Why Facebook and Google joined ALEC

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s1600/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s320/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/08/16/tech_giants_partner_with_alec/" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/google-doing-evil-with-al_b_4079436.html" rel="nofollow">Google</a> want us to think they're 'progressive' organizations, but then they go ahead and join <a href="http://alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>.<br /><br />Readers of this blog know that ALEC (the American legislative Exchange Council) is a corporate dating group for state lawmakers. It offers lawmakers thinly disguised vacations at posh resorts in exchange for legislation that empowers corporations, enriches billionaires, eradicates public education, destroys workers' rights, undermines health and safety, weakens democracy and lowers the standard of living for the 99 percent. <br /><br />So why would Facebook and Google want to join ALEC?<br /><br />Tim Worstall at <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/11/22/explaining-to-grist-why-facebook-and-google-belong-to-alec/" rel="nofollow">Forbes magazine</a> has a great explanation: It's the way the system works.  <blockquote>...the tech companies have all learned their lesson from Microsoft. A decade or more ago the company did almost no lobbying. It sat there out in Redmond and carried on its plans for world domination without worrying overmuch about politics or politicians. It was rudely disabused of this notion when it got sued, investigated, charged with abuse of a monopoly and much, much, more. It found that you needed friends in politics at this point and they way to get such friends is to join the various lobbies, spread a little cash around the city of DC and in general, make the political classes feel happy that you’re paying attention to them. </blockquote><blockquote>Thus what Facebook and Google are doing. Making sure that the political classes, all sides and flavours of them, know and like them. That way there will be much less trouble from said political classes over the years. No, it’s not quite the Mafia extorting: but there’s a definite flavour of “nice company you’ve got here, would be a shame if the law changed, wouldn’t it?”. A few millions in the lobby budgets, a few millions spread around every electoral cycle is the cure for this potential problem. </blockquote><blockquote>And it is just a few millions: for whatever else politicians are they are undoubtedly cheap.</blockquote>Best explanation we've heard.  <br /><br />

ALEC facebook google social networking Why Facebook and Google joined ALEC

Facebook and Google want us to think they're 'progressive' organizations, but then they go ahead and join ALEC . Readers of th...

Read more »

No rest for sick workers

More Americans are denied sick leave at work, thanks in part to ALEC's efforts to ban local governments from mandating paid sick days for workers.<br /><br /><a href="http://alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>, the American Legislative Exchange Council, functions as a <a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/ALEC_Exposed" rel="nofollow">corporate dating service for state legislators.</a> In state after state, ALEC is succeeding in getting laws passed for its corporate members who don't want their workers to take sick days off.<br /><br />And more Americans are showing up to work sick -- <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/30/90-percent-work-sick_n_4174464.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003&ir=Business" rel="nofollow">over 90 percent of workers show </a><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/30/90-percent-work-sick_n_4174464.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003&ir=Business" rel="nofollow">even when they know that they will infect somebody else.  </a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiF9wHWcn6n2qzeclW3EkgdU1Agl6ilSUAq1cDc_fWM39G9dI2yo8WdftYN-5XAGfb6urHvDKqRf6S_4okgD_IntmJDEZNtGTeyOEl-zPcT97Ud8CFHzqejUoXSxmmiAdS0bQtTgtaBZaC/s1600/Sick-at-Work.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiF9wHWcn6n2qzeclW3EkgdU1Agl6ilSUAq1cDc_fWM39G9dI2yo8WdftYN-5XAGfb6urHvDKqRf6S_4okgD_IntmJDEZNtGTeyOEl-zPcT97Ud8CFHzqejUoXSxmmiAdS0bQtTgtaBZaC/s320/Sick-at-Work.jpg" width="213" /></a><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/opinion/sunday/working-while-sick.html?_r=1&ref=opinion" rel="nofollow">Small wonder when over 40 million Americans</a> don't have any paid sick leave and <a href="http://www.alternet.org/story/156031/%22having_it_all%22_the_wrong_question_for_most_women?paging=off&current_page=1#bookmark" target="_blank">almost a quarter of workers</a> have lost or were threatened with losing their job because they took time off for illness. <br /><br />Last week, Pennsylvania became the 14th state to introduce the ALEC bill, <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/24/2828431/pennsylvania-paid-sick-days-preemption/" rel="nofollow">thanks to </a><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/24/2828431/pennsylvania-paid-sick-days-preemption/" rel="nofollow">ALEC member and </a><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/24/2828431/pennsylvania-paid-sick-days-preemption/" rel="nofollow">Pennsylvania state Rep. Seth Grove</a>.  Eight states have already passed some form of the bill including Florida, where<a href="http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-06-14/news/os-scott-signs-local-paid-sick-time-ban-20130614_1_florida-chamber-ballot-orange-county" rel="nofollow"> over 50,000 voters had already signed a petition for a countrywide paid sick leave law.</a><br /><br />These <a href="http://familyvaluesatwork.org/blog/paid-sick-days/how-corporate-giants-try-to-suppress-democracy" rel="nofollow">so-called pre-emption laws are devastating to local communities and workers</a>.  This ALEC bill forces workers to choose between paying their rent and getting better -- even in communities that want all workers to be covered with paid sick leave.<br /><br />Paid sick leave is not just pro-worker reform; it is good for businesses as well.  Studies have shown mandatory sick leave has no impact on businesses -- unless <a href="http://washington.mainstreetalliance.org/files/2013/09/PSD-1-Year-Report-Final.pdf" rel="nofollow">it helps the business make money</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Multiple national studies have found that providing paid sick leave can benefit businesses through higher morale and productivity, less absenteeism, and lower rates of turnover, offsetting some or all of an employer’s direct cost of providing paid leave.</blockquote>Paid sick leave allows parents to stay home with sick kids and prevents diseases being spread to coworkers and customers.<br /><br />With all of the benefits from paid sick leave, only an heinous anti-worker group could deny workers the right to recover from illness.<br /><br />But ALEC is fine with doing just that.<br /><br /><br /><br />

ALEC paid sick days No rest for sick workers

More Americans are denied sick leave at work, thanks in part to ALEC's efforts to ban local governments from mandating paid sick days fo...

Read more »

How workers' freedom is getting chipped away

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6oylO2Q0QqUoae7yD0z0rhidaGPCClRl6CKAg-bzoDwPfri-NftKd-ecTFoEJ9x2ndAEwJ73Yjes15boQslii8ufg5LiowQwJF-Q9OBtSJ4GW9m8OmN6e2OkWyvuoS1N5NwjiNXHhHlD9/s1600/Infographic-Attack-On-American-Labor-Standards.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6oylO2Q0QqUoae7yD0z0rhidaGPCClRl6CKAg-bzoDwPfri-NftKd-ecTFoEJ9x2ndAEwJ73Yjes15boQslii8ufg5LiowQwJF-Q9OBtSJ4GW9m8OmN6e2OkWyvuoS1N5NwjiNXHhHlD9/s1600/Infographic-Attack-On-American-Labor-Standards.png" /></a></div>Our friends at the <a href="http://epi.org/" rel="nofollow">Economic Policy Institute</a> came up with this analysis of the attacks on workers' freedoms over the past two years. In dozens of states, workers' freedom is being undermined to take a sick day, to earn a decent living or to collect benefits they paid for.<br /><br />The war on workers is waged in states all over the country because of <a href="http://alec.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>, the corporate dating service for state lawmakers.<br /><br />EPI gives a good rundown of exactly how ALEC works:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">ALEC’s 2,000 member legislators include a large share of the country’s state senate presidents and house speakers. Legislators are invited to conferences—often at posh resorts—where committees composed of equal numbers of public and private officials draft proposals for model legislation. ALEC’s staff then drafts the legislative language and produces supporting policy reports. Thus state legislators with little time, staff, or expertise are able to introduce fully formed and professionally supported legislation. </blockquote>And this is what happens: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The corporations pay ALEC’s expenses, contribute to legislators’ campaigns, and fund the state-level think tanks that promote legislation; in return, legislators carry the corporate agenda into their statehouses. Over the past decade, ALEC’s leading corporate backers have contributed more than $370 million to state elections, and over 100 laws a year based on ALEC’s model bills have been adopted.</blockquote>Be very afraid. <br /><br /><br />

ALEC child labor minimum wage paid sick leave unemployment How workers' freedom is getting chipped away

Our friends at the Economic Policy Institute  came up with this analysis of the attacks on workers' freedoms over the past two years. In...

Read more »

'ALEC, GOP undermine our constitutional guarantees'

Here's a candidate for best<a href="http://staugustine.com/opinions/2013-10-25/ideology-trumps-reason#.UmrZnfmkqjd" rel="nofollow"> Letter to the Editor</a> Ever. <br /><br />Nancy Staples wrote about <a href="http://alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>, the corporate escort service for state lawmakers, in a well-reasoned letter to <a href="http://staugustine.com/">StAugustine.com</a>. She began,<br /><blockquote>Our United States Constitution was a compromise between many very strong willed men who often held opposing views about government. </blockquote><blockquote>They had the courage to look at both points of view and find a solution. Not so today. </blockquote><blockquote>The wisdom and reason that has allowed this nation to function for over 200 years, is missing, and the word compromise does not exist.</blockquote>She reminds us of what we all know: That political discussion in this country is divisive and vitriolic, and the words "freedom" and "patriot" are used to demean opposing points of view.<br /><br />And she calls out the Republican Party and ALEC: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The Republican party I belonged to for many years was inclusive, but it has been usurped into a corporate shill for the wealthy, with the American Legislative Exchange Council as its guide. Our Republican representatives use ideology rather than reason for every law they make and every vote they cast. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">They disrespect, not only our president, but the very institution of government which they claim to represent and swear an oath to protect. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">I respect people who do not share my personal political and spiritual beliefs or ethical standards. But that idea of having respect for our differences died and has been replaced by vitriol.</blockquote>And she nails the problem on the head:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">As long as self-interest (Gerrymandered districts), greed (unlimited campaign contributions) and PAC and corporate influence (Heritage Foundation, Koch brothers) wield the power over decisions our representatives make, “We The People”, will never have what our constitutional guarantees.</blockquote>True that.

ALEC political parties 'ALEC, GOP undermine our constitutional guarantees'

Here's a candidate for best Letter to the Editor Ever.  Nancy Staples wrote about ALEC , the corporate escort service for state lawmak...

Read more »

Wall Street's for-profit "cyber schools" rip off kids and taxpayers

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.alternet.org/files/styles/story_image/public/story_images/education_money.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://www.alternet.org/files/styles/story_image/public/story_images/education_money.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The same anti-worker extremists waging war on the middle class and wringing workers dry are also trying to squeeze profits out of our kids -- and swindle taxpayers in the process.<br /><br />A <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/10/12257/junk-bonds-junk-schools-cyber-schools-fleece-taxpayers-phantom-students-and-faili" rel="nofollow">new report from PR Watch</a> has the details on Wall Street's latest scheme using for-profit "cyber schools" to cash in on the public education "market":<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The data is in and <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/K12_Inc." target="_blank">K12 Inc.'s </a>brand of full-time public "cyber school" is garbage. Not surprising for an educational model kicked off with a $10 million investment from junk-bond king Michael Milken.</blockquote>As the report explains, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Milken" rel="nofollow">ex-con</a> Milken formed several "education" companies including Knowledge Universe and Knowledge Learning. With $10 million invested in his K12 Inc. scam, Milken let fellow junk bond dealer Ron Packard in on the action. And together they raked in millions:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The duo prepped to exploit the public education sector, and boy, have they. His various educational ventures have made Milken one of the <a href="http://www.forbes.com/profile/michael-milken/">richest men in America</a>, and Packard raked in <a href="http://insiders.morningstar.com/trading/executive-compensation.action?t=LRN&region=USA&culture=en-US" target="_blank">over $16 million</a> in compensation from 2008 to 2012 as <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/K12">CEO of K12 Inc.</a> Almost all of that money came from U.S. taxpayers.  </blockquote>Okay, so they're making a lot of money. At least the kids are getting an education, right? Wrong. Most of the kids don't even exist:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Some full-time charter schools charge state taxpayers big bucks for students who may only spend a few days or a few weeks in front of a computer before they decide that "virtual" education is not for them -- but the schools keep the cash anyway. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Here is the trick. In many states, there is an annual "count date" or dates where heads are counted and state funding is distributed per child. Evidence is mounting that for-profit charters spend a massive amount on advertising to pack in students before the count ("enrollment bursts," one education expert calls it), but once they get the cash, things fall apart. </blockquote>A teacher at one of these virtual schools said three-quarters of the students in one of her classes never logged on, completed any work or responded to phone calls -- yet they remained on her class roster. The "schools" hold on to the taxpayer money allocated based on student head counts even when a majority of those kids decide to transfer back to standard brick-and-mortar schools.<br /><br />And as for the students who stuck with Wall Street's cyber-school scheme, they didn't do too well either:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">With rare exceptions, kids don’t learn sitting in front of a computer all day. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Using Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) state data, state performance rankings, and graduation rates, the researchers showed that full-time virtual schools lag significantly behind traditional brick-and-mortar schools. In particular, <a href="http://nepc.colorado.edu/files/nepcrbk12miron.pdf">only 27.7 percent of K12 Inc.</a> online schools met AYP in 2010-2011, compared to 52 percent of public schools.</blockquote>K12 Inc. also specifically targets high-risk students in its recruitment efforts. That's because children who lack homeschool parents with time and motivation tend not to take advantage of the virtual schools or demand more from the service. That means lower costs and more profit for K12 Inc.<br /><br />This is exactly why education doesn't belong in the hands of greedy corporations. But the education racket has some powerful backers -- namely <a href="http://alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">ALEC approved a <a href="http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/the-virtual-public-schools-act/">"model" Virtual Public Schools Act</a> in 2005 at a time when both K12 Inc. and Connections Academy (the second largest for-profit) were corporate sponsors and helped craft the measure.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">K12 Inc. and ALEC have pushed a national agenda to replace brick-and-mortar classrooms and hands-on teaching with computers and "distance learning."  </blockquote>The anti-worker fanatics trying to disempower and impoverish workers are going after our kids, too. Nothing is sacred.

ALEC corporate greed education reform school privatization Wall Street Wall Street's for-profit "cyber schools" rip off kids and taxpayers

The same anti-worker extremists waging war on the middle class and wringing workers dry are also trying to squeeze profits out of our kids -...

Read more »

Another ALEC rep could be in trouble -- in Texas!

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNGrWT-3G0Mjq9REmBEZOsiDH2Q9wJa4ga24WpHJSTgNPJCHLedIUYinE1PCtHbyl3wZ_GGgSfgKbEE0yfDVjnlDvQZFruyseifa80SDEBd9MesVtcLRqrkuZ68T4f8K0USn6OuRHqGM9/s1600/Klick-Stephanie_jpg_800x1000_q100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNGrWT-3G0Mjq9REmBEZOsiDH2Q9wJa4ga24WpHJSTgNPJCHLedIUYinE1PCtHbyl3wZ_GGgSfgKbEE0yfDVjnlDvQZFruyseifa80SDEBd9MesVtcLRqrkuZ68T4f8K0USn6OuRHqGM9/s320/Klick-Stephanie_jpg_800x1000_q100.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ALEC rep. Stephanie Klick</td></tr></tbody></table>Stephanie Klick, a Texas state representative, doesn't think she needs to obey state open records laws when it comes to her dealings with <a href="http://alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>. Unfortunately for Rep. Klick, Texas' attorney general thinks she needs to obey the law.<br /><br />The <a href="http://foift.org/2013/09/30/ags-office-says-legislative-documents-must-released/" rel="nofollow">Center for Media and Democracy asked Rep. Klick</a> for records of her communications with ALEC, the corporate dating service for state lawmakers. That apparently unnerved Klick, because she asked the attorney general if she could keep her records secret. She argued that her dealings with corporate lobbyists could be withheld from the public because of her right to freedom of association and something called "deliberative privilege."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/09/12259/texas-attorney-general-rebuffs-alecs-effort-declare-itself-immune-open-records-la" rel="nofollow">Attorney General Greg Abbott didn't buy it</a>. Neither did the <a href="http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/08/26/5110399/klicks-ties-to-group-should-be.html?rh=1" rel="nofollow">Fort Worth Star-Telegram</a>, which editorialized:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">...she shouldn’t keep her correspondence a secret. As the preamble to the Texas Public Information Act says, the people delegate authority to make laws, but they “do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know.”</blockquote>Klick isn't the first state lawmaker to stonewall requests for information about ties to ALEC. The <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/09/12259/texas-attorney-general-rebuffs-alecs-effort-declare-itself-immune-open-records-la" rel="nofollow">Center for Media and Democracy is suing Wisconsin state Sen. Leah Vukmir</a>, ALEC's treasurer, for hiding documents sent from ALEC to legislators.<br /><br />Another ALEC front, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/09/alec-front-man-indicted.html" rel="nofollow">Georgia state Sen. Don Balfour</a>, was indicted recently on 18 counts of corruption.<br /><br />(No one, by the way, should be surprised at corruption charges against state lawmakers who take money from ALEC to travel to posh resorts where they meet corporate donors.)<br /><br />Lisa Graves, executive director of the <a href="http://prwatch.org/" rel="nofollow">Center for Media and Democracy</a>, came up with the best description of why Rep. Klick couldn't get away with hiding her dealings with ALEC.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">You cannot just create a special private club between lobbyists and lawmakers and then claim your communications with legislators cannot be disclosed to the public under state sunshine laws.</blockquote>Exactly.

ALEC GA open meetings Texas WI Another ALEC rep could be in trouble -- in Texas!

ALEC rep. Stephanie Klick Stephanie Klick, a Texas state representative, doesn't think she needs to obey state open records laws when it...

Read more »

Rural residents raise hell at Moral Monday protest

<a href="http://www.journalnow.com/gallery/news/article_d0043a1c-24bc-11e3-b21d-0019bb30f31a.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Scores of Moral Monday protesters</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> came to tiny Yadkinville, N.C., last night to fight the repressive anti-worker policies approved by Gov. Pat McCrory and his legislative allies this year. The rally was the 19th such event held since late April. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested at weekly protests held in the state capital earlier this year.</span><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMII6jxxdfgUd43AuSVoyjmUr-YXW4JE8Moo4hO7T09Mk9MQiR0TboVvTUjTcbljS7EFdaFnxRweW_065IPZ_qHOXPqqkTVCiBK_LPffdgTJZOltLZy5ofriJHxx3cbYoKq3vRFV12svq/s1600/9.24moralmonday2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMII6jxxdfgUd43AuSVoyjmUr-YXW4JE8Moo4hO7T09Mk9MQiR0TboVvTUjTcbljS7EFdaFnxRweW_065IPZ_qHOXPqqkTVCiBK_LPffdgTJZOltLZy5ofriJHxx3cbYoKq3vRFV12svq/s320/9.24moralmonday2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laid-off worker Philip Diehl addresses crowd at rally.</td></tr></tbody></table>Jobs and education were again at the top of the agenda for demonstrators. Several said the event gave those living in rural North Carolina the chance to have their voices heard in Raleigh. They oppose decisions to cut unemployment benefits and public education and the failure to expand Medicaid coverage for 600,000 residents.<br /><br />Philip Diehl, who was laid off his job with Freightliner Trucks, said workers are hurting while McCrory doles out fat salaries to his staff. Protesters are just trying to make a difference, he told the <a href="http://www.journalnow.com/gallery/news/article_d0043a1c-24bc-11e3-b21d-0019bb30f31a.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter" rel="nofollow">Winston-Salem Journal</a>: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">You are fed up with the way things are going. You are trying to peacefully change things.</blockquote><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Christopher Petree, president of the Yakin County Association of Educators, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisPetree" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">tweeted that the governor and the Legislature are motivating</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> the public to action:<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shout out to the @NCLeg and @PatMcCroryNC for bringing out the activist in me. You all know how to rally the masses!</span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The event closed with a candlelight vigil to remember all state residents who have been damaged by the extreme policies approved by lawmakers this year.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Week after week, North Carolina residents are pushing back on an agenda crafted by </span><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/02/heres-billionaire-trying-to-destroy.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">state budget director Art Pope</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, a multimillionaire who helped underwrite the campaigns of Gov. McCrory and his cronies in the Legislature. It is largely modeled on the pro-corporate, anti-worker platform of the </span><a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">American Legislative Exchange Council</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> And more demonstrations are expected. In addition to the ongoing Moral Monday events, North Carolina teachers are </span><a href="http://triangle.news14.com/content/news/699770/nc-teachers-consider-walkout-to-protest-poor-working-conditions" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">currently mulling whether to hold a statewide walkout Nov. 4</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> to protest policy changes and poor working conditions in the classroom.<br /><br />Stay tuned.<br /><br /></span>

ALEC art pope Gov. McCrory Moral Monday North Carolina Rural residents raise hell at Moral Monday protest

Scores of Moral Monday protesters came to tiny Yadkinville, N.C., last night to fight the repressive anti-worker policies approved by Gov. ...

Read more »

Workers getting paid like its 1989

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0h_dGLMurMP4xjAAQj0karoMUOl4wh1xSKmQjij1iKjIlQg5kGdVQdvjSJRxotdzsOuZ0gl8uzlPMW7NiMsJReB0n9JsivDzCYPRVFautp0X9h_sMBwY7hZtbHzXxAfJCZea7c_zxMdpC/s1600/middle-class_I7bsn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0h_dGLMurMP4xjAAQj0karoMUOl4wh1xSKmQjij1iKjIlQg5kGdVQdvjSJRxotdzsOuZ0gl8uzlPMW7NiMsJReB0n9JsivDzCYPRVFautp0X9h_sMBwY7hZtbHzXxAfJCZea7c_zxMdpC/s320/middle-class_I7bsn.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Employment might be up slightly, but salaries aren’t. Despite more people going back to work, American families are continuing to struggle and, according to a </span><a href="http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb13-165.html" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">new U.S. Census Bureau report</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><u><span style="color: blue;">,</span></u></span> are now making less than they did in 1989 when adjusted for inflation.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As Neil Irwin of The Washington Post pointed out, 24 years ago the median U.S. household made $51,681 in current dollars, compared to $51,017 in 2012. So despite employment gains, the situation remains dire. And </span><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/09/17/the-typical-american-family-makes-less-than-it-did-in-1989/?print=1" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">the drop in salary can’t just be blamed on the last recession</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, he said:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div><blockquote class="tr_bq"> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This isn’t a lost decade for economic gains for Americans. It is a lost generation.</span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Why has that happened? Well one would have to be blind not to see that a </span><a href="http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/union2.pdf" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">drop in union membership</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> has had a major impact. In 1983, 20.1 percent of workers belonged to union. That number fell to 11.3 percent last year. </span><a href="http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2013/ted_20130513.htm" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Union jobs bring higher salaries</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">. It’s not hard to understand.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Of course, the desire to pay lower wages is why groups such as the </span><a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">American Legislative Exchange Council</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> (ALEC) and their corporate buddies have pushed for the implementation of no-rights-at-work laws in many states across the country. They know a good deal (for them) when they see it. So they wine-and-dine state lawmakers and spend millions to pass laws that hinder worker’s organizing efforts.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Another big reason is the enactment of the </span><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/search?q=NAFTA&max-results=20&by-date=true"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">North American Free Trade Agreement and other so-called “free” trade deals</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">. While American workers were promised more jobs and improved wages, they didn’t get either. All the benefits went to big business.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The result is while corporate profits continue to soar, nothing is trickling down to average workers. Three years into an economic recovery, they haven’t recovered a thing. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jared-bernstein/2012-poverty-income-health-insurance-data_b_3943458.html?view=screen" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Former Obama administration economist Jared Bernstein</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> said:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Yes, the economy has expanded over these past few years, but to use a seasonal analogy, today’s report is yet another piece of evidence that this growth has once again done an end run around middle and lower income households on the way to the top of the scale.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> So where do workers go from here? Just follow what thousands of them have been doing in recent months at America’s ports, fast food chains and big-box retailers. They are saying enough is enough and walking off the job. They are taking a stand for fair wages, better working conditions and the right to organize. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">That’s the path for a good job and more money in their pocket.</span></div>

ALEC Nafta union busting wage stagnation Workers getting paid like its 1989

Employment might be up slightly, but salaries aren’t. Despite more people going back to work, American families are continuing to struggle...

Read more »

Moral Monday protests gain momentum in North Carolina

<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsWNwFDljhnwZTYe7PucGGLImGYLBdqQ4uJyIevjAS0YgfMAmxX4nsq50u40gaB3BYf5XixdGCqLUW6fr83Emqt9PgSvS4slVjsUyJ2EOq8abQpwIRpZSLfBxBQQMToy2XjIIT7Ezrtz4/s1600/9-16moralmonday1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="They marched around the governor's mansion in Raleigh." border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsWNwFDljhnwZTYe7PucGGLImGYLBdqQ4uJyIevjAS0YgfMAmxX4nsq50u40gaB3BYf5XixdGCqLUW6fr83Emqt9PgSvS4slVjsUyJ2EOq8abQpwIRpZSLfBxBQQMToy2XjIIT7Ezrtz4/s400/9-16moralmonday1.jpg" title="Students held signs protesting the policies of Gov. McCrory and the Legislature." width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Students took the lead on the march around the governor's mansion.</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Two Moral Monday events drew more than 500 people who protested North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and his legislative allies for curbing voting rights, slashing education spending and refusing federal dollars to expand Medicaid. The rallies held yesterday marked the 18th week since late April that North Carolinians gathered to protest the state</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> government’s actions. About 925 people were arrested during the demonstrations for nonviolent civil disobedience. <o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At a </span><a href="http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/09/16/3202013/college-naacp-groups-bring-new.html" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">youth-led demonstration in Raleigh</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, some 250 people marched around the governor’s mansion to demand a roll back on </span><a href="http://www.teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/07/teamsters-participate-in-largest-moral-monday-protest.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">the voter suppression and education cuts enacted</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> in July. Some also carried three children’s coffins to honor the memory of four little African-American girls killed in a Birmingham, Ala. church bombing 50 years ago yesterday during the height of the civil rights movement in the South.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>College students from around the area came to the protest to show they are concerned about the state’s future. They held signs reading “We will fight for our future,” “Reinvest in public education,” and “Take your hands off our voting rights.” Dylan Su-Chun Mott, a member of the University of North Carolina’s Student Power group, said </span><a href="http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2013/09/moral-monday-0917#print" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">students need to stand up and be heard</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">[The UNC-system Board of Governors] is trying to tell us that the only thing we are in school for is to get jobs. … More importantly, we are learning to be fully participatory citizens in this, our great democracy.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>Meanwhile, </span><a href="http://www.news-record.com/news/local_news/article_8a8ab91c-1f3e-11e3-bf27-001a4bcf6878.html" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">about 300 people gathered in the small town of Wentworth</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> in north-central North Carolina. to protest education and Medicaid cuts. The event was held in the district of Senate leader Phil Berger.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Rev. Nelson Johnson of Greensboro’s Beloved Community Center said that Berger and other elected officials have forgotten the main purpose of government:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"> Mr. Berger, government and our democracy is supposed to work for the people and not against the people.</blockquote> Week after week, North Carolina residents are pushing back on an agenda crafted by <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/02/heres-billionaire-trying-to-destroy.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">state budget director Art Pope</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, a multimillionaire who helped underwrite the campaigns of Gov. McCrory and his cronies in the Legislature. It is largely modeled on the pro-corporate, anti-worker platform of the </span><a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">American Legislative Exchange Council</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">McCrory says the changes will help everyone in the state, </span><a href="http://www.ncpolicywatch.com/2013/09/12/your-handy-guide-to-the-seven-most-common-myths-from-the-gop/print/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">the numbers just don’t bear this out</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>In fact, they show the state spent $100 million less on public schools, cut taxes only on out-of-state corporations and the wealth and made benefit cuts that hurt low-income citizens, not help them.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The </span><a href="https://twitter.com/ncnaacp" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">next rally is scheduled for Yadkinville</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> on Sept. 23.</span></div></span></div></span>

ALEC art pope education cuts Gov. McCrory Medicaid Moral Monday North Carolina voter suppression Moral Monday protests gain momentum in North Carolina

 Students took the lead on the march around the governor's mansion. Two Moral Monday events drew more than 500 people who protested Nor...

Read more »

Sallie Mae becomes 50th corporation to drop ALEC

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXZWqRAiuseDJtSVr9mTIWNXlWXfRJUqmlx26rgABpDSI3s5O0OLV-Hsk4RQrap_XoD_RwnlecNd4h_4DnmXC4__ffmZggLWF6orKkSMQRE8YXkqfC9EKUPHSOFtyDydhxmsD688zncQW/s1600/ALEC+a+legislator.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXZWqRAiuseDJtSVr9mTIWNXlWXfRJUqmlx26rgABpDSI3s5O0OLV-Hsk4RQrap_XoD_RwnlecNd4h_4DnmXC4__ffmZggLWF6orKkSMQRE8YXkqfC9EKUPHSOFtyDydhxmsD688zncQW/s1600/ALEC+a+legislator.jpg" /></a></div><div>The right-wing legislative machine lost another corporate ally today when student loan giant Sallie Mae became the 50th corporation to leave <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Legislative_Exchange_Council" rel="nofollow">ALEC</a>.<br /><br /></div><div>The decision follows months of pressure by student groups outraged that the company's profits from student debt were supporting ALEC's <a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Privatizing_Public_Education,_Higher_Ed_Policy,_and_Teachers">anti-student</a> and <a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Worker_Rights_and_Consumer_Rights" rel="nofollow">anti-worker</a> agenda.</div><div></div><div><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/09/10/2595491/sallie-mae-50th-corporation-dump-alec/" rel="nofollow"><em>Think Progress</em></a> reports:</div><blockquote class="tr_bq">...given ALEC’s work in favor of privatizing K-12 and higher education, thousands of students signed an online petition encouraging Sallie Mae -- which manages or services more than $200 billion in education loans -- urging the company to drop its support of the group.</blockquote>Student organizer Chris Hicks told <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/09/12237/after-student-protests-sallie-mae-becomes-50th-corporation-dump-alec" rel="nofollow"><em>PR Watch</em></a> that the news is a big victory in the fight against student debt. But he said there is still a long way to go:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">It’s no accident that Sallie Mae has decided to leave ALEC -- from the shareholder meeting in May and the meeting students and graduates had with CEO Jack Remondi in June to the nearly 15,000 petition signatures gathered in August, students have shown Sallie Mae they are serious about their demands and are not going away.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">There is much more work to be done, but this is definitely a first step to hold Sallie Mae accountable for their business practices.</blockquote>ALEC remains a leading force in the war against working families, crafting model legislation in states throughout the country designed to cripple unions, dismantle workers' rights, disenfranchise middle class voters and destroy public education. ALEC has been behind just about every effort to pass anti-worker laws like <a href="http://alecexposed.org/w/images/c/c8/1R10-Right_to_Work_Act_Exposed.pdf" rel="nofollow">right to work for less</a> and <a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Democracy,_Voter_Rights,_and_Federal_Power" rel="nofollow">voter suppression</a> bills in state legislatures nationwide. <br /><br />But over the years activists and labor groups have put the spotlight on ALEC, shaming dozens of its corporate members into exiting the shadowy syndicate of right-wing business interests.<br /><br />Sallie Mae's departure is especially welcome given its role in holding students hostage with high-interest student loans while ALEC promotes the privatization of education. The corporate-backed campaign to privatize our schools -- from kindergarten to college -- is all about turning higher profits for companies like Sallie Mae while sinking the children of American workers deeper into poverty.<br /><br />Teamsters General President Jim <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/search?q=student+debt">Hoffa recently wrote</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Working people struggle and fight to form unions so their children can have better lives than they do. Higher education has long been the stepping stone to a better life.  But that stone is being swept away by a tide of student debt. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The numbers tell a frightening story: As many <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/28/student-loan-delinquencies_n_2784223.html?1368565283" target="_blank">as 30 percent of borrowers</a> may be delinquent on their student loan debt. More students are borrowing than ever before, and they’re borrowing more – the average loan has increased by 49 percent, to $24,803, since 2005. Today, the average student in this country graduates <a href="http://www.today.com/money/interest-government-student-loans-set-double-summer-1C9273332" target="_blank">with $26,600 in loan debt</a>.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">That’s hardly a way to get started in life when good jobs are scarcer than ever for recent college graduates.  </blockquote><div>With Sallie Mae out of ALEC, students and workers have won another victory for education and against the right-wing corporate agenda. </div>

ALEC Sallie Mae student debt crisis Sallie Mae becomes 50th corporation to drop ALEC

The right-wing legislative machine lost another corporate ally today when student loan giant Sallie Mae became the 50th corporation to leave...

Read more »

Two NC Moral Monday protests draw hundreds

<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hundreds of Moral Monday demonstrators turned out in two North Carolina counties yesterday to demand better wages and an end to attacks on workers, voter suppression and education cuts. <o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtGpp7MBz8Gjg5NrpXAlZ0Lx4m1PDoXQT0b2Mwkj-GYTPphiW2RW5tGh4Oco7E0H9F1xhyphenhyphenF44T4sIc0e3NQjH9Ls57U866FxOXcZJMvTPaccTh7HyOveDJexFVHQRClD2ERTsBGMoSBag/s1600/9.10moralmonday2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="She attended the rally in Southern Pines." border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtGpp7MBz8Gjg5NrpXAlZ0Lx4m1PDoXQT0b2Mwkj-GYTPphiW2RW5tGh4Oco7E0H9F1xhyphenhyphenF44T4sIc0e3NQjH9Ls57U866FxOXcZJMvTPaccTh7HyOveDJexFVHQRClD2ERTsBGMoSBag/s320/9.10moralmonday2.jpg" title="A woman holds a sign with a broom attached that says "sweep away the trash in Raleigh." " width="274" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Protesters want to clean up the state capital.</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/09/10/1281831?sac=fo.local" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Some 300 people turned out at a protest in Southern Pines</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> in the central part of the state, while </span><a href="http://www.jdnews.com/news/local/local-moral-monday-inspired-demonstrations-begin-1.200047" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">about 30 gathered in Jacksonville</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, in eastern North Carolina. In both places, people said they want their voices heard in Raleigh. They said they felt locked out of the legislative process, which resulted in cuts to unemployment benefits and Medicaid as well as tax increases for the middle class.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Chris and Katherine Stevenson, who attended the Southern Pines event, were both arrested during protests at the Statehouse earlier this year. </span><a href="http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=9241749" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mrs. Stevenson said it is important to let lawmakers know</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> that people across the state want change:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What is happening now is not going to solve the problems.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Greg Humphries, who came to the Jacksonville rally, agreed. Jobs and equality are essential, he said:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There ought to be equality in all aspects of government especially in pay. I believe that all people ought to get a good salary.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The demonstrations were just the latest in the effort to bring the Moral Monday movement statewide. The protests began in April in the state capital and continued through July, </span><a href="http://www.teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/07/teamsters-participate-in-largest-moral-monday-protest.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">resulting in about 925 arrests</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">. The state chapter of the NAACP, which served as main organizer, then took the rallies across the state to both rural and urban locations. An event held in Asheville last month </span><a href="http://www.teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/chicago-joins-NC-in-moral-monday-protest.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">drew about 10,000</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> people. <o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gov. McCrory and the Legislature are fulfilling the corporate policies pushed by </span><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/02/heres-billionaire-trying-to-destroy.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">greedy billionaire Art Pope</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, an </span><a href="http://www.alecexposed.org/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">ALEC</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">disciple and </span><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2011/10/bombshell-kochs-sold-oil-equipment-to.html"><s><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Benedict Arnold</span></s></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Koch brothers buddy who got himself appointed state budget director after financing a number of radical politicians’ campaigns.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p>The Legislature's attacks on middle-class North Carolinians are spreading through the state. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/06/north-carolina-medicaid-expansion_n_3882976.html" rel="nofollow">A small coastal hospital announced it was closing down</a> in the coming months because Gov. McCrory decided not to expand Medicaid. The expansion would have been funded by the federal government.</o:p></span></div>

ALEC art pope Gov. McCrory Moral Monday North Carolina Two NC Moral Monday protests draw hundreds

Hundreds of Moral Monday demonstrators turned out in two North Carolina counties yesterday to demand better wages and an end to attacks on w...

Read more »

ALEC link to official who cheated on charter school grade

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s1600/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s320/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>There's an <a href="http://alecexposed.org/">ALEC</a> link (what a shock) to the Indiana school superintendent who inflated the grade of an outsourced school run by a wealthy political donor. <br /><br />Our friends at the <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/07/12198/former-indiana-superintendent-lauded-alec-and-education-privatizers-cheats-school">Center for Media and Democracy</a> found the ALEC link. We're cross-posting their story below: <br /><br />New documents show that former Indiana Schools Superintendent Tony Bennett -- who now heads Florida's schools -- overhauled Indiana's much-heralded school grading system to guarantee that a charter run by a major campaign donor would receive top marks. These revelations shine a light on the big bucks behind the education privatization agenda, its continued failure to meet the need of students, and provides another instance of cheating to cover up poor educational outcomes.<br /><br />Bennett had been applauded by education privatizers like the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for enacting reforms like school grading, vouchers, and anti-union measures. He was a <a href="http://www.alec.org/nearly-1000-state-legislators-business-leaders-and-public-policy-experts-discuss-free-market-solutions-to-creating-jobs-at-alecs-states-nation-policy-summit/">keynote</a> <a href="http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/04/at_arizona_gathering_alec_teac.html">speaker </a>at ALEC’s December 2011 States and Nation Policy Summit, and the education reforms he pushed <a href="http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/indiana-education-reform-package/">were adopted by ALEC</a> <a href="http://www.commoncause.org/atf/cf/%7BFB3C17E2-CDD1-4DF6-92BE-BD4429893665%7D/education_35-day_mailing%20-%20new%20orleans.pdf">in August 2011</a> as a stand-alone bill called the "Indiana Education Reform Package" -- in no small part because they reflected ALEC model legislation.<br /><br /><b>"This will be a HUGE problem for us"</b><br /><br />Christel DeHaan, a big Republican donor in Indiana and school privatization supporter, gave Bennett an astounding $130,000 in campaign contributions for his 2008 and 2012 elections. But when DeHaan's Christel House charter school received a "C" last September under Bennett's grading system, he and his staff scrambled to fix it, according to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/29/tony-bennett-indiana_n_3672196.html?utm_hp_ref=tw">emails obtained by the Associated Press</a>.<br /><br />"They need to understand that anything less than an A for Christel House compromises all of our accountability work," Bennett wrote in a Sept. 12 email to then-chief of staff Heather Neal, who is now Gov. Mike Pence's chief lobbyist.<br /><br />Bennett had made the A to F grading system a signature item of his 2011 radical education reforms, which he spearheaded with the support of then-Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and <a href="http://stateimpact.npr.org/indiana/2011/12/16/meet-the-influencers-the-american-legislative-exchange-council/">ALEC legislators in the state</a>. Bennett often cited Christel House as a model charter school as he secured support for his education overhaul, and <a href="http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/documents/ineds/ed2.pdf">according to the emails</a> had assured the Chamber of Commerce and legislative leaders that Christel was an "A" school.<br /><br />"This will be a HUGE problem for us," Bennett wrote to Neal about the school's "C" grade. <br /><br />Neal emailed back a few minutes later: "Oh, crap. We cannot release until this is resolved."<br /><br />"Legislative leadership as well as critics of A-F are going to use this against us to undo our accountability metrics through legislation," Bennett wrote in another email. "I hope we come to the meeting today with solutions and not excuses and/or explanations for me to wiggle myself out of the repeated lies I have told over the past six months."<br /><br />According to the Associated Press, Bennett's staff scrambled to alter the grading system over the next week, and Christel House's grade jumped twice, eventually reaching an "A." <br /><br /><b>Indiana Has No Campaign Contribution Limits</b><br /><br />In most states, a donor like DeHaan would be prohibited from directly giving a candidate tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, but Indiana has no campaign contribution limits for superintendent.<br /><br />Bennett, first elected in 2008, <a href="http://stateimpact.npr.org/indiana/2012/08/02/interactive-map-whos-giving-money-in-the-campaign-for-state-superintendent/">raised an astounding amount of money</a> for his 2012 reelection campaign: DeHaan gave $75,000, and was one of Bennett's top donors, behind Wal-Mart heir Alice Walton, another major school privatization funder, who gave him $200,000. <a href="http://inschoolmatters.wordpress.com/2012/10/22/indiana-superintendent-campaign-finance-the-rich-vs-the-many/">Other donors</a> included voucher proponent Eli Broad ($50,000) and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg ($40,000).<br /><br />He also got <a href="http://stateimpact.npr.org/indiana/2012/08/02/interactive-map-whos-giving-money-in-the-campaign-for-state-superintendent/">$45,000</a> from Hoosiers for Education Reform, a group bankrolled by the DeVos family's American Federation for Children, which itself has run into some campaign finance problems. <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/05/12101/issue-ad-charade-american-federation-children-uncovered-wisconsin">As CMD has documented</a>, AFC boasted to funders in 2012 that it spent $2.4 million in Wisconsin helping elect nine Wisconsin state legislators, but told the state's Government Accountability Board that it spent only $345,000 that year. <br /><br />But despite significantly outraising his opponent, voters rejected Bennett and his education reform agenda, in what the head of the teacher's union called the biggest upset in Indiana history. <br /><br />Money may not have bought that election, but given these latest email revelations, it sure did seem to buy some special treatment.<br /><br /><b>How Common is Cheating?</b><br /><br />For years, educational reformers have promoted the notion that schools need to be run more like a business, with "competition" from for-profit entities and increased "accountability" through testing regimes. But the promised improvements in educational outcomes have not followed, apparently leading some to cook the books.<br /><br />Perhaps the best-known cheating scandal came from former Washington, D.C., school Chancellor Michelle Rhee, whose controversial reforms had been credited with improving test scores in the District's schools -- an accomplishment that has been cast into doubt by evidence of widespread cheating, where teachers or school officials appeared to change students' incorrect test answers to improve results. Investigations have found extremely high erasure rates that were statistically anomalous, and <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/class-struggle/post/surprise-dc-admits-school-test-tampering-at-meridian-public-charter/2013/04/25/818ccb2e-ad66-11e2-a8b9-2a63d75b5459_blog.html">some charter schools have been cited</a>. <br /><br />Despite these scandals, both Rhee and Bennett have moved on to greener pastures. After resigning from her position in 2010, Rhee went on to found the 501(c)(4) StudentsFirst, and after Bennett's election loss in Indiana, he was appointed by Florida Governor Rick Scott to head that state's school system.

ALEC Indiana privatization ALEC link to official who cheated on charter school grade

There's an ALEC link (what a shock) to the Indiana school superintendent who inflated the grade of an outsourced school run by a wealth...

Read more »

Vast anti-worker Kochaganda machine exposed

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3OPJCPhfJhuq8sLoGzOIOFOGAtvnm_NH_ZcEnMbsy3l2Fi93oa9CXdB25rKILltx7P6cUwLXGlqJ0YWoLcctA-gxFU6B4bTtey5D7UDw49p2kkxtXAg9vG896QMiFGT1XrnsDsd8bD8t/s1600/Koch-Brothers-Exposed.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3OPJCPhfJhuq8sLoGzOIOFOGAtvnm_NH_ZcEnMbsy3l2Fi93oa9CXdB25rKILltx7P6cUwLXGlqJ0YWoLcctA-gxFU6B4bTtey5D7UDw49p2kkxtXAg9vG896QMiFGT1XrnsDsd8bD8t/s200/Koch-Brothers-Exposed.png" width="200" /></a></div>Charles and David Koch spent more than $100 million to buy the government and convince the public that what they're doing is okay, according to a new report.<br /><br />It took two years for the <a href="http://investigativereportingworkshop.org/investigations/the_koch_club/story/Koch_millions_spread_influence_through_nonprofits/">Investigative Reporting Workshop</a> to uncover the extent of the <strike style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px;"><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2011/10/bombshell-kochs-sold-oil-equipment-to.html" style="color: #336699;">Benedict Arnold</a></strike> Koch brothers' vast influence-peddling machine.<br /><br />These predatory<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_C._Koch"> heirs to an energy conglomerate</a> don't just buy politicians. They pay for phony grass-roots groups, colleges and universities. They underwrite an army of lobbyists and propaganda mills masquerading as nonpartisan think tanks. They fund "charitable" foundations to <a href="http://www.salon.com/2012/12/11/koch_brothers_tea_party_cash_drives_michigan_right_to_work_bill/">undermine workers' rights</a> and<a href="http://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/Billionaire-Koch-Brother-S-in-Best_Web_OpEds-130712-672.html"> lower their pay</a>.<br /><br />Five Koch-funded "foundations" contributed $41.2 million to nonprofits, $30.5 million to institutions of higher learning and $46.3 million to medicine, humanities and arts organizations (like PBS, which <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/05/kochs-23m-buys-kid-gloves-from-public-tv.html">spiked an independent documentary critical of the Kochs</a>.)<br /><br />As if that isn't enough, the Kochtopus is spreading its tentacles in new directions. Recently it started to secretly donate to the <a href="http://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/02/14/12151/following-donors-trust-money-trail">Donors' Trust</a> group, which funnels money to the corporate escort group for state lawmakers called <a href="http://alecexposed.org/">ALEC</a>. They are starting another corporate empowerment group called the Association for American Innovation, which of course tries to quash innovative new competition to entrenched businesses. And they set up a transparently political group called "American Commitment."<br /><br />Let's be clear. The Koch brothers have no commitment to America. Their commitment is to greed. What's especially frustrating is that they are getting away with calling "American Commitment" a "social welfare nonprofit group." What it really does is take political sides and propagandizes against clean energy. If "American Commitment" were to succeed, the main beneficiary would be (wait for it) Koch Industries. <br /><br />The law says private foundations can't "be organized or operated for the benefit of private interests." Yet Koch-linked nonprofits testified before congressional panels at least 49 times.<br /><br />Guess it helps to own the government, right? Between 2007 through 2012,<br /><ul><li>The Kochs and their foundations gave <b>$8.7 million</b> to candidates and the Republican Party;</li><li>Koch Industries’ lobbyists spent<b> $53.9 million</b> to help the giant corporation loot American taxpayers. </li><li>The Koch-founded phony Tea Party group, Americans for Prosperity, spent more than <b>$36 million</b> on political advertising in 2012, mostly to defeat President Obama. </li></ul>Here's what's even scarier: The Kochs are working hard to poison young minds with their corporate-empowerment agenda. They've given money to 221 colleges and universities, ranging from $1,000 to Wisconsin Lutheran College to $16 million to George Mason University.<br /><br />Why doesn't the mainstream media do more reporting on the billionaires' influence? The <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/billionaire-koch-brothers-use-web-to-take-on-media-reports-they-dispute/2013/07/14/6a0953a0-e5b5-11e2-a11e-c2ea876a8f30_story.html">Washington Post </a>offers an answer today:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">...aggressive tactics have become part of the playbook for Koch Industries and its owners, Charles and David Koch. Faced with news articles they consider flawed or biased, the brothers and their lieutenants don’t just send strongly worded letters to the editor in protest. Instead, the company takes the offensive, with detailed responses that oscillate between correcting, shaming and slamming journalists who’ve written unflattering stories about the company or the Kochs’ myriad political and philanthropic activities.</blockquote>We're glad at least that groups like the <a href="http://investigativereportingworkshop.org/investigations/the_koch_club/story/Koch_millions_spread_influence_through_nonprofits/">Investigative Reporting Workshop</a> and the <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/07/12176/koch-club-new-report-details-how-brothers-spend-big-bucks">Center for Media and Democracy</a> are on the case. Because the Kochs are rumored to be interested in<a href="http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/06/26/potential-koch-tribune-takeover-sparks-concerns/194630"> buying one of the most prominent newspaper chains in America</a>.<br /><br />Be very afraid.<br /><br />

ALEC Koch brothers Vast anti-worker Kochaganda machine exposed

Charles and David Koch spent more than $100 million to buy the government and convince the public that what they're doing is okay, accor...

Read more »

71 ALEC bills let corporations off the hook for injuring or killing people

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s1600/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqbBvOSjWyjb8EovjG4xMi2cYSqbWLEpgNJdfwfWxgXoT2P1fAht8UrnSOvGijhszYW4rUhFQcXUFFvacYCorY1_l8XLm4Z6hyX0xpROYBXY9slOUBW_cOZWT1R-xiqBE092AFGTKVc4j/s200/alec-exposed-600x400.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div>The corporate escort service for state lawmakers known as <a href="http://alecexposed.org/">ALEC</a> wants corporations to become even more powerful than they already are. In this year alone, 71 -- yup, 71 -- ALEC-backed bills have been filed to make it harder for citizens to sue companies that kill, maim or sicken them.<br /><br />Brendan Fischer at the <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/">Center for Media and Democracy</a><a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/07/12172/justice-denied-71-alec-bills-2013-make-it-harder-hold-corporations-accountable-ca"> reports</a>,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">For decades, ALEC has been a conduit for the oil, tobacco, and pharmaceutical industries to push legislation that changes the rules to limit accountability when a corporation’s products or actions cause injury or death -- such as when a Koch Industries pipeline <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-02/koch-brothers-flout-law-getting-richer-with-secret-iran-sales.html">explodes and kills teenagers</a>, or when the tobacco or pharmaceutical industries withhold evidence that their products are dangerous.</blockquote>In just six months, these corporate-empowerment bills were introduced in 30 states.<br /><br />Now it's a fundamental tenet of American law that someone who is injured by another has the right to pursue justice in front of a jury. ALEC wants to take away that right -- at least for citizens.<br /><br />These ALEC bills limit how much a corporation must pay for injuring people: <br /><ul><li>The ALEC “Noneconomic Damage Awards Act” (versions of which were introduced in five states in 2013) limits the amount a jury can award to compensate a person for their diminished quality of life as the result of an injury. </li><li>The misleadingly-named "Full and Fair Noneconomic Damages Act" (introduced in two states) limits the amount a corporation might have to pay to compensate a person for their pain and suffering.</li><li>The “Phantom Damages Elimination Act” (introduced in two states) changes the rules so a person who paid health insurance premiums for years would recover less for their medical bills than a person who had no insurance: rather than placing the full cost of paying for medical bills on the wrongdoer, the bill would reduce the amount they must pay if a person's insurance company negotiated a discount. </li></ul>This one gives immunity from certain kinds of lawsuits:<br /><ul><li>Ten states introduced the “Trespasser Responsibility Act,” which would largely absolve landowners from a responsibility to maintain safe premises, and tends to benefit large landowners like railroads, utility companies, and big agriculture. These large corporations would be absolved from their duty to act responsibly, and would be immune if a person accidentally wanders onto their property and are injured by poorly-maintained electrical boxes, dangerous chemicals or farm implements.</li></ul>The list goes on and on. To see if your state lawmakers are considering one of ALEC's corporate empowerment bills, click <a href="http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/07/12172/justice-denied-71-alec-bills-2013-make-it-harder-hold-corporations-accountable-ca">here</a>.<br /><br />

ALEC 71 ALEC bills let corporations off the hook for injuring or killing people

The corporate escort service for state lawmakers known as ALEC wants corporations to become even more powerful than they already are. In th...

Read more »