Right-wing blogs attack steelworker at the AFL-CIO Forum who lost his health care and pension

[JohnLocke]

At the AFL CIO Forum, Steve Skvara told the candidates this (video here):

"After 34 years with LTV Steel I was forced to retire because of a disability. Two years later, LTV filed bankruptcy. I lost a third of my pension and my family lost their health care.

Every day of my life I sit at the kitchen table across from the woman who devoted 36 years of her life to my family and I can’t afford to pay for her health care. What’s wrong with America and what will you do to change it?"
http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2007/08/08/news/top_news/docc5dddf336b41dc228625733100117e5b.txt

----

And here's how the right wing responded:

Newsbusters: “Not surprisingly, neither Miller nor Matthews raised Skvara’s lack of personal responsibility in planning ahead for his own future when he worked in a declining industry, burdened by high health care costs, that many predicted long ago would go out of business.”

Macsmind: “So who is Steve Skvara? From the MSM accounts you would think him just an ordinary retired Steel Worker. He is actually the District 7 SOAR Executive Board Member. SOAR is the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees. You think that they would let the public know that.”

http://nwi.com/blogs/news/?p=45

Pretty typical bilge.

[LeftishBrit]

1. What disgusting people

'Personal responsibility' so often really means, "I'm all right Jack, so to hell with you!"

[rodeodance]

13. 'the hell with you" really says it all.

[Donnachaidh]

2. The rightwingers are VILE assholes. n/t

[annabanana]

3. I guess we should all assume from now on that all promises are meaningless,

All employers are vipers looking to strike us, pensions are worthless, and when you get sick, do us all a favor and just die quietly, ok?

This isn't the America I want for my kids.

[JuniperLea]

9. The same happened with Social Security...

Many were led to believe that Social Security was all they needed for their retirement. Now they are told they were foolish to believe that.

Watch closely... it will happen in a most insidious manner... but I truly believe that the good ol' USA will be the world's newest third-world nation before long.

[ljm2002]

12. Yes, that about sums it up...

...and unfortunately, it is already the America we have created for ourselves. If we do not want this for our children, we have LOTS of work to (un)do.

[Trillo]

20. You got it ...

never trust the promises of liars.

[Marr]

25. And yet- the market should be trusted to solve our problems.

Their arguments don't make any sense.

[rockymountaindem]

4. They're haters who attack anybody who gets in their way

That why our representatives shouldn't worry about being slimed in this manner, it's going to happen no matter what, so they should just do the right thing.

[underpants]

5. He has the responsibility of making sure that they honor their part of the contract

Right? Is that the responsibility he has that isn't being mentioned because it is clear that he DID live up to his part of the contract. Now he is REPONSIBLE for making them NOT empty his pension into their pockets.

:eyes:
Wow what a bunch of ****ed up loons those people are. HE IS THE SAME AS YOU ARE!! YOU ARE NOT RICH!!!

Geesh

By the way-I went looking for this but couldn't find it. In Sirota's book "Hostile Takeover" he points out that some of the Enron employees didn't lose their entire retirement nest egg---about 1,000 or so were in a union that was bought up by Enron along the way, their pensions were administered separately and it kept most of its value. They walked away millionares.

[LoZoccolo]

6. He did plan ahead for his future...he had a pension arranged, right?

So where are the criticisms of LTV's responsibility?

[LostInAnomie]

7. He did plan ahead for his future by paying into his pension.

The company fucked him out of it though by claiming bankruptcy.

Just more of the same "Fuck you, I've got mine" shit from Republicans.

[Virginia Dare]

26. Yes, he was supposed to plan for the fact that the owners..

of his company were greedy assholes who would steal every last dime from it's employees. How stupid of him. These fuckwads are unbelievable, I hope they burn in hell.

[BeyondGeography]

8. It's hard not to wish for bad things for such people

[Sadie4629]

10. But when a company is bankrupt

where is the money supposed to come from? :shrug:

[JHB]

21. The company is supposed to pay into the pension fund (before bankruptcy)...

...but since Reagan the rules by which they do so have been loosened, and enforcement/oversight slackened, so that many companies have underfunded their pension funds, or have actually been able to take money out of those accounts, and reshuffled their organization to confuse the legal obligations and leave the pensions holding tha bag.

[Demit]

11. Mr. S. did plan ahead, by believing the company's promise that, in lieu of higher wages,

it would provide him a pension & health care. That was the responsible thing once upon a time, in terms of securing your future. Until it somehow became all right for companies to renege on their promises. These rightwingers are soulless. And I have no compunction about wishing that they someday experience Mr. Skvara's multiple misfortunes.

[Peregrine Took]

14. I'm always surprised when some DU'rs are shocked to find out the level of the

"people" we are opposing.

You can't talk to them, you can't reason with them, you can't "dialogue" with them - as so many sincere liberals are wont to do. That's why several of the hosts on Air America who consistently have right wingers on their programs drive me nutz.

We can only oppose the hard right and never, never give them an inch or let up. They are the enemy.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

15. That means this guy was REALLY effective. He struck a nerve. The new Cindy Sheehan.

n/t

[C_U_L8R]

16. How unchristian of them.

Or rather.. how republican of them.

[antigop]

17. The Democrats are part of the problem here too -- lots of them voted for Pension "Protection" Act

This bill was voted on about a year ago. Despite its name, this bill does NOT protect pensions, but rather, it legalizes cash balance pension conversions.

Senate vote here:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00230


House vote here:
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2006/roll422.xml

Although 114 House Dems voted against it, most of the Senate Dems voted FOR it.

(Thanks a lot, Baucus and Kennedy -- the chief negotiators on the bill.)

<edit to clarify>
This bill was not the cause of the steelworkers' problems.

But if we are talking about protecting pensions, the Democrats' track record stinks, imo.

[madrchsod]

18. their hatred consumes them

they are but an empty shell

[buff2]

19. Well,I'm glad all those stupid ratwing bastards plan ahead

I hate those evil bastards with a passion. If that man would have been a ratwingnut bu$h loving moron they would be oh so sympathetic. Two faced double standard pricks. :grr:

[defendandprotect]

22. The GOP response is clearly saying, "the guy was an idiot to trust a corporation" -- -

especially in the era when the GOP knocked out regulated capitalism -- !!!!

[Virginia Dare]

23. They can all go Cheney themselves...n/t

[onethatcares]

24. time to privatize Social Security so

these old farts don't have to worry about pensions and all that nonsense.

[Liberal In Texas]

27. "Personal Responsibility" your ass RWers. That man made a DEAL with that company that he would work

for a certain wage and part of that wage was a pension and health care after he retired and was used up from a lifetime of making huge profits for that company.

The people who haven't taken PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY are the CEOs and owners of his former company. They should have everything they own confiscated to pay AT LEAST part of the debt they owe these people.

[cui bono]

28. And yet they would NEVER apply the same standards to business.

Newsbusters: “Not surprisingly, neither Miller nor Matthews raised Skvara’s lack of personal responsibility in planning ahead for his own future when he worked in a declining industry, burdened by high health care costs, that many predicted long ago would go out of business.”

Oh no, we have to subsidize them so they can rape the planet and ruin it for the rest of us lest they spend too much money going green.