Let's Just Lay Off All The Public Workers. They Aren't Real Jobs Anyway.

[TheMastersNemesis]

At least that is the way Republicans look at it. They just keep repeating their mantra. Besides we don't need them.

You get sick of hearing the bullshit they keep spewing out. Of course, politicians are an exception.

[ZOB]

1. We're about to see exactly that.

I can't count the number of times I've heard on the TV or radio "See, the sequester started and we're all fine."

The federal government is required to give most employees 30 days notice of furloughs. The actual furloughs start in about three weeks, reducing many agencies' staffing by 20%.

We may be fine now, but try flying in three weeks...

[TheMastersNemesis]

2. Actually The GOP Believes All Public Work Should Be Contract Work Run By Corporations.

The GOP seems to believe that corporations should staff all of our government agencies to be run like a business. What they intend runs far deeper. It is about cutting the cost of government by reducing wages and benefits in the public sector to the same level as low wage private sector.

Now that wages have fallen in the private sector and most jobs are now low wage. 58% of the jobs now can be classified as low wage. The fact that the GOP is saying government workers make too much is an attack where they believe they can demand parity with private jobs.

They have been at this strategy for many years now. Somehow an FBI agent making minimum wage seems good to them.

[brewens]

4. The guy I wrote about in the post below may be in for a few surprises if

his side gets there way. We're supposed to look at guy like him now and say, "I don't get a pension. I can't afford to pay taxes to give him one!" There's absolutely nothing really stopping us from cutting guys like him off, no matter what he's been promised. Of course I don't want to see that, but in his case, he'd have it coming to him.

The middle class having been beaten down, won't gain anything back by dragging down what's left. Instead of looking at public sector employees as being unfairly overpaid, we need to organize and get ourselves back up there. I'm afraid it might be one of those things that has to get even worse before enough people will wise up and revolt though.

[brewens]

3. One of my right-wing friends has always been a federal or state employee. He really

doesn't get it at all. He's a total Republican and gun nut but he's also a stoner. Then he's also well off really only because his adoptive parents had money. He inherited a building that he makes a nice income off, plus a couple hundred grand when his mother died.

There are so many disconnects with this guy, it's mind boggling. Now he's looking to take early retirement from our state Job Service, partly because he wants on the pension program before it gets cut back. He's convinced there will be changes that won't be in his favor if he waits, so why not retire now?

I've pointed out that he's made good money doing what he does because of the labor movement and other protections given to him by liberals. He totally rejects that. Yup. He's in a union but is anti-union. He has health care provided by the government but is against government run health care. It was no doubt a state run agency that placed him in his home as a baby. That worked out nicely for him.

He's also told me stories about gaming the travel budget when he was a federal employee. One of those guys that would make sure and use everything he had coming to him, carefully justifying it in hopes of having his allowance increased or at least not cut back.

We actually aren't so much buddies. It's more like a relationship that I maintain because of a few things I get out of it.

[GreenEyedLefty]

5. Typical "I got mine, so screw everyone else" mentality. nt

[gulliver]

6. That kind of senseless crap is what is killing the Republican Party

And good riddance. Republican economics is based on misanthropic dogma and little else. Democrats get economics (and every other rational, evidence-based school of thought) vastly better than Republicans. At this point Republicans are little better than "Me feed virgins to volcano god so me get better eat."

Eventually people are going to understand that government jobs are just the will of the people being carried out with DIY savings.

[lame54]

7. My favorite is...

"Unions served a purpose in the past but are no onger needed."

That's like saying

"That traffic light served a purpose in the past but, there hasn't been an accident in years, so, it is no longer needed."