Unions speak the truth on Social Security

<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,0,0" height="380" id="cnbcplayer" width="400"> <param name="type" value="application/x-shockwave-flash"/> <param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"/> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"/> <param name="quality" value="best"/> <param name="scale" value="noscale" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"/> <param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"/> <param name="salign" value="lt"/> <param name="flashVars" value="startTime=000"/> <param name="flashVars" value="endTime=000"/> <param name="movie" value="http://plus.cnbc.com/rssvideosearch/action/player/id/3000209229/code/cnbcplayershare" /> <embed name="cnbcplayer" PLUGINSPAGE="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" bgcolor="#000000" height="380" width="400" quality="best" wmode="transparent" scale="noscale" salign="lt" src="http://plus.cnbc.com/rssvideosearch/action/player/id/3000209229/code/cnbcplayershare" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" /></object><br /><br />Social Security, the program that provides over half  of American seniors a majority of their income, is more important than ever. Across America, <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/pressoffice/basicfact.htm" rel="nofollow">nearly 58 billion workers and their families</a> rely on Social Security every month to pay the bills.<br /><br />But once again, the<a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/01/fix-debt-is-full-of-crap.html"> greedy billionaires behind Fix the Debt</a> are trying to cut Social Security benefits so they don't have to pay their fair share of taxes. They don't care that Social Security keeps millions out of poverty. They don't care that it's essential to sustaining what's left of the middle class.<br /><br />The greedy billionaires are now trying to persuade Congress to cut Social Security (and probably Medicare) when they meet in three months to discuss budget cuts. They're trying to disguise it by calling it "chained CPI," which is nothing but jargon for "cuts."<br /><br />Unions are out front warning Americans of the looming threat -- just like the last time the billionaires tried to push the cuts through Congress. Teamster General President Jim Hoffa <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-strongly-oppose-cuts-social-security">staunchly opposes the cuts, which hurt the oldest and poorest retirees the most:</a><br /><div style="margin-left: 30px;"><br />Social Security does not contribute to the budget deficit and should remain off the table in these year-end budget negotiations.  Americans work all their lives to earn the Social Security benefits they were promised. It would be a terrible mistake to go back on that promise.</div><br />Even though <a href="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/10/19/5-incredible-social-security-facts-that-young-adul/" rel="nofollow">less than three-quarters of the fund </a>comes from payroll deductions, Fix the Debt minions have been spreading misinformation, saying that Social Security will cause the US to go bankrupt.  When an anchor from CNBC claimed that the US may well go bankrupt from Social Security, Damon Silver, the AFL-CIO's policy director, <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Political-Action-Legislation/ZING!-Talking-Truth-to-CNBC-on-Social-Security-Lies" rel="nofollow">set the record straight</a>:<br /><br /><div style="margin-left: 30px;">That’s frankly not true. That is a lie put forward by billionaires who don’t want to pay higher taxes....The people who believe what you said are people not counting on those programs and who are worried their very large incomes will be taxed.</div><br /><div style="margin-left: 30px;">Chained CPI is like the vampire of American politics. It keeps being shot through the heart and it keeps reviving. The reason it keeps coming back is because it has billionaires behind it. </div><br />Our nation needs to keep the decades-old promise to workers.  There is no such thing as an acceptable cut -- especially when the country has more than enough resources to fund the program that keeps millions of seniors out of poverty.<br /><br />

chained CPI middle class retirement SENIORS social security Unions speak the truth on Social Security

Social Security, the program that provides over half  of American seniors a majority of their income, is more important than eve...

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Today's Teamster News 10.07.13

<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24419564" rel="nofollow">US shutdown is starting to hit business, says Commerce Secretary</a>  BBC News   ...On Friday, the US defence contractor Lockheed Martin said it would put 3,000 workers on unpaid leave...<br /><a href="http://portside.org/2013-10-05/progressives-and-working-families-rally-against-chained-cpi-and-other-safety-net-cuts" rel="nofollow">Progressives and Working Families Rally Against 'Chained' CPI and Other Safety Net Cuts</a>  AFL-CIO Now   ...progressive members of Congress and working families are looking ahead to fight against any proposed grand "bargain" that would include benefit cuts to Social Security, Medicaid or Medicare...<br /><a href="http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-10-06/now-mastercard-wants-your-fingerprints" rel="nofollow">Mount Rushmore blockage stirs anger in South Dakota</a>  Argus Leader   ...The National Park Service placed cones along highway viewing areas outside Mount Rushmore this week, barring visitors from pulling over and taking pictures of the famed monument... <br /><a href="http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/truthdigger_of_the_week_lori_wallach_20131005" rel="nofollow">Truthdigger of the Week: Lori Wallach</a>  Truthdig   ...The extreme want of coverage of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal in even the independent, alternative press is a testament to the near-complete domination of politics and the news media by transnational corporate interests...<br /><a href="http://www.wjla.com/articles/2013/10/person-lights-self-on-fire-on-national-mall-94921.html#.UlBwSnZxv-M.twitter" rel="nofollow">Man sets self on fire on National Mall</a>  Associated Press   ..."I heard from people around me that he was yelling something about voting rights...[He] poured the gas can on his head and lit himself on fire.," describes witness...<br /><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/06/business/mugged-by-a-mug-shot-online.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0" rel="nofollow">Mugged by a Mug Shot Online</a>  New York Times   ...for-profit Web sites, with names like Mugshots, BustedMugshots and JustMugshots ... routinely show up high in Google searches ... The ostensible point of these sites is to give the public a quick way to glean the unsavory history of a neighbor, a potential date or anyone else. That sounds civic-minded, until you consider one way most of these sites make money: by charging a fee to remove the image. That fee can be anywhere from $30 to $400, or even higher...<br /><a href="http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-10-06/now-mastercard-wants-your-fingerprints" rel="nofollow">Now Mastercard Wants Your Fingerprints</a>  zero hedge   ...MasterCard is joining the FIDO Alliance, signaling that the payment network is getting interested in using fingerprints and other biometric data to identify people for online payments...<br /><a href="http://digital.vpr.net/post/home-care-workers-vote-unionize" rel="nofollow">Home Care Workers Vote To Unionize</a>  Vermont Public Radio   ...Organizers say a vote to unionize by home care workers marks the largest unionizing effort in Vermont. It’s estimated there are 7,000 home care workers in the state. Now, as part of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, they will negotiate with the state over issues like pay, hours and benefits...<br /><a href="http://www.theindychannel.com/money/bloomington-ge-workers-protest-over-job-cuts" rel="nofollow">Bloomington GE workers protest job cuts</a>  ABC News Channel 6   ...By the end of October, 160 workers at Bloomington's General Electric refrigerator plant will be out of jobs, and dozens of workers were outside the plant Saturday protesting the company's decision...

chained CPI government shutdown job cuts organizing privacy Today's Teamster News 10.07.13

US shutdown is starting to hit business, says Commerce Secretary  BBC News   ...On Friday, the US defence contractor Lockheed Martin said i...

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