Breaking: Lincoln Park High School students walk out in support of fired teacher.
Ben Joravsky’s column in this week’s Chicago Reader.
The in box. “Mr. Ritter. I’ve have not been dining on paint chips. Have you?”
This comment is in reply to a column by Scott Reeder on May 1 of the Joliet Herald News on pension obligations.
Around 1939, pension plans were started for state workers, public school teachers, police, fire fighters and county workers as an equal or better benefit for those workers not covered by the newly created Social Security system. Much like SS, it was funded by a worker contribution and an employer contribution.
Mr. Reeder, calling employee and employer contributions “taxpayer’s money” is a major dishonest distortion of the situation. Money held in the 30 retirement systems no more belong to the taxpayer than the money from a bond sale to build bridges can be used to give tax refunds to Sears or CME group. The money is collected and held for a specific purpose in both pensions and bond sales. While you may think there is no obligations that comes from payments into a pension system, it certainly would be immoral, if not illegal, to spend pension funds for anything than their
Three Day March for Education Justice in Chicago
Let’s take it to the streets!
Join parents, teachers, faith and community leaders, and students in freedom marches across the city.
March with us from the west side or the south side.
We’re fighting to save our schools and our communities.
We will take our voices for justice in Chicago’s City Hall!
Please RSVP and choose to start either on the south side or the west side. To RSVP click on CTU link at the top of the page.
Route is being finalized. Check back soon for maps.
This event is sponsored by Chicago Teachers Union, Grassroots Education Movement (GEM), and Chicago PEACE (Parents, Educators, and Clergy for Education).Event Location
TBA – One march from the south side, another from the west sideChicago, IL
A word about Representative Kelly Cassidy.
Mike James and Kelly Hogan do a great radio show on Saturday mornings.Live from the Heartland. 88.7FM.
Earlier this year they had Illinois House Representative Kelly Cassidy on talking about pensions.
Cassidy was an early sponsor of a pension cutting bill written by the Pension Bomber Representative Elaine Nekritz.
A version of the Nekritz bill was included in Madigan’s amendment to SB1 that passed the House yesterday.
Without Cassidy’s vote.
Cassidy is a genuine progressive Democrat from the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago.
When I saw Mike James a few days after Cassidy’s appearance on his and Hogan’s show, I asked for equal
Hall of fame and shame.
Evie Raffanti :
Representative Berrios voted yes also. My representative. Amazing. She, raised in a family of educators. Amazing.
retiredbutmissthekids:
Fred. Rep. Drury also voted yes. That was quite a shock. Guess Biss & Nekritz got to him. Not Laura Fine, though–she voted no, & good for her! The lone, thinking, listening (to her constituents and, perhaps, to Ralph Martire) Democrat.
John Dillon :
Hey, Fred. It was a day full of disillusion. My Representative Monique Davis had promised me in a message that she would not fall into line and vote against the workers on the public sector. Monique was a legislator I counted on, and mistakenly believed at her word. I remember once another Representative mockingly calling her “unique” Monique, as she stood alone to say “no” to SB7. Concerned about her original votes on Nekritz’s plan, I asked
Ten minute drawing. Pension guaranteed.
MAY 3, 2013
Click on drawing to enlarge.