"A History of Violence" is one of the best films of the 21st century? IMO it didn't suck completely. I was very disappointed. Do you want to buy my DVD of the film? It is in perfect condition/only watched once.
Unions turn off a lot of people, Russ. We had these nurses aids making 20 bucks an hour with boffo benefits go on strike. And then they assaulted (assault in the legal sense meaning threat, not battery) the replacement workers. I don't know, I guess that they just expected all of those frail, old residents to take care of themselves.
Will: We also had a school bus driver who was caught beating up one of the kids on the bus.
Perhaps understandable, some might say? The kid was acting out, and had to be restrained?
No, the kid was handicapped and in a wheelchair. The type of person President Obama likes to make fun of.
The school district tried to fire this driver, but the school bus drivers' union protected the drivers job.
Just one of many examples of the sickos that the unions work so hard to protect. And it seems like every two years around here a teacher is caught raping students. And sure enough, the NEA is there to try and keep the teacher in the classroom.
The school bus driver situation is better here. The district privatized the system, fired the drivers, and now pays them a fair wage, on an "At will" system: they can fire bad drivers, and there's no union there to protect the worst of the worst.
"And then they assaulted .... sense meaning threat, not battery) the replacement workers"
Yes... real working people, working for a living. Beaten up by lazy thugs who quit their jobs (strikers) and aren't workers any more by choice.
"I don't know, I guess that they just expected all of those frail, old residents to take care of themselves."
Nothing makes the nurse's unions that go on strikes happier than hospital patients dying due to the distruption they cause.
Come on, "nurses". If you don't like the job, quit and get out of the way of those that do. Don't assault the real nurses (those who care for patients instead of loaf about on picket lines) and try to disrupt the hospital operations.
We had a scenario very similar to that, dmarks, back when I worked at DMR. This lady was physically abusing clients and they simply couldn't get rid of the wench. They finally paid her to sit in this room and she eventually got "counseling".
Oh, and the real outrage here, bra, is that these very same striking CNAs also got to collect unemployment, ON TOP OF THEIR STRIKE WAGES. And people wondered how a small state like CT could run up a 3 billion dollar deficit.
Will: Don't forget the scandal of the lousy teachers in New York. Because of the union, they can't be fired, so they are kept in a room separate from the students (so they don't harm them) and do nothing and draw pay.
Crazy Heart was OK. I've got no desire to watch it again though. I preferred Jeff Bridges' performance in The Contender -- a film in which he portrayed a second-term Democratic president.
On one hand dmarks says he opposes the "ruling elites" (when we're discussing health care insurance)... but on the other he says he trusts the wealthy elites completely (in saying we should get rid of unions).
Smells like fascism to me. I don't know how else you'd describe it... I think both you guys have a fascist mindset... anti-worker and pro-wealthy elite.
No, wd, dmarks and I are just "for" firing bad and abusive teachers......."Pro-wealthy"? I'm for raising the top individual rates to 40%. And I'm also for taxing capitol gains at the same rate as regular income (indexed for inflation). Add to that the fact that I'm for public financing of elections and you'd wonder why the Republicans would even want to talk to me at all (I was also for extending unemployment benefits).
Will: No, wd, dmarks and I are just "for" firing bad and abusive teachers.
So now you're pro-union? Glad to hear it, although I think dmarks and Rusty are going to be quite disappointed with your change of heart. What finally got you to see the light? Did you realize the horror stories you relate are isolated incidents and not indicative of how unions operate?
Whatever the reason, I won't ridicule you for flip-flopping, but instead congratulate you for siding with the American worker and against the wealthy elites. Next thing you'll be telling us is that you're reconsidered your wrong-headed stance on free trade!
Rusty said: Different subject... BIG, GIGANTIC win for Wall-Mart in a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The corporate friendly SCOTUS sides with big business and against the American worker (in this case, female workers)? No surprise really.
Did you hear about all these bribes Thomas has been accepting? Selling your SCOTUS vote should be an impeachable offense (at the very least).
If the Affordable Care Act reaches the SCOTUS we know for certain how Thomas is going to vote... all the payoffs to his wife leave little doubt that his vote has been bought.
The guy is a disgrace.
This has got to be one of the most fascist and corrupt supreme courts ever.
My favorite movie of the 21st century is "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring". It also has Viggo Mortensen, but it is freaking awesome and not a disappointment like the one you named.
And Viggo doesn't rape anyone in it... so that's another positive.
WD said: "The corporate friendly SCOTUS sides with big business and against the American worker (in this case, female workers)? No surprise really."
It was a frivolous lawsuit, because the vast majority of the plaintiffs actually has no complaint or registered any.
"This has got to be one of the most fascist and corrupt supreme courts ever."
It's on of the least fascist. Citizens United is a great example of this. The court ruled in favor of people criticizing those in government. Fascists really HATE that kind of criticism.
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WD said: "but on the other he says he trusts the wealthy elites completely (in saying we should get rid of unions)."
No, I would never get rid of unions. I favor one simple reform: support the right of each worker to join or NOT join a union.
Also, being against abusive power of unions has everything to do with supporting the rights of workers, and nothing to do with wealthy elites. Except maybe the top boss union thugs, who get rich forcing workers to give them $$$$.
wd has obviously never seen a picket line, the way that these folks assault replacement workers, use the n-word, the f-word (both of them), etc.. I really ought to take him some time.
In Citizens United the court ruled that corporations could buy our elections. In my recent blog post on the subject I concluded that the ruling is "straight up fascism". I stand by what I wrote. Anyone who supports this ruling doesn't believe in Democracy. Or doesn't understand the First Amendment. Or both.
Certainly a union member has a right to voice his disapproval of any scab that would cross the picket line... but racist language? I find that totally unacceptable under any circumstance. Sorry, but I've got to disagree with you on this one Will...
Citizens United has nothing to do with what WD claims.
What it did was address a situation whereby the government prohibited individual Americans from criticizing the government if these individuals happened to be associated with organizations that the government arbitrarily disliked.
That situation, created by "McCain Feingold", was straight-up fascism. And it was a direct violation of our Constitutional rights.
Fascists governments loved to criminalize criticism of the government.
It had nothing to do with "buying our elections", since in fact $0 involved goes to buy votes.
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"Certainly a union member has a right to voice his disapproval of any scab that would cross the picket line..."
Scab? Why use such harsh playground insults against working people?
The quitters should get out of the way and let the workers do their job. This is a very strong example of how unions go against the interests of workers.
If not, then you are anti-ACLU just as I am anti-union.
Most of my complaints about unions would go away if they became legitimate, accountable organizations that did not rely on most of their membership and funding from people who didn't even choose or want to join in the first place.
If you had a loved one in that convalescent home, I doubt it seriously that you'd be referring to those replacement workers as "scabs". And since when is assaultive language (i.e., threats) considered "voicing disapproval"?
Will, I call "foul" on your previous comment. You said NOTHING about the strike being at a convalescent home or strikers threatening scabs with bodily harm in your initial post. You mentioned the use of racist language, which I said I was AGAINST.
First you post something vague and when I defend unions you add some details about how horrible the strikers are...
Making it appear as though I support said deplorable behavior. I do not. Do you believe this kind of underhanded debating is necessary to defend your position?
dmarks: WD: Do you favor forcing people to join the ACLU?
Joining a union is NOTHING like joining the ACLU or the NRA. People join unions to represent them in negotiations with their employers.
JOBS... the thing people use to obtain food, clothing and shelter. The ACLU and the NRA have nothing what-so-ever to do with obtaining these necessities of life. It's a ludicrous comparison.
"Right to work for less" laws should be abolished.
wd, at the top of the thread (well, the 8th comment) I referred to "nurses aids" and "frail, old residents". I'm sorry, I probably should have been clearer that I was referring to a healthcare facility.
Those are some terrible people you work with Will. Lazy, racist, swearing at scabs and willing to beat them up... and all because they joined a union. Normal people have better values, but union members are clearly selfish a-holes!
Why do you think that is? It couldn't be because unions attract those kinds of people... what with all the forced joinings and all. It MUST be some kind of mind control/indoctrination.
You may have been talking about your specific situation, but I was talking about unions in general. I don't think your specific situation proves or disproves any universal truths concerning unions.
I take it you're with dmarks... that, as soon as workers strike it's as if they quit their jobs?
"Normal people have better values, but union members are clearly selfish a-holes!"
Most people in unions never chose to belong. They were forced in. They are removed from the a-hole category. When there are strikes, many people stay home. Others choose to work. That leavea small number of a-holes who go to the picket lines and harass and assault the real workers.
"I take it you're with dmarks... that, as soon as workers strike it's as if they quit their jobs?"
Well, they sure don't want their jobs. I sure don't blame real working people (people who want to do something productive rather than loaf about or wave signs) for going to work at these abandoned jobs.
"JOBS... the thing people use to obtain food, clothing and shelter. The ACLU and the NRA have nothing what-so-ever to do with obtaining these necessities of life. It's a ludicrous comparison."
The ACLU and NRA never forced massive layoffs through factory closings. They also never force companies to fire people for refusing to give to political campaigns. Unions in contrast do both. They are much more dangerous to jobs.
Will: I watched closely the "longest nursing strike in history" in Petoskey, Michigan. One of the main issues was whether or not the union could force teachers to join the union against their will.
The strike was long. Some of the strikers tried to get work at other hospitals, which balked at hiring them (seriously, it is a bad thing to have on your resume that you quit your previous job and were unprofessional enough to harass and insult people at that workplace).
The strike reached real depths when reports indicated that care declined at the hospital due to the strike. The strikes were actually gleeful about this. What do patients matter compared to greed, after all?
The hospital and its real nurses stared down the union, and it was eventually decertified.
Will said: "If you had a loved one in that convalescent home, I doubt it seriously that you'd be referring to those replacement workers as "scabs".
As a patient in one of these places, who would you appreciate most? The people inside who care for you, or the former workers on the picket line harassing these caregivers and even insulting your loved ones who come to visit you?
And come on, WD. Using the word "scab" for working people is as intellectual as using the term "poopy pants"
Well, wd, in a convalescent home where people's very lives are at stake, yeah, you do kind of have to replace 'em (this wasn't my home, btw - we voted the union down). In a manufacturing or nonessential service job, that's a different story.
dmarks, in CT, we've had over 30 convalescent homes go under. According to our administrator and human resources gal, they were pretty much all union. Unions may have a place in some industries, but in the healthcare industry, it's extremely difficult.
Will said: "Unions may have a place in some industries, but in the healthcare industry, it's extremely difficult."
Which industries do they work best in? I've watch for years and years as unions force companies to lay off massive numbers of people in the auto industry.
dmarks: What do patients matter compared to greed, after all?
I agree -- the behavior of those acting out of greed was deplorable. The Hospitals obviously cared more about their greed for profits then about the patients. The workers asked for a little more of those profits (in increased compensation) and the greedy hospitals chose to let the strike continue (and their patients suffer for lack of adequate care). The hospitals should have been ashamed.
As should you, dmarks, for taking the side of the greedy hospitals who chose to use scabs instead of continuing to negotiate with the union. I think you're fascist poopy pants.
You know what the profit margins in most convalescent homes are, wd? The guy who's running ours is working at about 1%. Couple that with the fact that the Medicaid reimbursement rates have been flat-out static for years and, no, I'm entirely sure that you can totally blame management here (try as you may).
Nurses make between $20 and $35 an hour (depending upon experience, specialty, and location). When you also add in bonuses, overtime, shift differential, etc,, some of these people are making $70-80 grand a year (supervisors close to a 100). Excuse me if I don't start up a collection for them.
39 comments:
IMO.....Crazy Heart
Anything with Jeff Bridges in it usually succeeds.
Good question, I'll have to think about that since nothing readily comes to mind.
"A History of Violence" is one of the best films of the 21st century? IMO it didn't suck completely. I was very disappointed. Do you want to buy my DVD of the film? It is in perfect condition/only watched once.
Why buy it......Redbox is a buck.
Different subject.....BIG,GIGANTIC win for Wall-Mart in a U.S.Supreme Court ruling.
I said favorite, wd, not best. I haven't seen enough to know if it's the best or not. And, besides, that would simply be my opinion anyway.
Unions turn off a lot of people, Russ. We had these nurses aids making 20 bucks an hour with boffo benefits go on strike. And then they assaulted (assault in the legal sense meaning threat, not battery) the replacement workers. I don't know, I guess that they just expected all of those frail, old residents to take care of themselves.
Will: We also had a school bus driver who was caught beating up one of the kids on the bus.
Perhaps understandable, some might say? The kid was acting out, and had to be restrained?
No, the kid was handicapped and in a wheelchair. The type of person President Obama likes to make fun of.
The school district tried to fire this driver, but the school bus drivers' union protected the drivers job.
Just one of many examples of the sickos that the unions work so hard to protect. And it seems like every two years around here a teacher is caught raping students. And sure enough, the NEA is there to try and keep the teacher in the classroom.
The school bus driver situation is better here. The district privatized the system, fired the drivers, and now pays them a fair wage, on an "At will" system: they can fire bad drivers, and there's no union there to protect the worst of the worst.
"And then they assaulted .... sense meaning threat, not battery) the replacement workers"
Yes... real working people, working for a living. Beaten up by lazy thugs who quit their jobs (strikers) and aren't workers any more by choice.
"I don't know, I guess that they just expected all of those frail, old residents to take care of themselves."
Nothing makes the nurse's unions that go on strikes happier than hospital patients dying due to the distruption they cause.
Come on, "nurses". If you don't like the job, quit and get out of the way of those that do. Don't assault the real nurses (those who care for patients instead of loaf about on picket lines) and try to disrupt the hospital operations.
We had a scenario very similar to that, dmarks, back when I worked at DMR. This lady was physically abusing clients and they simply couldn't get rid of the wench. They finally paid her to sit in this room and she eventually got "counseling".
Oh, and the real outrage here, bra, is that these very same striking CNAs also got to collect unemployment, ON TOP OF THEIR STRIKE WAGES. And people wondered how a small state like CT could run up a 3 billion dollar deficit.
Will: Don't forget the scandal of the lousy teachers in New York. Because of the union, they can't be fired, so they are kept in a room separate from the students (so they don't harm them) and do nothing and draw pay.
Crazy Heart was OK. I've got no desire to watch it again though. I preferred Jeff Bridges' performance in The Contender -- a film in which he portrayed a second-term Democratic president.
On one hand dmarks says he opposes the "ruling elites" (when we're discussing health care insurance)... but on the other he says he trusts the wealthy elites completely (in saying we should get rid of unions).
Smells like fascism to me. I don't know how else you'd describe it... I think both you guys have a fascist mindset... anti-worker and pro-wealthy elite.
No, wd, dmarks and I are just "for" firing bad and abusive teachers......."Pro-wealthy"? I'm for raising the top individual rates to 40%. And I'm also for taxing capitol gains at the same rate as regular income (indexed for inflation). Add to that the fact that I'm for public financing of elections and you'd wonder why the Republicans would even want to talk to me at all (I was also for extending unemployment benefits).
Tenure - it really should be given out under heavily scrutinized conditions.
Will: No, wd, dmarks and I are just "for" firing bad and abusive teachers.
So now you're pro-union? Glad to hear it, although I think dmarks and Rusty are going to be quite disappointed with your change of heart. What finally got you to see the light? Did you realize the horror stories you relate are isolated incidents and not indicative of how unions operate?
Whatever the reason, I won't ridicule you for flip-flopping, but instead congratulate you for siding with the American worker and against the wealthy elites. Next thing you'll be telling us is that you're reconsidered your wrong-headed stance on free trade!
Rusty said: Different subject... BIG, GIGANTIC win for Wall-Mart in a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The corporate friendly SCOTUS sides with big business and against the American worker (in this case, female workers)? No surprise really.
Did you hear about all these bribes Thomas has been accepting? Selling your SCOTUS vote should be an impeachable offense (at the very least).
If the Affordable Care Act reaches the SCOTUS we know for certain how Thomas is going to vote... all the payoffs to his wife leave little doubt that his vote has been bought.
The guy is a disgrace.
This has got to be one of the most fascist and corrupt supreme courts ever.
My favorite movie of the 21st century is "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring". It also has Viggo Mortensen, but it is freaking awesome and not a disappointment like the one you named.
And Viggo doesn't rape anyone in it... so that's another positive.
WD said: "The corporate friendly SCOTUS sides with big business and against the American worker (in this case, female workers)? No surprise really."
It was a frivolous lawsuit, because the vast majority of the plaintiffs actually has no complaint or registered any.
"This has got to be one of the most fascist and corrupt supreme courts ever."
It's on of the least fascist. Citizens United is a great example of this. The court ruled in favor of people criticizing those in government. Fascists really HATE that kind of criticism.
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WD said: "but on the other he says he trusts the wealthy elites completely (in saying we should get rid of unions)."
No, I would never get rid of unions. I favor one simple reform: support the right of each worker to join or NOT join a union.
Also, being against abusive power of unions has everything to do with supporting the rights of workers, and nothing to do with wealthy elites. Except maybe the top boss union thugs, who get rich forcing workers to give them $$$$.
wd has obviously never seen a picket line, the way that these folks assault replacement workers, use the n-word, the f-word (both of them), etc.. I really ought to take him some time.
In Citizens United the court ruled that corporations could buy our elections. In my recent blog post on the subject I concluded that the ruling is "straight up fascism". I stand by what I wrote. Anyone who supports this ruling doesn't believe in Democracy. Or doesn't understand the First Amendment. Or both.
Certainly a union member has a right to voice his disapproval of any scab that would cross the picket line... but racist language? I find that totally unacceptable under any circumstance. Sorry, but I've got to disagree with you on this one Will...
Citizens United has nothing to do with what WD claims.
What it did was address a situation whereby the government prohibited individual Americans from criticizing the government if these individuals happened to be associated with organizations that the government arbitrarily disliked.
That situation, created by "McCain Feingold", was straight-up fascism. And it was a direct violation of our Constitutional rights.
Fascists governments loved to criminalize criticism of the government.
It had nothing to do with "buying our elections", since in fact $0 involved goes to buy votes.
-----------
"Certainly a union member has a right to voice his disapproval of any scab that would cross the picket line..."
Scab? Why use such harsh playground insults against working people?
The quitters should get out of the way and let the workers do their job. This is a very strong example of how unions go against the interests of workers.
WD: Do you favor forcing people to join the ACLU?
If not, then you are anti-ACLU just as I am anti-union.
Most of my complaints about unions would go away if they became legitimate, accountable organizations that did not rely on most of their membership and funding from people who didn't even choose or want to join in the first place.
If you had a loved one in that convalescent home, I doubt it seriously that you'd be referring to those replacement workers as "scabs". And since when is assaultive language (i.e., threats) considered "voicing disapproval"?
Will, I call "foul" on your previous comment. You said NOTHING about the strike being at a convalescent home or strikers threatening scabs with bodily harm in your initial post. You mentioned the use of racist language, which I said I was AGAINST.
First you post something vague and when I defend unions you add some details about how horrible the strikers are...
Making it appear as though I support said deplorable behavior. I do not. Do you believe this kind of underhanded debating is necessary to defend your position?
dmarks: WD: Do you favor forcing people to join the ACLU?
Joining a union is NOTHING like joining the ACLU or the NRA. People join unions to represent them in negotiations with their employers.
JOBS... the thing people use to obtain food, clothing and shelter. The ACLU and the NRA have nothing what-so-ever to do with obtaining these necessities of life. It's a ludicrous comparison.
"Right to work for less" laws should be abolished.
wd, at the top of the thread (well, the 8th comment) I referred to "nurses aids" and "frail, old residents". I'm sorry, I probably should have been clearer that I was referring to a healthcare facility.
Those are some terrible people you work with Will. Lazy, racist, swearing at scabs and willing to beat them up... and all because they joined a union. Normal people have better values, but union members are clearly selfish a-holes!
Why do you think that is? It couldn't be because unions attract those kinds of people... what with all the forced joinings and all. It MUST be some kind of mind control/indoctrination.
You may have been talking about your specific situation, but I was talking about unions in general. I don't think your specific situation proves or disproves any universal truths concerning unions.
I take it you're with dmarks... that, as soon as workers strike it's as if they quit their jobs?
"Normal people have better values, but union members are clearly selfish a-holes!"
Most people in unions never chose to belong. They were forced in. They are removed from the a-hole category. When there are strikes, many people stay home. Others choose to work. That leavea small number of a-holes who go to the picket lines and harass and assault the real workers.
"I take it you're with dmarks... that, as soon as workers strike it's as if they quit their jobs?"
Well, they sure don't want their jobs. I sure don't blame real working people (people who want to do something productive rather than loaf about or wave signs) for going to work at these abandoned jobs.
"JOBS... the thing people use to obtain food, clothing and shelter. The ACLU and the NRA have nothing what-so-ever to do with obtaining these necessities of life. It's a ludicrous comparison."
The ACLU and NRA never forced massive layoffs through factory closings. They also never force companies to fire people for refusing to give to political campaigns. Unions in contrast do both. They are much more dangerous to jobs.
Will: I watched closely the "longest nursing strike in history" in Petoskey, Michigan. One of the main issues was whether or not the union could force teachers to join the union against their will.
The strike was long. Some of the strikers tried to get work at other hospitals, which balked at hiring them (seriously, it is a bad thing to have on your resume that you quit your previous job and were unprofessional enough to harass and insult people at that workplace).
The strike reached real depths when reports indicated that care declined at the hospital due to the strike. The strikes were actually gleeful about this. What do patients matter compared to greed, after all?
The hospital and its real nurses stared down the union, and it was eventually decertified.
Will said: "If you had a loved one in that convalescent home, I doubt it seriously that you'd be referring to those replacement workers as "scabs".
As a patient in one of these places, who would you appreciate most? The people inside who care for you, or the former workers on the picket line harassing these caregivers and even insulting your loved ones who come to visit you?
And come on, WD. Using the word "scab" for working people is as intellectual as using the term "poopy pants"
Well, wd, in a convalescent home where people's very lives are at stake, yeah, you do kind of have to replace 'em (this wasn't my home, btw - we voted the union down). In a manufacturing or nonessential service job, that's a different story.
dmarks, in CT, we've had over 30 convalescent homes go under. According to our administrator and human resources gal, they were pretty much all union. Unions may have a place in some industries, but in the healthcare industry, it's extremely difficult.
Angelina Jolie. That may not be a movie, but it should be.
Will said: "Unions may have a place in some industries, but in the healthcare industry, it's extremely difficult."
Which industries do they work best in? I've watch for years and years as unions force companies to lay off massive numbers of people in the auto industry.
dmarks: What do patients matter compared to greed, after all?
I agree -- the behavior of those acting out of greed was deplorable. The Hospitals obviously cared more about their greed for profits then about the patients. The workers asked for a little more of those profits (in increased compensation) and the greedy hospitals chose to let the strike continue (and their patients suffer for lack of adequate care). The hospitals should have been ashamed.
As should you, dmarks, for taking the side of the greedy hospitals who chose to use scabs instead of continuing to negotiate with the union. I think you're fascist poopy pants.
You know what the profit margins in most convalescent homes are, wd? The guy who's running ours is working at about 1%. Couple that with the fact that the Medicaid reimbursement rates have been flat-out static for years and, no, I'm entirely sure that you can totally blame management here (try as you may).
Nurses make between $20 and $35 an hour (depending upon experience, specialty, and location). When you also add in bonuses, overtime, shift differential, etc,, some of these people are making $70-80 grand a year (supervisors close to a 100). Excuse me if I don't start up a collection for them.
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