Another 4 Years

Today is a federal holiday and ordinarily, I would be enjoying my day off and maybe even catching up on a little TV. Today is also Inauguration Day and I refuse to turn on the TV, knowing full well I'd be inundated with all the pomp associated with another 4 years of this moron named Obama.

I make no bones about the fact that I didn't vote for him. I don't know too many people who did, but then again I live in a red state. Many idiots voted for Obama strictly based on the color of his skin. I don't have any black friends that did. Then again, my black friends work for a living, have an education and are not dependent upon the government to get them through their every day lives. Like the rest of us, we do what we can to make ends meet and try to stay away from government assistance. It was once the great American way...to work for what you wanted. Now, many expect that their wants and needs will be taken care of by someone else because everyone owes it to them. That's sad. It's not who we ever were.

There are also many of us who are simply fed up with our government representatives. Who do they actually stand for besides themselves? I'm having my doubts about our election process. Obama winning a second term was rigged....I'm convinced of it. It doesn't matter. Unless he's impeached or resigns, we're stuck with him for another 4 years.

Obama doesn't care about your rights. He's consistently stepping on toes and wiping his feet on the Constitution. His views do not mimic what we as citizens of these great United States would like. His views do not stand for the republic nor do his outlandish laws serve any useful purpose but to cause so much divisiveness. Some believe that our ruler has a method to all this madness and it isn't in our best interest.

Obama doesn't want law enforcement to enforce immigration laws. To me, this is asking for trouble. How much crime do law enforcement officers deal with that are committed by illegal aliens? Depending on certain demographics, I'd say more than half. Now, knowing full well that his logic tends to lean too far to the left, he is punishing every citizen based on the actions of a number of mentally ill people who killed innocent people with firearms. He came up with some ideas. Ideas that have already been batted around a number of times. Maybe more police in schools will help deter crimes. By all means, if the government will subsidize or fund it, make it happen. It's unfortunate, but necessary. Will banning certain firearms, ammo and magazine capacities make a difference? Highly unlikely.
Perhaps the President would like to keep an eye on all the courts that make back room deals with Judges, prosecutors, and attorneys who allow repeat violent offenders plea deals. Most of these violent offenders have no moral compass and are released only to commit violent crimes again and again.

The one glaring common denominator in all these mass shootings is mental illness. How does the President propose to keep firearms away from the mentally ill without stigmatizing people or causing Doctors to put their careers on the line should they make the wrong diagnosis? What about that reasonable expectation of privacy? Labeling people as "unstable" without violating HIPPA laws is a slippery slope.

Obama's arrogance is immeasurable. Today, he once again swore to uphold and defend the Constitution. The Constitution clearly states that citizens have the right to keep and bear arms and that right shall not be infringed. This is angering many people and is causing chaos and panic in the gun industry far beyond what they saw in 2008 when Obama was first elected.

How does Obama expect law enforcement will receive these unlawful orders? Does he think that law enforcement in the U.S. will blindly follow the leader and take away the guns from their citizens? Many Sheriffs are taking a stance and are doing so by not only utilizing certain media outlets, but they're also doing it the old fashioned way...in a signed letter to the VP. Check out this site. My 3 favorite Sheriffs have made their voices clear. They will not enforce unconstitutional laws.

SHERIFFS TAKE A STAND

Verizon's Curse

Several days ago, over 45,000 unionized Verizon employees in Delaware, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia walked off the job to protest cuts and concessions Verizon management wanted their employees to absorb.

Ironically, it is only in these states that the Communications Workers of America has unionized strongholds. Verizon employees in other areas of the U.S. are not unionized and should they walk off their job, they would no longer have it.  There are approximately 135,000 non union Verizon employees.

The majority of the workers that have gone on strike are what are known as 'land line workers.' With the ever increasing use of mobile phones, the land line is slowly becoming obsolete. However, Verizon does admit that it is not totally independent of its land line workers, but Verizon wants to change the benefits they provide that date back to a time when there was little to no competition in the industry.

Verizon workers on strike have harassed, threatened, obstructed and in one location a BB gun was fired, at management and non-union workers who are crossing the picket line. In New York City, they surrounded a U.S. mail truck just trying to make its normal delivery. In Albany, NY, a worker who crossed the picket line was pushed in to some scaffolding resulting in an arm injury. Verizon states that there have been over 70 incidents of sabotage. Even 911 service to selected areas was interrupted. Striking workers deny the accusations.

With the picketing leaning towards unnecessary violence and interference, Verizon has sought court ordered injunctions that will limit the amount of picketing at each location and how they do it. Unions for the striking Pennsylvania and Delaware workers have already been served with the injunctions, with others pending.

So you ask, "what's their beef?"  Here are some of the points that have stalled negotiations at the bargaining table;

Verizon wants employees to start paying a partial premium amount for their family's health insurance policies. Almost 99% of employees in the nation who are lucky enough to have health insurance, pay a monthly premium. What are unionized employees paying now, you ask?  NOTHING.  Non-union Verizon workers already pay a monthly premium. Union spokesmen claim that in these tough economic times, this is an undue burden on their workers. Verizon claims that health care costs have sky rocketed and they can no longer absorb it.  It's time that workers came in line with the rest of its employees.

Verizon wants to temporarily freeze pensions for its present workers, but the company is willing to enhance 401-K plans. Verizon wants to eliminate future pensions.
Verizon wants to change the 1963 Work Rule - which is an antiquated rule requiring 2 people on a service call in NY, most notably in a neighborhood known for its violence.  Now that particular neighborhood is one of the safest in the city. Sending 2 people on a service call is not cost productive.
Verizon wants to limit paid sick days to 5 per year instead of the unlimited amount they are receiving now.

The argument union workers are making is that Verizon is a very solvent company that pays its higher echelon officers exorbitant salaries and the company can afford to continue providing reasonable wages to its workers.

Verizon touts itself as "America's largest and most reliable wireless service."  While I can say that I feel some sympathy for the employees of Verizon who will have to make some kind of sacrifice if they want to go back to work, I can't help wondering why they would even strike in such a negative financial climate.  No doubt, they're getting paid some of that unlimited sick time.
Many of the non-union workers have been cross trained, specifically for situations such as this, so the jobs are being covered, albeit with over-time. With so many people out of work, how much sympathy and solidarity will these striking workers get when Verizon starts hiring from the pool of people that are practically begging for a job? I know I would not hesitate to cross that picket line if I were desperate to feed my family and pay my bills.

I can't help wondering how this will effect the Obama administration.  Democrats are notoriously pro-union, with unions donating millions to their campaigns.  What percentage of that huge donation comes from workers union dues? Unions need that money and have been known to bulldoze their way in to businesses where they're not wanted.  In fact, in this particular case, the unionizing was rejected several times, even after the rules were changed. That's right, if you don't like the outcome, change the rules and try again.

In another lifetime, I once had a positive opinion of unions, but now....they just muddy the waters between politics and worker's rights. Who are they really looking out for?