tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post5134906776330950608..comments2024-02-05T03:22:31.011-05:00Comments on Tahoma Beadworks & Photography: Justified or Irresponsible?JoJohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18165375435543044068noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-44013055373766519352009-09-18T13:50:28.357-04:002009-09-18T13:50:28.357-04:00I think there's a big danger of taking out fru...I think there's a big danger of taking out frustrations on the wrong people. Unionised labour (certainly in the UK) is about conditions as well as pay. Many doctors and almost all nurses are underpaid over here, but why should they forego the right to withdraw their labour if they are taken advantage of? The people who are taking liberties are the fat cats who earn absolute fortunes, then have bonuses on top, and have accountants who fiddle their taxes so that they pay less tax than a person on minimum wage.valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08784717652044574470noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-53393864270783510062009-09-18T11:16:00.563-04:002009-09-18T11:16:00.563-04:00Its all about the money. Unions are not doing what...Its all about the money. Unions are not doing what they initially were formed for.<br />Its just like human rights....another excuse to hide behind when you don't put out to society.<br /><br />Here we have doctors and nurses striking, causing casualties on a daily basis, because the fuckers (who HAVE jobs) are greedy. They already earn more than a sod like me, who has to run 3 LIVES, and I think they are fucking spoilt, hiding behind unions for no good reason.Axehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08872532988118061144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-8609389004349256412009-09-18T10:51:17.844-04:002009-09-18T10:51:17.844-04:00DP - I guess my mom is one of those 'hypocrite...DP - I guess my mom is one of those 'hypocrites'. :) But she's on a fixed income and she can't afford for her property taxes, already sky high on Cape Cod, to keep going up for school bonds; esp. when her one and only child graduated 27 yrs ago. lol<br /><br />I guess childless couples look at the school issues completely differently than people with children. I do support the teachers and I do agree that they should be paid a fair/living wage. I also agree that they need way less meetings. But I just feel bad for the kids who end up having to go to school till July to make up for the strike. Do childless couples reap benefits from the coming generations? Yes. BUT again, we don't get the child tax credit, we get a much smaller tax refund AND our property taxes keep going up. I think that the child tax credit needs to go away, or that money should go directly into the school district in which the people live. Or, the parents can donate their tax refunds to their schools. Esp. those families who are renting and not paying property taxes at all.<br /><br />My post was really more about unions in general though.JoJohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18165375435543044068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-34262572588766404952009-09-17T23:29:49.435-04:002009-09-17T23:29:49.435-04:00There is a lot I want to say but, I'm terrible...There is a lot I want to say but, I'm terrible with words. I will just say...I'm the daughter of a High School Principal and a Kindergarten Teacher....I will always support public education and Teachers.<br /><br />ps: Glad you're blogging again Jojo!Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05186511870988332347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-54629923008792194192009-09-17T19:45:50.784-04:002009-09-17T19:45:50.784-04:00I agree with everything Val said. And, please note...I agree with everything Val said. And, please note that it takes two sides to make a strike such as the one in Kent. The school district could have negotiated over the course of the summer to try to prevent distruptions once the school year started, but had no incentive to do so. The only power the teachers have is once school is in session. I am a teacher; I know teachers, and believe me, there is nothing more that they want than to settle issues before the school year begins. But the district says nothing but, "Sorry, this is our best offer," all summer long. Funny how, after school has been distrupted for a week, they found some wiggle room on the issues after all. Any reason that couldn't have happened in June?<br /><br />I've also always been uncomfortable with people believing that they have no obligation to the coming generation unless they have children represented in it. All of our futures' are dependent on having an on-going skilled workforce and strong economy. It's not only parents who count on programs such as Social Security and Medicare in their advanced years, but those and other programs will fold if the workforce in place during our advanced years isn't educated and competetive. Parents will reap the benefits, but so too will the people who never had children themselves. Worst of all, in my estimation, are those older parents who say, "Well, my kids have graduated, so I'll never vote for a school bond again." Absolute hypocrisy!Pernicious Pandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15398147887114002182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-44901096524660970272009-09-17T18:00:31.237-04:002009-09-17T18:00:31.237-04:00I was hoping you'd weigh in on this Val, as a ...I was hoping you'd weigh in on this Val, as a teacher. :)JoJohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18165375435543044068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-68236252280127552022009-09-16T16:01:46.839-04:002009-09-16T16:01:46.839-04:00I don't know what things are like for teachers...I don't know what things are like for teachers in the US, JoJo, but in the UK, people who don't join a teaching union are fools. They protect you if a headteacher bullies you, they give you legal help if a child or parent makes an accusation against you or if you are injured on the job. Teachers don't strike to punish the children but to protect education and their own standards of living. If their pay and conditions are not protected then there won't be enough teachers and then the suffering of children's education will be long-term or permanent, instead of the short term of a strike. We are not a charity, we have to live, too. If you deny teachers their rights, you won't improve matters for people like Brian. You will just make them worse for the teachers and for education in general.valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08784717652044574470noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30172845.post-89867301907097049172009-09-15T14:49:20.604-04:002009-09-15T14:49:20.604-04:00It's tough to know at the moment what to say. ...It's tough to know at the moment what to say. I understand the need to protect jobs by the Unions, but some of them seem so bloody-minded, you'd think we were all living in a land of endless milk and honey, and the recession was happening to someone else. For example, the 'Public Service' unions in the UK are threatening strikes if there are any cuts in services, BUT we simply can't AFFORD the levels we currently have, or maybe they're happy for us to dive even deeper into public debt than we are already have...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com