DemocracyForAmerica.com » Democracy for Tennessee

Congressman Kratovil wins how ?

Written by: Stephen Crockett on Aug 7, 2009 9:47 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Somerset for Democracy, Birmingham DFA / PDA, Mobile DFA, Union County for Democracy, Salisbury DFA

Frank Kratovil of Maryland’s 1st Congressional District faces a very difficult re-election race because the district historically leans Republican. However Kratovil has a very effective secret weapon, it is an active and well-financed coalition from an element of the Republican Party mostly from the extreme Far Right wing of the Republican coalition. They are the “tea-baggers, Obama birthers and Healthcare Town Hall disrupters” you have been seeing on television and reading about in your local newspapers!

This group is not really representative of the typical Republican voters from sprawling Maryland 1st. Most Republicans I know from the dozen or so counties comprising the 1st Congressional District are relatively moderate and always reasonable.

They dislike taxes like everyone else. However, they believe government does on most occasions some things very well (like Social Security, the American military, Medicare, national parks, etc.)

The Republicans I know simply dismiss the nonsense about Obama not being born in America. Obama’s Hawaiian original birth certificates in all forms (long and short) have been made public. The birth announcement was published in the Hawaiian newspapers when he was born.

These local Republican voters would never deny other citizens their right to interact with their member of Congress just to score political points. This kind of rude behavior has never been tolerated by either major political party in recent memory. I have lived in the District for over 35 years.

Why All Progressives, Democrats, Unionists and Reformers Should Join ACORN

Written by: Stephen Crockett on Jul 29, 2009 4:56 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Middlesex County DFA, Democracy for Pittsburgh, Democracy for Lititz, Philly for Change, DFA Radio

We are all familiar with the highly partisan and blatantly dishonest attacks on the low and moderate income advocacy group ACORN that dominated Fox News election coverage last Fall. Republican Right Wing partisans have remained loyal to their absurd talking points after the November election and continue to intentionally spread lies about the ACORN organization that all progressives, Democrats, labor activists and reformers should actively refute. These politically-motivated attacks on ACORN are based on two ridiculous ideas.

The first ridiculous idea is that this relatively small group of relatively poor individuals somehow is responsible for the mortgage crisis and the collapse of the economy. After decades of Reagan-Bush Republican mismanagement, Wall Street greed, assaults on unionized labor, unsound tax policies, unfair trade policies, disastrous healthcare policies, runaway corporate corruption, huge sweetheart government contracts going to Republican connected corporations and absurd financial deregulation, we need to understand that the structure of our economy needs serious fundamental reform. Reagan-Bush Republicanism ruled the market economically and politically to create the economic crisis.

The economic collapse has many more serious fundamental causes than just the collapse of the mortgage market. Income inequality, speculation, ending anti-usury laws, not enforcing anti-monopoly laws and excessive credit card debt can be added to the previous list of root causes underlining the current economic crisis. The Republican Right bears most of the responsibility for this situation. ACORN bears none!

First of all, sub-prime mortgages did not create the mortgage crisis. The notable economist Paul Krugman has debunked this Republican myth very effectively. The mortgage crisis has been spread across all income levels. Foreclosures are not limited just too poor people.

ACORN has never issued any mortgages nor has it pressured lenders to issue high-rate, unaffordable loans to poor and middle class Americans. Instead, for over a decade, ACORN has been the national leader in the fight against predatory lending.

No Healthcare Reform Equals No Senate Job

Written by: Stephen Crockett on Jun 22, 2009 9:56 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Northeast Philadelphia for Democracy, PA for Democracy, Morris County DFA, Bergen Grassroots, Hunterdon DFA

It mystifies this writer that many Senate Democrats have failed to understand that killing the “public option” compromise position being pushed by the Obama will mean the end of their Senate careers. Politics has changed dramatically in the last few years and many Senate incumbents seem to have missed the size and intensity of the paradigm shift.

It is no accident that the Republican Party is in electoral meltdown. The Republican leadership is still stuck in the politics of the 1980’s and 1990’s. Unfortunately, the Democrats in power have not embraced the public sea change in attitudes completely. They do not understand that the Democratic wave does not threaten their hold on power. It does!

The Democratic shift is not based on partisan identity divorced from real changes in government policy. The Democratic election wins in 2006 and 2008 were strong rejections of both the Republican Right and the current unfair status quo in government policy.

If Democrats do nothing to reform the rigged economic system and fail to give American workers a fair shake, they are going to get replaced either in a primary or general election. If Democrats fail to protect civil liberties, they will be defeated. If Democrats start unnecessary wars, they will go down along with the already defeated Senate Republicans.

Of course, this is not good news for the Republican Right. The public is rejecting Republican Right politics and Republican-lite politics. Americans want real and meaningful reforms. Nothing less will do. Democrats who want to do the bidding of large corporations like the health insurance industry are going to get their backsides handed to them in 2010, 2012 and 2014. Senators from both major political parties better get with the program!

The Letterman Joke Deception, Smears and Cynicism of Sarah Palin

Written by: Stephen Crockett on Jun 13, 2009 12:20 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Union County for Democracy, Philly for Change, Democracy for Tennessee, Capital Area DFA (Harrisburg PA), Democracy for Lititz

Sarah Palin owes the American people of very sincere apology. She owes David Letterman an apology. She owes her own children an apology. Her actions and statements have been dangerous, exploitive, divisive and deceptive

I am disappointed that the media pundits commenting on this case did not point out that Sarah Palin conveniently used a 6 second joke by a non-political figure to divert the discussion away from the role Palin’s recent political rhetoric has played in creating a hostile and dangerous political climate in America over the past year. Palin’s outrageous comments falsely connecting Obama to socialism, falsely creating a completely unfounded fear of Big Brother government and stoking up political paranoia on the Right is dangerous and in poor taste. Her kind of rhetoric can directly be connected to the recent murders by Right-Wing extremists at the Holocaust museum in DC and in Kansas. She stoked the paranoia and inflamed their misguided passions and twisted political world view.

The Palin-type of extreme political rhetoric from the Republican Right has been feeding a growing domestic terrorist problem in America. This kind of dangerous rhetoric routinely comes not only from Palin herself, but also, from Right-Wing talk radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, extremist Right-Wing websites like Free Republic.com and, unfortunately, from many, many Republican Party officials and activists. Examples of Right-Wing political hate speech on talk radio are legion. Free Republic.com has thousands of posted comments of the most extreme nature. At about the same time that Palin was making her most recent inflammatory comments, the Republican Party held a political fundraiser that raised over $15 million dollars where a second rate actor called Obama “dangerous” and made many other hate-filled comments about our President.

We all remember the Sarah Palin rallies during the 2008 Presidential campaign where the crowd contained numerous Right-Wing nut jobs who shouted “kill him” when Obama’s name was mentioned. We all know about the Right-Wing conspiracy theories that contend Obama is a secret Muslim and/or not really an American citizen. We saw hundred if not thousands of signs to this effect at the McCain-Palin rallies in 2008 and at the Fox News/Republican sponsored anti-tax “tea parties” earlier this year. The man who committed the political murders at the Holocaust museum in DC wrote in support of these whack-job Right-Wing conspiracy theories on the Free Republic.com web site!

I have personal reasons to believe that the Anthrax Mail killer of 2001 was in part inspired by Right Wing talk radio shows like Neal Boortz and/or Right-Wing nut job websites like Free Republic.com. Sarah Palin intentionally taps into this political paranoia and Right-Wing political extremism with her over the top rhetoric. Her political career in Alaska has always been connected with extremist and political fringe groups. No other major political figure in America is as closely connected to political extremist groups as Sarah Palin.

Delaware State Worker Pay Cut Fight: Part 2

Written by: Stephen Crockett on Jun 10, 2009 10:38 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Middlesex County DFA, Somerset for Democracy, Democracy for Montgomery County, Progressive Democracy South Jersey, Mobile DFA

The fight against the proposed 8% pay cut for state employees in Delaware has grown dramatically in scale and intensity in recent weeks. This week, the State Workers United for a Better Delaware coalition has scheduled a Legislative Commitment Rally on Thursday, June 11th on the Legislative Mall in Dover, Delaware.

The crowd will begin gathering at 4pm. Speeches and the public signing of a No Salary Cut Commitment Pledge by legislators will commence at 6pm. At the time of the writing of this article more than a dozen legislators have already announced support for the pledge.

Organized labor has been rallying strongly behind the state workers in opposition to the pay cuts. Union leaders believe that the budget deficit can be solved without resorting to massive pay cuts for workers in Delaware. They have not been shy about proposing numerous alternatives and criticizing the basic unfairness of placing an excessive burden on a relatively under-paid group of workers.

Traditionally, state government employees have been paid significantly less than either federal government employees or workers in the private sector. They traded job security for significantly lower pay. Union leaders think that asking underpaid employees to further reduce their wages cannot be justified for the vast majority of state employees.

Amos B. McCluney, Jr., Chairman of the UAW Local 1183 Retiree Chapter and former Delaware State House member stated, “As a former Delaware state legislator, I realize that not all state workers can afford a pay cut. Lower paid state workers are the guys who are already maxed-out. They are already living paycheck to paycheck. If you cut their pay 8%, they would have to drop their 401K, get an inferior healthcare plan and still not be able to keep their bills current.

Reaching Out to the College Community

Written by: Stephen Crockett on May 31, 2009 8:44 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Capital Area DFA (Harrisburg PA), Atlantic County DFA, Hunterdon DFA, Lower Bucks for Democracy, Democracy for Pittsburgh

I believe that Democratic organizations, progressive groups and labor unions need to increase their outreach efforts aimed at American colleges and universities. Campuses provide a very large percentage of campaign volunteers. They are the source of nearly all future opinion-makers including journalists, book authors, officeholders, business leaders and policy experts!

Generating a better understanding of progressive policies and politics early can only strengthen the prospects for progressive change over the next few generations. Organizing potential activists while in college and educating them should not be an "on and off" effort centered around Presidential election cycles.

The effort should not rely on students seeking out organizations like the College Democrats, ACLU or the AFL-CIO. The organizations should be seeking out students to engage with in a systematic way. Civil Liberties groups, environmentalists, civil rights organizations, campaign reform advocates, peace groups, human rights activists, etc should all be mounting issue awareness campaigns, recruiting and organizing activities on almost every American campus.

Professional marketing and promotional services devoted to the college market are available. I own and manage College Marketing.com http://www.CollegeMarketing.com which offers a diverse mix of public relations, advertising and promotional services.

As host of Democratic Talk Radio and Editor of Mid-Atlantic Labor.com, I understand the progressive political community. I want to see it effectively reach the vast majority of American college students with our messages.

If you represent a progressive organization, I might be able to help you grow your exposure on college campuses locally, regionally or nationally. We can promote the growth of organizations. We can help potential candidates get their campaign messages to college students and academics.

We can promote issue advocacy messages. Trade policy, healthcare, labor laws, the Fairness Doctrine in broadcasting, clean elections, taxation, employment, poverty, energy policy, foreign policy and almost any specific policy position can benefit from postering college bulletin boards, distributing flyers or placing ads in college newspapers with targeted messages. Many more customized creative public relations efforts can be executed by College Marketing.com.

We can increase traffic to blogs and political web sites. We can help drive book sales or subscriptions to progressive magazines or newpapers. We can promote music and movies with progressive content. We can motivate students to lobby.

You will not have to rely on volunteers who may or may not properly execute your projects. Your professional staff will not be diverted from their other important activities. You will have professional expertise with decades of experience in reaching the college community with advertising, promotional and public relations campaigns.

Your effort can reach a large number of campuses if desired or be scaled much smaller based solely on your needs. All of our efforts are customized to meet your specific campaign needs. Costs will usually be very, very reasonable.

Please call me at 443-907-2367 or email me at demlabor@aol.com to discuss your needs and how we can help meet them.

In solidarity,

Stephen Crockett

Discuss

Delaware State Worker Coalition and Allies Fight Massive Pay Cuts: Part 1

Written by: Stephen Crockett on May 25, 2009 6:26 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Roosevelt Democratic Club, Union County for Democracy, Democracy for Montgomery County, DFA Passaic County , Democracy for Carroll County

Most states are facing tough economic times and having great difficulty balancing state government budgets. This is certainly true in Delaware and surrounding states. Pay cut proposals for state workers were floated in Maryland and Pennsylvania but quickly rejected. Other solutions managed to at least temporarily stem the tide of red ink were found without unduly punishing state employees.

In Delaware, the Democratic Governor Jack Markell has put his political weight behind a massive 8% pay cut for state workers. The proposal is almost universally opposed by every labor union in the state and the vast majority of the progressive community. The reception for the massive pay cut proposal in Democratic Party circles has been fairly cool to outright hostile. Opposition to the pay cuts has been growing and getting increasingly organized.

All those opposition groups contend that the Governor did not give enough consideration to alternatives like tapping the Rainy Day Fund, the detailed set of proposals by State Representative John A. Kowalko, Jr. commonly referred to as the “Kowalko Plan” or specific ideas coming from actual state employees. Alternatives have been either under-reported or utterly disregarded by most of the media in the state. Representative Kowalko has offered to present his plan to any group of citizens in the state desiring to learn about the “Kowalko Plan.”

The State Workers United for a Better Delaware is a coalition of labor organizations in opposition to the proposed 8% across the board pay cuts for state workers. Included in the coalition are the Delaware State Troopers Association, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 81, the Delaware State Education Association (DSEA), DSEA-Retired, Teamsters Local 326, the Correctional Officers Association (COAD), Communications Workers of America Local 13101, the State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), FOP Lodge 3, FOP Lodge 10, FOP Lodge 11, the Delaware Attorney General Investigators Association and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 27. The proposed pay cuts will impact 33,000 state workers in Delaware.

According to police sources, an estimated 2,500 state workers and supporters rallied in front of Legislative Hall in Dover the evening of May 6, 2008 to officially launch the coalition. This was one of the largest labor union crowds gathered in Delaware in recent memory.

Analysis of Private Health Insurance Industry $2 Trillion “Savings” Proposal

Written by: Scott R on May 13, 2009 8:44 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Democracy for NYC, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Tennessee, Philly for Change, Florida DFA

The private health insurance industry proposes to reduce health care spend and slow rate increases over the next 10 years to provide $2 trillion in “savings”?

Let's analyze what that might mean.

Analysis of Private Health Insurance Industry $2 Trillion Savings Proposal

The purpose of this analysis is meant to provide grounding, and further the discussions and progress of US health care reform.

Please note that all statistics are rounded to make the calculations and comprehension of the concepts more straightforward.

Please provide feedback to make this information more correct and useful.

US Private Health Insurance Industry $2 Trillion Savings Proposal

The private health insurance industry proposes to reduce health care spend and slow premium increases over the next 10 years to provide $2 trillion in savings.

2009 US Health Care Spend

Total 2009 US health care annual spend is widely accepted to be US $2.5 trillion.

US Private Health Insurance Industry Market

Today, 1200 US private health insurance companies make up the US private health insurance industry that insures 60% of the US population, or 180 million Americans.

Approximately 180 million Americans are covered by private health insurance. At an estimate of $10,000 per person per year, that amounts to roughly $1.8 trillion annually.

At $1.8 trillion annually, the private health insurance industry administers 70% of the total $2.5 trillion US health care annual spend.

Whether for profit or non profit, the private health insurance industry is lucrative. In fact, of the $1.8 trillion private health insurance industry, 31% goes directly to private health insurance industry administrative costs and income. So, for every US health care dollar spent by privately insured Americans, an average of 31 cents goes to the US private health insurers' administration and income, or approximately $580 billion annually.

If the private health insurance industry continues to administer 70% of the US health care industry at $1.8 trillion annually over the next 10 years, the total 10 year private health insurance industry would be $18 trillion at current US health insurance industry premiums and health care costs (obviously assuming no growth or reduction in the private health insurance and health care industries).

Also, if the private health industry continues a 31% administrative costs and income at $580 billion annually over the next 10 years, the health insurance industry would receive $5.8 trillion for administrative costs and income at current US health insurance industry premiums and health care costs (once again assuming no growth or reduction in the private health insurance and health care industries).

However, the US health care industry is estimated to grow as much as 60% or to a total of $40 trillion over the next 10 years.

If the private health insurance industry continues to administer 70% of the total US health care annual spend over the next 10 years, the total private health insurance industry would be $24 trillion.

And if the private health insurance industry maintains a 31% overhead over the next 10 years, a total of over $7.7 trillion would go directly to private health insurance industry operational costs and income.

Over the next 10 years, the private health insurance industry could potentially see a $24 trillion industry that includes $7.7 trillion operational costs and income.

Does it really cost $7.7 trillion to write policies and process health care bills?

With a potential total industry of nearly $24 trillion over the next 10 years, I am not surprised that the private health insurance industry proposed $2 trillion in reduced spending and slower premium increases. That's less than 10% in an industry that is projected to grow 60%.

US Private Health Insurance Industry Overhead

How does the private health insurance industry realize a 31% overhead today?

The 180 million Americans with private health insurance are statistically healthier, wealthier, and have less costly medical conditions (e.g. not terminally ill like a larger segment of those on Medicare, etc.). By taking advantage of advances in information technology, automating business processes, and setting policies to deny coverage and insure the young, healthy, and wealthy is where the private health insurance industry realizes 31% overhead for administrative costs and income.

US Medicare and Medicaid/SCHIP Markets

How does private health insurance overhead compare to Medicare and Medicaid/SCHIP?

Medicare covers 45 million seniors or 15 percent of the US population. At an estimate of $10,000 per person per year, that amounts to $450 billion annually (including unfortunately $60 billion in fraud annually), with an overhead of only 3% or $13.5 billion annually due to no income requirement or excessive administrative costs and salaries.

Medicare has some excesses and inefficiencies. Also, seniors are statistically an unhealthier segment of the US population, while many require more expensive long term health care, especially the terminally ill. The fact that this segment of the US population is growing the fastest will make matters even more complicated in the very near future.

Medicaid/SCHIP costs are $300 billion annually (also including unfortunately $40 billion in fraud annually) for 30 million children, families, and seniors who are 65 or older, blind or disabled and have limited income, or roughly 10 percent of the US population. At an estimate of $10,000 per person per year, that amounts to roughly $300 billion annually, with an overhead of only 3% or $9 billion annually due to no income requirement or excessive administrative costs and salaries.

Medicaid/SCHIP also has some excesses and inefficiencies. Additionally, low income groups are statistically an unhealthier and less literate segment of any population, and administering health care coverage and treatment can be more challenging. Regrettably, this segment of the US population is also growing.

Discuss

Analysis of Private Health Insurance Industry $2 Trillion “Savings” Proposal

Written by: Scott R on May 13, 2009 7:53 PM EDT

Linked to groups: PA for Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Florida DFA, Democracy for Brevard North, Democracy for Maryland

The private health insurance industry proposes to reduce health care spend and slow rate increases over the next 10 years to provide $2 trillion in “savings”?

Let's analyze what that might mean.

Analysis of Private Health Insurance Industry $2 Trillion Savings Proposal

The purpose of this analysis is meant to provide grounding, and further the discussions and progress ofUS health care reform.