Two-Months Paid Time Off for Spitting?

Want another argument against the way government handles public employment? Take a look at this recent article from the New York Times noting how, on average, 51 New York City bus drivers who took paid leave for simply being spat on took 64 days off. Again, that's paid time off.

Naturally, according to the report, the unions are supportive of this:

Spitting falls under the category of assault in the drivers’ contract with the authority. And officials at Transport Workers Union Local 100, which represents city bus operators, said the extended absences were justified. “Being spat upon — having a passenger spit in your face, spit in your mouth, spit in your eye — is a physically and psychologically traumatic experience,” said John Samuelsen, the union’s president. “If transit workers are assaulted, they are going to take off whatever amount of time they are going to take off to recuperate.”

Imagine the private sector putting up with such abuse of the system. But the public (read: government) sector is all-too-often immune from reality when it comes to costs, much to the detriment of taxpayers.

Venting On Local Ignorance

I find it extremely odd how many GOP establishment types continue to support and endorse “Republicans” who act like their socialist counterparts.

I recently came across a blogpost on the Brooklyn GOP website titled, “Congratulations, U.S. Senator Brown.” If the Brooklyn GOP knows anything about politics or conservatism, it would understand that Senator Brown is a quasi-socialist who campaigned on promises such as extending public education and increasing foreign aid to Israel while increasing sanctions on Iran (so much for peace and small government). Immediately after his election, Senator Brown voted for a Democrat jobs bill, increasing the role government plays in your wallet and how much it wants to take away from it. Perhaps congratulating him isn’t the most conservative thing to do either.

Considering that the Brooklyn GOP consists of old, right-wing neoconservatives such as District Leader Clorinda Annarummo, it is really difficult to classify many elites in the Brooklyn GOP as “conservative” to begin with.

Ron Paul visits New York Federal Reserve

On Tuesday, September 29th, Ron Paul made a tour of New York for a End the Fed book signing, Daily Show appearance and a spontaneous protest at the steps of the New York Federal Reserve bank. 

After the morning book signing at Borders Books located in the Financial District of Manhattan, Dr. Paul asked, "is the Federal Reserve building close by?" After he found out it was, he led the way for a photo op in front of the Fed's most powerful branch, the New York Federal Reserve Bank. In the video below be sure to catch Dr. Paul's exchange with the Federal Reserve Police. 

"For Liberty" illuminates need for better political organization

Last weekend, the movie "For Liberty," received two proper premieres at the Campaign For Liberty Northeast Regional Conference and in Manhattan, sponsored by the New York City Campaign For Liberty. 

Without a doubt filmmakers Chris Rye and Corey Kealiher should be commended for their hard work (1 year in the making) on an inspiring documentary of the grassroots movement that fueled the Ron Paul 2008 presidential campaign. Sitting in on both premieres I found myself a bit misty-eyed which would then shift to laughter and at times anger. Whatever it was, I felt that charge I had experienced in winter 2007 when money bombs (the $6 million kind) were falling from the sky. The film portrays the grassroots as a true force to be reckoned with.

However, the Campaign For Liberty Michigan State Coordinator, Adam de Angeli, provides important critiques of the film's subject and stresses that the excessive praise of the grassroots may have indirectly placed a stamp of disapproval to the official campaign staff when the film omits any diagnoses of what went wrong and why we weren't able to see the political results we were all hoping for.