Train Wrecks and Teachers: victims of greed and corruption
How is the Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia related to the financial disaster in Illinois that is being blamed on active and retired teachers along with other public employees?
Both are legislatively created disasters which have horrific potential consequences for all involved. This is no exaggeration.
The inexpensive, low-tech requirement called positive train control is already used worldwide. There is no doubt that positive train control could have prevented the train wreck and the accompanying deaths and crippling injuries. Human error or no human error, probably no accident would have occurred. This specific safety regulation was required for America’s trains this year in spite of the fact that train industry lobbyists and political donors had already watered down the regulations concerning the scope of this public safety requirement.
The bill’s main sponsor, Senator Roy Blunt (R) of Missouri, received nearly $300,000 from the railroad industry. One senator in one key position.
The Obama “administration” as part of a court proceeding in 2011 had already successfully limited the scope of the financial costs the train industry would have to pay for the simple safety feature of positive train control. But when corporate masters want all the money they can grab immediately, well…
A relatively few dollars were spent on politicians and their employees to assure the train industry short term big bucks for industry execs and their cronies. To hell with the risks and consequences for all other human beings.
In Illinois the ex-Gov. Pat Quinn (D) and both supermajority (D) legislative bodies signed a pension cutting bill; according to them, teacher pensions caused the financial ruin of the state. Those greedy teachers expected the pension debts to be paid by the state as legally contracted. Politicos insteadpaid huge amounts to incentivize their donors. (There actually is no crisis except for the propaganda that claims there is. Even Senate President Cullerton admits that no actual pension crisis exists.) Present Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) wants even greater pension theft to occur. The bill would have stolen wages from active teachers and other public Train Wrecks and Teachers: victims of greed and corruption | Reclaim Reform: