Your State Pension Under Attack

Executive Director Beil Blast's Opponents of State Pension Plan
Defends Public Sector Workers

Marty Beil - State Pensions Under Attack
Posted by SLY IN THE MORNING at 7:45 AM

Scott Walker and right-wing radio want to blame State pensions for the budget mess despite Wisconsin having one of the best run pension programs in the country. State employees make lower wages in exchange for a secure but modest retirement and its saves taxpayer money in the long run. Listen to AFSCME Council 24 Executive Director Marty Beil (http://slysoffice.blogspot.com/search?q=State+Pensions).

Listen to the radio show - Approximately 38 minutes
http://slysoffice.blogspot.com/search?q=State+Pensions

"It's a Festivus Miracle."

Turns out Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker's fight to dismantle the rights of all public sector employees in Milwaukee was big, giant George W. Bush-sized lie.

Walker has made a career of blaming working men and women for his mismanagment of county government. His nonsense escalated exponentially as he continued his near-decade long run for governor.

Fear-monger extraordinaire Todd Berry’s conservative talking points are once again proven wrong by, you know, reality. Berry claimed in September of this year the repeal of the Qualified Economic Offer (QEO) in the state budget could lead to disaster -- teacher’s salaries could explode out of control[!!!] bankrupting school districts and leading to MASSIVE CUTS and OHMYGOD HUGE TAX INCREASES!!!!

Of course, Berry and WISTAX’s opposition to lifting the arbitrary cap on teacher’s salary aligns perfectly with the conservative agenda in Wisconsin that wants to take money out of public schools and choke off public school teachers at any opportunity.

Then last week, in the first major post-QEO negotiation, the Madison teachers union, Madison Teachers Inc., voted in favor of a new contract that raised salaries by whopping 1 percent. What a rapid acceleration! The total compensation increase (including benefits) in the MTI contract is 4%. The average increase in total compensation under the QEO? 3.8%.

A study by the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future about the Mercury Marine debacle that unfolded earlier this summer reveals the true nature of the corporate greed that’s taken over our economy, turned the free market on its head and is destroying working families, all for the sake of padding the pockets of the those at the very top.

Since 2005, IWF reports, Merc’s parent company Brunswick has shed over 5,300 and those that were lucky enough to keep their jobs were forced to take massive pay and benefit cuts. This summer, Merc threatened to leave Fond du Lac unless the union accepted a ridiculous seven-year pay freeze and other massive cuts. Like one union rep said, corporate basically gave workers two choices: vote against the concessions and lose everything (cut off your head) or vote for the concessions and at least have something (cut off your leg). At least if you cut off your leg, you still have a chance to walk someday.

Shares in the company dropped 70% and even management claimed Brunswick corporate screwed them -- in September, 100 Merc managers filed suit against Brunswick when the company refused to pay promised bonuses for management efforts to cut costs. The bonus program promised to pay out bonuses of 10% of whatever savings were realized, but when the time came to pay out the $7 million, corporate refused.

But guess who’s done really well since 2005? Brunswick CEO Dustan McCoy! Since he took over in 2005, right as Brunswick started shedding jobs and losing money, McCoy has taken over $10 million EVERY YEAR. Five senior board members also received an average of $506,000 each year. So while they drive the company into the ground, these fat cats are grabbing as much cash as they can get their hands on. Sick.

The “Young Gun” filed his latest campaign finance statement and it’s chock full-o-corporatey goodness. Ryan amassed $104,000 in PAC gifts, including 94% from out-of-state PACs.

It’s not surprising, Ryan’s corporate sycophancy extends beyond the Badger State borders, so why wouldn’t his grab-bagging.

TEABAGGER ALERT!

So this past weekend, Scott Walker and the JV teabaggers at Citizens for Responsible Government held a rally at Serb Hall in Milwaukee to catapult the propaganda about Walker’s credit-card budget for Milwaukee County. And of course, like most of the townhalls this summer, people there to express an opinion in a thoughtful manner were bullied by conservative thugs.

Here’s the video from Fox.

Notice how the guy doesn’t even say anything, just goes right into violent teabagger fury. He doesn’t offer any support for Walker’s budget or any defense of Walker’s cuts to working families. He just shoves, and his first target is a woman at that. What a typical teabaggin’ no-ideas chump.

UPDATE: Apparently this tool has been apprehended and charged with disorderly conduct and assault.

At this weekend's GOP gaggle organized by Americans (read: Republicans) for Prospertity otherwise known as the "Republican Rally for Failure" in Milwaukee, our fine state will be treated by another visit from so-called Joe the Plumber, nee Samuel Wurzelbacher.

We all remember him from his "impromptu" ambush of then-candidate Barack Obama to his work as a war correspondent where he said the "I think the media should be abolished from, uh, you know, reporting," to his inability to explain the Employee Free Choice Act at an anti-EFCA appearance, Wurzelbacher has proven his intention to serve as a dull acid reflux to the body politic.

From Milwaukee County First, of which I am the Chair:

For many years, riders of the Milwaukee County Transit System has seen its routes get cut and the fares go up, as less and less money is available for it. Once a standard for the nation, it has been in steady decline. This year, it has been recommended by the current administration, contrary to all advice, to again slash routes by up to 40% and raise fares by charging a quarter for each transfer. This will have a devastating effect on the local economy, not just of Milwaukee County, but for the entire southeast region of Wisconsin.

Likewise, the Milwaukee County Parks System has seen cuts for each of the past 27 years. This year will be no different, except that it appears that the parks will suffer the most severe cuts yet. Some of the options being considered by the current administration is closing ALL of the outdoor swimming pools, closing both community centers, and cutting maintenance at the senior centers.

Once again, the dependable corporate lapdogs on the Wisconsin Supreme Court bought and paid for by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce come through in the clutch for corporate interests. Justices Mike Gableman and Annette Ziegler, beneficiaries of millions of dollars in spending from WMC during their run for the Supreme Court, ruled yesterday that owners of a Wisconsin manufacturing company had the right to take millions of dollars in compensation as they drove their company into the ground.

WMC filed a brief in appeals court last year defending these corporate criminals, pushing the same tired talking point that a ruling against the owners forcing them to pay damages to the workers they bilked out of fair compensation would have a “chilling effect on business.” When Polsky v. Virnich was sent to the Supreme Court, the Associated Press noted WMC withdrew from the case and cited the gobs of money it spent helping to elect the corporate bloc of the court in Gableman and Ziegler created a huge conflict of interest.