Even unions have union problems
Bits ‘n Pieces
By Bob Robinson
From Newsmax…
The federal government has posted signs along a major interstate highway in Arizona, more than 100 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, warning travelers the area is unsafe because of drug and alien smugglers, and a local sheriff says Mexican drug cartels now control some parts of the state.
The signs were posted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) along a 60-mile stretch of Interstate 8 between Casa Grande and Gila Bend, a major east-west corridor linking Tucson and Phoenix with San Diego.
They warn travelers that they are entering an "active drug and human smuggling area" and they may encounter "armed criminals and smuggling vehicles traveling at high rates of speed." Beginning less than 50 miles south of Phoenix, the signs encourage travelers to "use public lands north of Interstate 8" and to call 911 if they "see suspicious activity."
Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, whose county lies at the center of major drug and alien smuggling routes to Phoenix and cities east and west, attests to the violence. He said his deputies are outmanned and outgunned by drug traffickers in the rough-hewn desert stretches of his own county.
"Mexican drug cartels literally do control parts of Arizona," he said.
From the Akron Beacon Journal…
Even grandstanding politicians can land on the right position. Consider Mike DeWine, the former U.S. senator challenging Richard Cordray, the incumbent in the race for state attorney general.
DeWine expressed the view last week that the state's five public employee pension funds should release public records to the state's eight largest newspapers, allowing for analysis and evaluation by reporters and editors. Cordray joined the funds in saying no to a request for data that would permit closer examination, especially of those who may be abusing the system.
Cordray and the funds explained that releasing the records would violate state laws aimed at protecting the privacy of public workers. Worth stressing is the newspapers specifically said they didn't want information that would identify individuals. The papers are interested in tracking trends and practices.
DeWine rightly contends that there is something wrong when pension systems fueled by public money resist public scrutiny. How else to ensure the necessary accountability?
From Washington Beat…
Thought experiment, folks. What would the reaction be from the media and Leftist agitator groups if the Bush Administration were buying thousands of copies of C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity and distributing them overseas? Moreover, how apoplectic would those usual suspects behave if they also learned that the Bush Administration was denying that Mere Christianity was in fact a religious-based book, while at the same time deeming it an acceptable diplomatic tool to engender tolerance and interfaith dialogue? I think we all know what that reaction would be, don't we?
A blitzkrieg of front-page stories from the New York Times accusing President Bush of embarking on a modern-day Crusade. The ACLU would fire off press release after press release screeching about the 1st Amendment being under an unprecedented assault. And Al Sharpton would find a way to blame everything on Glenn Beck.
The State Department did buy bulk copies of a religious book, but it wasn't Mere Christianity. Nope. It was the Ground Zero Imam's, What's Right with Islam: A New Vision for Muslims and the West. Can you guess how many copies were bought? That would be none other than 2,000! The State Department also accepted another 1,000 at no cost, for a total dispersion of 3,000 copies of What's Right with Islam.
From the Columbus Dispatch…
Ohio's largest teachers union is having labor problems of its own.
Labor-relations consultants, who help local teachers unions negotiate contracts with school districts, and other employees of the Ohio Education Association walked off the job yesterday morning.
Most of the 110 striking workers - all members of the OEA's Professional Staff Union - earn more than $100,000 a year, according to reports filed with the U.S. Department of Labor. For instance, labor-relations consultants - who make up about 80 percent of the striking workers - were paid an average salary of $111,350 in 2009.
Contract negotiations between the OEA and its Professional Staff Union broke down Monday afternoon; no additional meetings are scheduled.
The Professional Staff Union represents 110 OEA workers - 83 labor-relations consultants and 27 administrative staff employees.
The association represents more than 130,000 teachers, faculty members and support professionals in schools, colleges and universities. The union has 220 employees in its Columbus headquarters and field offices across the state.
From Daily Events…
September 3, 1752 - The Day that Didn't Happen
England and her colonies adopted the Gregorian calendar. To make the shift, this day in 1752, nor the next ten days, did not happen. Riots broke out as people thought the government had literally stolen eleven days.
Have a great day and feel safe and secure. Big Brother watches over us.
Watch for more Bits ‘n Pieces as they occur. Good stuff? Bad stuff? You decide.
Bob Robinson is the retired editor of The Daily Advocate, Greenville, Ohio. If you wish to receive notification of his comments, opinions and reports when they are posted, send your email address to: opinionsbybob@gmail.com. Feel free to express your views.
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