Yes, public safety workers can negotiate over equipment. Whoopdee fucking doo. Not staffing though. Having 3 guys at a fire is dangerous and downright criminal to force into being in the first place. Having one medic in the back of the ambulance instead of two can cost a life. Sending a cop alone to a dangerous neighborhood could get him killed. Waiting for additional help because not enough resources were available to send in the first place costs lives and property.
It's bullshit.
Take away my new squad and give me back the old one with 300k miles on it. Staffing is way more important than equipment. I'll keep my old ratty turnout gear if it means having a guy to come get my ass if I go down.

All over that. But you have free will as well.

Go. Don't go. A moral issue for sure.

In the end change is forced by those decisions.

I take no side on either issue.

I say to you that through action, you have the power to effect change.

Unions have nothing to do with that and they are not your friend.

Public safety workers rarely have the option to choose go or don't go. If there are reports of people in a burning building, even if its some drug addict rapist, we go. Even if the call is for a bad neighborhood where ambulances get broken into for morphine during calls and medics get shot at, and you beat the cops there, we go. Medics in east Cleveland get issued body armor. We're called to act, so we act. Holding our services hostage to force change is immoral at best.
The unions are corrupt, no getting around that. But if we want something to change we need a unified voice. Not many other avenues right now, let alone any that are as widespread.

So please tell us. Eliminate this portion fo the the discussion.

1. Do YOU HAVE A CHOICE to join the Union or not?

2. Do YOU HAVE Card Check when you join, to agree to divert your income to a Union PAC or not? Do you really have a choice?

I completely respect what you do but be honest. If a new worker came in and said, "fuck that, I do not want to be part of the union, and I do not want my due to go to the Demoncratic Party." Could they do that without peer pressure or someone preventing them from full participation in the collective bargaining agreement?

I do not want you to take sides. I only want your honest answers.

Bro, I have the utmost respect for you and what you and your bro's do, but be honest about the unions and the pressure that you are put under to 1. Join; 2. And contribute to PAC's; or 3. Have no control over where your Union dues go to support a political candidate.

Cheers. The Merc

What you call taxpayer dollars is also workers' salaries.

I am still astounding that you are denying workers the right to do what they wish with their salaries simply because they are public employees and dont share your political views.

And, you are the second person to raise the redux (or reflux?) question, the other in a pm.

I am not that person.

Thanks. I'm not a union guy by any stretch. I understand the base purpose of representing the interests of the worker, but they really are too bloated for their own good. The fear is that this bill's attempts to neuter the unions will just hurt the working man instead.

Bull shit. They are taxpayer dollars.

And I am still astounded that you would defend a bunch of people that have been taking the taxpayers to the bank for so many years while the rest of us are out of work, paying our fair share of benefits, and contributing to our retirement funds that had nothing to do with the taxpayer sucking up the bill for all of our benefits, and in some cases to the tune of 100% of all our benefits! Wow! what a great deal! I pay not a God Damm thing into my future but the tax payer foots the Bill! Wonderful!....



We know who you are ass hole.

There really needs to be a general strike in this country.

Walker's Wisconsin hits new heights of corruption.

Reaffirming the Judicial system is just as corrupt as the legislative system, largely because of the Citizens United ruling, which came from where? Why the corrupt system feeding itself, of course. It's not their fault though, all monsters devour knights and maidens for breakfast, just doing what comes naturally.

The fault lies squarely on the voters..

Who had more chances than most to reverse course.

I love Wisconsin - my dad's family is from there - but they really did bring this on themselves.

But the strangest thing is most people , whether they agree with this or not, don't realize they are being fucked. It's just a political battle detached from their little world. :facepalm: