or campaign, etc., is a big deal. President Obama’s statement is not a definitive statement of anything, other than he, personally, did not order a wiretap, which I never claimed. But that does not mean he was unaware of surveillance activity by several of his departments, even through routine reports to the president, such as the Daily Intel Briefing or information conveyed to him or his staff via the Justice Department re the FBI counter-intelligence activities. As for Clapper, despite his past dissembling before Congress, he may not have been aware of what was taking place since the FBI counter-intel operation reportedly sought the warrant. The Daily Intel Briefing might provide useful information in that regard as well.

Of course, the release of the FISA applications would also shed a lot of light on events, assuming YOU believe reports that they were filed.

Furthermore, Clapper has said, as recently as yesterday, that no connections between the Russians and the Trump campaign have been found. I am extremely critical of Russia, Putin, and the efforts to influence our election, although I do not believe they succeeded. That said, how would Clapper know of no connections if he, as former Director of National Intelligence, didn’t look? On what is that based?

Your lack of curiosity and dishonesty about such matters and in dealing with me demean you and your profession. You are free to circulate this communication to whomever you wish, as I am making it public.

Mark Levin Chastises Brian Stetler

Mark Levin Chastises Brian Stetler