( - promoted by mooncat)
Ah! Where to begin. I've read some pretty good commentaries over the last few days. Thought it was time to share some. What Conservatives Really Want (from Truthout.ort) 'Democrats also help conservatives by what a friend has called "Democratic Communication Disorder." Republican conservatives have constructed a vast and effective communication system, with think tanks, framing experts, training institutes, a system of trained speakers, vast holdings of media and booking agents. Eighty percent of the talking heads on TV are conservatives. Talk matters, because language heard over and over changes brains. Democrats have not built the communication system they need, and many are relatively clueless about how to frame their deepest values and complex truths.' The Betrayal of Public Workers (from Truthout.org) 'One widely cited 2009 Forbes cover article reported, “State and local government workers get paid an average of $25.30 an hour, which is 33 percent higher than the private sector’s $19…. Throw in pensions and other benefits and the gap widens to 42 percent.” What figures such as these fail to reflect is that state and local government workers are older and substantially better educated than private-sector workers. Forbes is therefore comparing apples and oranges. As John Schmitt of the Center for Economic Policy Research recently showed, when state and local government employees are matched against private sector workers of the same age and educational levels, the public workers earn, on average, about 4 percent less than their private counterparts.' The Main Street Movement (from ThinkProgress 2.23.11) 'A coalition of progressive groups and organizations is taking up this call to "Save the American Dream" by announcing rallies at every single statehouse in the country on Saturday at noon. The groups, led by Moveon.org, are calling for Americans to "[d]emand an end to the attacks on workers' rights and public services across the country. Demand investment, to create decent jobs for the millions of people who desperately want to work. And demand that the rich and powerful pay their fair share." It is up to Americans to ensure that states do not balance their budgets by gutting important services and attacking public workers in order to deal with the effects of a recession caused by Wall Street's misdeeds' Happy Reading! The first two are really good (long and involved and very good). The last is icing :) Not to be mean, but I remain curious at to how many of these folks who are protesting actually did vote for the state governors who are attempting to enact these policies. We have to stop falling for the 'politics of distraction' and really pay attention to what these candidates for office are saying or, in many cases, not saying. We have got to become a more informed electorate. |
