It never ceases to amaze me how corrupt politicians play the game, bending rules to suit their greedy little needs. The GOP, in a shining moment of hypocrisy, replaced a Republican committee member at the 11th hour in order to secure passage of Senate Bill 5. The ramifications of this could be quite interesting.
The method of replacement appears to be in violation of Senate Rule 19, but let’s not quibble about the details, shall we? Kasich, Inc. wanted to weaken the unions in order to plunder the middle class. The theory that SB 5 is going to have a significant impact on our state’s long-term fiscal health is both foolish and shortsighted. It fails to consider the consequences.
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It never ceases to amaze me how corrupt politicians play the game, bending rules to suit their greedy little needs. The GOP, in a shining moment of hypocrisy, replaced a Republican committee member at the 11th hour in order to secure passage of Senate Bill 5. The ramifications of this could be quite interesting.
The method of replacement appears to be in violation of Senate Rule 19, but let’s not quibble about the details, shall we? Kasich, Inc. wanted to weaken the unions in order to plunder the middle class. The theory that SB 5 is going to have a significant impact on our state’s long-term fiscal health is both foolish and shortsighted. It fails to consider the consequences.
Education is going to take a significant hit. Merit based pay raises, like many ivory tower ideas, sound great on paper, but lousy in practice. Now more than ever, those of modest means will suffer. School districts most in need of capable teachers will watch potential educators pass them over in their job searches. Why would a teacher struggle to help troubled students when the reward for such efforts will be punitive pay stagnation? The result will be a migration of quality educators from troubled districts to where the grass, and income, is greener. The poor will be punished for being poor.
Now that Kasich, Inc. has brought our state’s educational system to its knees, what will they do with their new windfall? They’re going to give it away to corporations, of course.
Diebold was just awarded an incentive package from the state worth upwards of $100 million. In return, Diebold agreed to employ about 1,500 workers for the next 18 years. Breaking this down, Diebold could end up with over $3,700 per employee per year in state aid.
American Greetings was just awarded a similar package worth upwards of $93.5 million in order to employ 1,750 for the next 15 years. That’s over $3,500 per employee per year in state aid.
I’m all for keeping jobs in Ohio – jobs that work toward our state’s future by investing in our education. However, it appears that the middle class is getting squeezed in order to line corporate coffers. Teachers lose, students lose and the poor lose even more. On the upside, when I withdraw money from an ATM or buy a greeting card, I can feel comfortable in knowing that I’m supporting companies that are taking money from the middle class.
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