the TRUTH about NYC's transit strike
Forget the sensational crap the mainstream media's spewing about the transit strike. They have a hidden AGENDA.
"The New York transit strike begun today is a blatantly illegal act of economic sabotage by a union so selfish that it is willing to destroy one of the most important business weeks in the city in a last-ditch attempt to preserve privileges that most private sector employees can only dream of — like the ability to retire at age 55 with a full pension, or the ability to not to contribute at all to health insurance costs."It may be true that most private sector employees can't dream about these privileges. But, that can't be blamed on MTA workers and this is NOT a race to the bottom.
The media should give people REAL facts to digest, rather than dishing out propaganda on behalf of financial interests.
The Sun's piece is nothing but an attempted coup by financial interests who would like nothing more than to destroy labor unions and privatize our public transportation system. Private corporations are itching to get their hands on all our public services.
Sure the union is a special interest. But their interests are in line with ALL WORKING people's interests.
WORKING AMERICANS need to SURVIVE, pay ever-growing bills, and FEED and EDUCATE their children.
MTA workers are being laid off every day and as a result, the ones that remain must work longer hours for less pay. Their health and pension benefits are being trimmed every year, while their mortgage payments increase, thanks to our 'friends' at the FED.
This is before considering general inflation, also courtesy of the FED.
Inflation is NOT between 1-3%, as they claim. Statistics lie and so do mainstream media outlets and government officials.
Believe your WALLET and the price of MILK at the grocery store. I pay almost twice as much for milk today than I did this time last year.
Even the Russians admit that inflation is at 11% in their country, which means it's probably much higher than that. It's no different, here.
ENOUGH is ENOUGH.
MTA workers should be supported and applauded for their fortitude, sacrifice, and determination when faced with a media apparatus that demonizes them for demanding the RESPECT that they and ALL working Americans deserve.
The private monopoly of our federal money supply is to blame alongside the MTA's insane financing plans.
The TRUTH about the MTA's budget is that there is no "surplus."
Their so-called "budget" surplus is not a REAL surplus. It's loose change left over after annual interest payments are made. The MTA never, ever plans to eliminate the REAL deficit--it's simply NOT in the budget!
Take a look at the May 2005 summary of MTA's outstanding DEBT. Add up the "average annual debt service" and you get a whopping $1.27 billion in INTEREST payments annually!
And, NYS just borrowed $2.9 billion more, by referendum, last November!!! Obviously, it will mean even higher annual INTEREST, and so on.
Do you see a pattern here?
All of our cities and states are in this position, and so is our federal government. WE are bleeding INTEREST on government bonds.
Even worse, most if not all of this interest is TAX FREE!!!
Think about it.
If NYC didn't pay all that expletive INTEREST on bonds, taxes could be lowered; fares reduced; and workers could keep their paltry benefits.
Instead, $1.27 billion of NYC's MTA revenue gets routed directly to creditors' pockets, not ONE CENT being paid towards principal.
MTA workers are NOT the problem.
INTEREST is the problem and so is our monetary system.
Please, look past the LIES and DECEPTION; the TRUTH is it's either US or INTEREST.
posted by qrswave @ Tuesday, December 20, 2005
14 Comments:
I fully agree with what you said. Theres no way inflation is only 3%.
If I were to get a 3% raise this year, I would not be as well off as I was the last year. Its absurd and it needs to change.
After hear Mayor Bloomberg’s disgusting comments from his new conference at 2:23 EST and call the Strikers __________...I had to just write a few things.....Maybe it is time that ALL WORKERS in the city as well as the USA not go to work to show Corporate America what the working people mean to this country. It is US the BLUE COLLAR workers that have made this country. It is not the GREED of the Management people. Look at the cost of inflation......look at the health take aways.....look at the pension take aways.....need I go on...think about this country in 20 years...it will be the RICH vs. the POOR....we are heading that way now.....I can go on and on but I am hoping this gets a few more of you to talk for this is about all working PEOPLE......not Union but also Non Union.....its time we take this state and country back......OK...speak up PLEASE !!!!!...wish I could have cleared the money that MTA has made….shall we add the money that the people abuser company Wal Mart has made….just think how long this list can go on for….by the way where does Bloomberg fall…under the RICH or POOR…and U did NOT see this comimg Mayor it is time for you to wake up and thuggishly look for a new job…..Maybe you can help build the economy by becoming a blue collar worker…..see what it is about to have Health Care Benefits Mr. Mayor…..WAKE UP !!!!!......why don’t you meet the BLUE COLLAR Workers at the Bargaining table Mr. Mayor
drac, it's at least 50%, this year!
And, that's a modest estimate!
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Anonymous, thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I couldn't agree with you more. I am not a transit worker; but I am a hard working American, and I feel for them and all other hard working Americans. And, I am with you 100%, working Americans MUST unite!
But, with one qualification: there's nothing per se wrong with being rich. The focus must be on how money is acquired.
Interest and fractional reserve banking is a SCAM, and our money supply should by public, NOT private.
Money must NOT be allowed to beget money. The only REAL way to earn a living is through LABOR. Then, everyone would truly get what they deserve.
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Attention readers, if you've read this far, please pass the word far and wide.
ONLY working America can put a stop to this madness.
It's not in anyone else's INTEREST for the bleeding to stop.
GREAT BLOG! Amen Brother. This information is helping me crystalize want I have learnt about the Fed and economy in general over the last 2 years.
Its oh so obvious what is happening once you get past the cognitive dissonance of how the system is rigged so diabolically. Workers need to unite, communities need to as well, did I read that Ithaca have their own money supply?
People also need to know their rights i.e. the difference between their Sovereign (Constitutional) identity and their Corporate (Federal) identity which is applied to them after their birth certificate is issued. The D.C. Corporation which fronts as our Government has been bankrupt since at least 1933 and has been owned by the IMF since 1944. Its your Corporate identity which is used by the IRS to feed the beast which is the Fed.
more info here:
(check out the 'Historical Outline' link:
There are legal things you can do to help yourself and the country out of this mess.
Yeah the CPI and Dept of Labor statistics anymore are fudged beyond belief, inflation is much higher.
linkie here
arrgh.. sorry havin probs with the href.
http://www.teamlaw.org
A few things on what you wrote...
1) The MTA operates like a private corporation, anyway, only WE are responsible for the ridiculous bonds it takes on, and its wildly ineffecient operations. I feel the Times wrote a good article on this, explaining how the city has so little power over the "public" MTA.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/20/opinion/20stern.html
My opinion of the MTA and Pataki are very low, and I think that privately run bus/subway lines actually WOULD serve the city better than what we have now. As a matter of fact, the subways and buses were private, during the era of their expansion. Once the subways/buses were taken over by the MTA, all expansion stopped.
2) You are also forgetting the other options the TWU had. It did not have to go down to a strike. I feel the gravity of the actions of the strikers, combined with the fact that there was the option of binding arbitration (which was rejected), or at least postponing bargaining talks until after the new year...make me feel less sympathetic for the workers.
3) It should be noted that some of what the workers want are in the public interest for everyone, such as increased security in the subway. That is actually one of the sticking points. To that end, of course I have sympathy for the workers.
4) It was retarded, to put it mildly, for the MTA to say "Oh, we have a billion dollar surplus and all this money for a "holiday discount," yet not enough to keep paying the pensions." Retarded, stupid, and wildly incomprehensible.
Overall, the MTA is a corrupt, feckless, and bloated corporation, with 20 vice presidents, and a head of the MTA who is essentially Pataki's lap dog. I am not pro-MTA. That said, the union was very stupid to strike, will be costing the city millions, possibly billions of the strike lasts for a while, and also does not have my sympathy.
Oh, one more thing! I find it ludicrous that a BILLIONAIRE mayor should comment that an offer to the TWU was "fair," and that the actions of the union were so incomprehensible. Let's see how well he lives on $50K a year (which is roughly what they make, and not a bad salary, but certainly not billions), and THEN he can talk.
The transit workers may indeed upgrade their ticket from coach to first class, I certainly hope they do.
They are still on the Titanic, so win or lose, they are still going to get soaked.
TO THE STREETS ME HARDIES!
AYE, ME HARDIES! TO THE FED! SIEZE THE PRESSES!
Well said QRS. You are a firespitter!
(i've had the flu for a week, so I can only cough right now.)
Major public transportation systems should be just that, public.
Ruby
qrswave,
Not being from NYC, I can only look at this from a distance. I hear all the shouting about "how dare they strike during the holidays," etc. Well, would it be more effective to only strike the graveyard shift? We are on the exact same path, only on a smaller scaled since the city is much smaller. I hope the workers get everything they want/need to survive. Our governor announced a 2% raise yesterday for state workers, and acted like he was doing everyone a huge favor. Also made it effective Feb 1 instead of Jan 1. Squeeze them till there is no blood left, then leave the dying corpse on the street to rot. That extra $5 per month will go a long way towards paying for heat this winter. Great Job, by the way.
Cyclone
Some people point out on other sites that most of thier workers make 45-50,000 per year. If you were living in the midwest or less populated areas of the south, that is a pretty good wage, but in a place like NYC where a small closet apartment thats not in the ghetto can cost 2000/month, thats not as much as it seems, especially if you need to support more than just yourself.
Most of these people deserve better.
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