Ok, a couple of points in this thread.
Someone making 200% more than his salary in overtime? Sure, he may have worked harder than others to earn that, but you can tell me that a person being able to do that isn't an abuse of the system. And abuses of the system are exactly what this is all about, the tax payers want them ended and costs brought down.
States in trouble with mismanagement of public funds? Hello, the cozy, conflict of interests deals with the public sector unions are very much one of the big mismanagements of public funds that is bleeding state treasures dry. But, you would be correct that there are others, and you should hold those politicians accountable if they do NOT address the other Fraud, Waste and Abuses in the budgets. BUT, yet we see posts already lambasting Republicans for making huge cuts in Medicare, when they are only discussing the best approach of eleminating Fraud, Waste and Abuse in Medicare, a program proven to be riddled with it. Anyone notice the scooter commercials where they garuantee they'll deliver one to your door, totally free of charge, whether you really need one or not, they'll do all the paper work for Medicare.
And that is all you see the reforming politicians doing, trying to eleminate those abuses with the public unions and get the costs down to more reasonable and FAIR levels compared to the tax payers that pay those costs. BUT, that is met with the over the top reactions, they are balancing the budgets on the backs of the middle class, brinkmanship power plays with union leaders pulling all the strings, and calling those politicians, just trying to make it more fair, wingnuts.
Politicians only want to take these problems that they created out on the middle class? The overwhelming majority of the middle class are paying for the government costs, that the reforming politicians are trying to bring in line and provide a fair level of government services that the tax payer is paying for. Its the liberal politicians and union supporters that want to continue their power base and generous pay/benefits for the few on the back of the middle class.
Those Wisonsin Public Employees aren't paid much more than Washington DC employees? Really, that is your argument? Detriots violent crime rate isn't more than St. Loius crime rate, so there really isn't any crime problem in Detriot, huh?
Finally, we have to pay high salaries for bus drivers, because we want responsible people behind the wheel? Really? Its sad how far we have slid, that your average laborer is usually too irresponsible to be trusted to drive a BUS. Did the unions have anything to do with that?
Think about it, what level of resonsibility do you need to drive a bus;
- Show up to work on time.
- Get an appropriate amount of sleep.
- Do NOT do drugs.
- Do NOT show up for work drunk or hung-over.
- Obey the traffic laws.
- Show restraint in dealing with people and traffic situations.
Many teenagers do this for free. But we have to pay extra if we expect an adult to meet those very modest levels of responsibility? If someone can't meet that level responsibility as a bus drive, they should be fired.
The private sector doesn't have a problem finding people to do this and drive a bus. The biggest problem many bus companies have in many states, is keeping employees that leave for the higher pay and benefits of government jobs, that the bus company can NOT afford to pay and stay in business (direct from the John Strossel interview). And as we have seen, the states can't afford to pay these pay and benefits and stay in business.
