January 2012

Privatizing Education the Fix for Collective Bargaining Debate

by Trey Kovacs on March 1, 2011 · 2 comments

in Deregulate to Stimulate, Employment, Labor

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The collective bargaining debate in Wisconsin has elucidated one critical point: The federal, state, and local government should not be involved in industries that can be privatized. The elimination of government in these realms, like education, would ease the expense of the taxpayer and federal, state, and local government. Privatizing education and other industries currently burdened by unnecessary government involvement creates competition in markets that government has a monopoly or near-monopoly. Another considerable benefit would be the purging of political rhetoric of both Republicans and Democrats.

Privatizing public schools has many advantages, especially in these times of financial crisis. State and local governments would not be responsible for the wages or benefits awarded to teachers. This would relieve immense pressure of unfunded liabilities from state budgets. More importantly, taking the education system out of the hands of government would allow for more competition in the education market. This would lead to improved schools and more choice for students and parents. Finally, employees of private companies cannot have their right to collectively bargain taken away, meaning the collective bargaining debate never happens.

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Labor Secretary Admits Union Bias

by Vincent Vernuccio on March 1, 2011 · 1 comment

in Features, Labor, Zeitgeist

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Speaking to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C., over the weekend, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis admitted she was biased toward unions. Unions only account for 11.9 percent of the workforce, but Solis’ favoritism puts them ahead of the other 88 percent of the American workers.

From the Washington Examiner:

President Obama is staying mostly quiet about the union battle going on in Wisconsin. His labor secretary, Hilda Solis, is not.

“The fight is on!” Solis told a cheering crowd at the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting over the weekend in Washington. Giving her support to “our brothers and sisters in public employee unions,” Solis pledged aid to unionized workers who are “under assault” in Wisconsin and elsewhere.

It’s no surprise Solis sympathizes with the unions against Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s budget reform proposal. After all, Solis often tells audiences how proud she is that her father was a Teamsters shop steward and her mother belonged to the United Steelworkers union. “Admittedly, I am a little biased,” she told the DNC, “because … I come from a union household.”

But is it the role of the secretary of labor to take sides in a fight that pits public employee union members against workers and taxpayers who support Walker’s reforms? After all, the Labor Department mission statement says its purpose is “to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States.” It doesn’t say anything about unionized wage earners, job seekers, and retirees.

“The Labor Department should not represent only that part of the work force that is unionized,” says Elaine Chao, labor secretary under George W. Bush. “It should be responsible for the overall welfare of the entire American work force.”

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Defending Economic Freedom: Charles Koch in the WSJ

by Fran Smith on March 1, 2011

in Culture, Economy, Features, Odds & Ends, Zeitgeist

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Charles Koch provides a strong defense of economic freedom and an attack on crony capitalism in an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal today. Koch, chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, Inc., and his brother David have been vilified by the left for their contributions to organizations that defend the free market, most notably in a hit piece last summer in The New Yorker magazine. More recently, the Kochs have been accused of being the power behind the Tea Party and the Wisconsin union initiatives.

Koch Industries is the one of the largest privately held companies in the U.S., and the two brothers are billionaires who have a long history of donations to libertarian groups as well as philanthropic and cultural causes.

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Morning Media Summary

by Lee Doren on March 1, 2011

in Economy, Energy, Environment, International, Legal, Personal Liberty, Regulation

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Tech:

Windows Intune hits the street March 23:
“Microsoft said today that the final version of its Windows Intune cloud-delivered PC management solution for businesses will be available for purchase or the start of a free 30-day trial on March 23 in 35 countries.”

ActiveX Filtering for Consumers:
“ActiveX Filtering in the IE9 Release Candidate gives you greater control over how Web pages run on your PC. With ActiveX Filtering, you can turn off ActiveX controls for all Web sites and then turn them back on selectively as you see fit. While ActiveX controls like Adobe Flash are important for Web experiences today for videos and more, some consumers may want to limit how they run for security, performance, or other reasons.”

Comcast, NBC deal opens door for online video:
“New Internet video services from companies such as Netflix and Apple are offering a glimpse of a home entertainment future that doesn’t include a pricey monthly cable bill.”

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