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Saturday, February 26, 2011

REALTeachers for SCTA | REALTeachers #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

REALTeachers for SCTA | REALTeachers

REALTeachers for SCTA

Real Teachers is proud to announce its team of candidates for the Sacramento City Teachers Association officers’ election. The Team consists of dedicated teachers from the district’s elementary, middle and high schools.

Here is our team:

Carlos Rico for President;

Joe Barnett for first Vice-President;

Owen Jackman for Second Vice-President;

Alice Mercer for Secretary;

Ben Gravitz for Treasurer;

Lori Jablonski for High School Director;

Nicole DeVore and Tari Green for the two Elementary Director positions;

Tari Green as the candidate for CTA State Council.

Real Teachers were leaders against the Teach For America Program job grab that was attempted last year, and for alerting members of the education community about the danger represented by the Fortune charter school movement this year. Each of these candidates has pledged to keep members informed and union activities transparent. They are dedicated to restoring teachers as the recognized leaders of educational policy and true education reform–reform that would improve schools for our students. Real Teachers invites you to www.real-teachers.org, and to join us on our REAL Teachers Facebook page. Please support us in this very important election.

What does labor want? We want more schoolhouses and less jails; more books and less arsenals; more learning and less vice; more leisure and less greed; more justice and less revenge; in fact, more of the opportunities to cultivate our better natures.”

~ Samuel Gompers

moveonorgrally

3StepsEvilTwin | Feb 26, 2011 | likes, 0 dislikes

MoveOn.Org Rally in Sacramento, CA 2/26/2011

Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick's Email to State Employees #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI ▸

Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick's Email to State Employees (39)

Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick's Email to State Employees

by AFT - American Federation of Teachers on Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 1:45pm

Dear Colleague,

The actions against public sector employees in Wisconsin have dominated recent news and troubled us all. As you consider Wisconsin's approach to its budget and fiscal crisis, I want to reiterate a few of the values that guide us here.

Unions are good - and they can be part of the solution. Our public sector unions have demonstrated over and over again their and your willingness to work with us to build a stronger Commonwealth. From pension reform to transportation and education reform to wage concessions to help us close the budget gap, you and your union leadership have been our partners as we have tackled serious issues and made decisions that improve the Commonwealth in the long term. I am grateful for that.

We have had our differences, naturally. But I believe in a politics that says we don't have to agree on everything before we work together on anything. As tough as our outstanding issues may be -- whether it's "plan design" or the next phase of pension reform or consolidating state agencies -- union leadership has been and will remain at the table. Standing for workers and standing for change are compatible values.

The attack on public sector employees and their unions is wrong for Massachusetts. As long as I have anything to say about it, we will continue to modernize our government and renew our social contract with balance and respect. We will remain focused on finding solutions. Today's needs -- and tomorrow's -- demand no less.

Keep your chin up,

Deval Patrick

The above was sent on Behalf Of Governor Deval L. Patrick,

Tuesday, February 22, 2011 4:22 PM

AFT - American Federation of Teachers

Schools Matter: Oprah and Eli

Schools Matter: Oprah and Eli

Oprah and Eli

For some it has been a mystery why someone with Oprah's public image would be up to her neck in corporate education reform built on planned segregation and exploitation of the poor and the brown. Yet her recent 60-minute infomercial with Gates and Guggenheim to pump Waiting for Superman is indicative of her aggressive parroting of the corporate welfare charter meme. Same with the televised love fest she sponsored for New Jersey's loudmouthed governor, Newark mayor's Cory Booker, and

Yong Zhao » Entrepreneurship and Creativity: Where Do They Come From and How Not to Destroy Them

Yong Zhao » Blog Archive » Entrepreneurship and Creativity: Where Do They Come From and How Not to Destroy Them

Entrepreneurship and Creativity: Where Do They Come From and How Not to Destroy Them

26 FEBRUARY 2011 23 NO COMMENT

(I am working on a conference (see last paragraph) on preparing students as global entrepreneurs. If you are interested, please let me know.)

In his recent weekly address, recorded while touring an Intel plant in Oregon, President Obama once again emphasized the importance of education for America to win the future. And once again, he identified the most important element of America’s strategy to compete globally as he did in his State of the Union address a few weeks ago: innovation.

The truth is, we have everything we need to compete: bold entrepreneurs, bright new ideas and world-

Dayton: Tax rich to fix deficit #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Dayton: Tax rich to fix deficit

Dayton: Tax rich to fix deficit

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Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton, left, checks some notes while one of his commissioners gives details of Dayton's first budget Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011 in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

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ST. PAUL, Minn. - Gov. Mark Dayton looked to the wealthy to erase about half of a $6.2 billion budget deficit on Tuesday, proposing a new top tax bracket and an income surtax that together would give Minnesota the nation's highest income tax rate.

The Democratic governor's plan would raise nearly $2.9 billion from the top 5 percent of taxpayers, including a new property tax on homes valued at more than $1 million.

It would also increase taxes on health care providers and corporations with foreign operations, while cutting almost $1 billion in spending for programs including MinnesotaCare health care and nursing homes.

The tax increases and spending cuts are contained in Dayton's proposal for a two-year, $37 billion budget that guides more money into education but could also cost about 800 state workers their jobs.

"This is a very tough budget for very hard economic times," Dayton said.

Dayton said his proposal would shield 95 percent of state taxpayers from tax increases, while making the top earners pay a proportionate share of income in state and local taxes. The plan would restore recent

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Here's how I spent my day #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Here's how I spent my day

Mad, mad, mad town! « Fred Klonsky's blog #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

Mad, mad, mad town! « Fred Klonsky's blog

Mad, mad, mad town!

FEBRUARY 26, 2011
by Fred Klonsky
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More than 100,000 Rally in Wisconsin | AFL-CIO NOW BLOG #StateSOS #WIunion #SolidarityWI

More than 100,000 Rally in Wisconsin | AFL-CIO NOW BLOG

More than 100,000 Rally in Wisconsin

by Tula Connell, Feb 26, 2011

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This is a crosspost from the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.

On a snowy Wisconsin Saturday over 100,000 union members, working families, community members, faith leaders, activist groups and concerned citizens gathered in Madison to tell Gov. Walker to stop the attacks on the middle class and kill the bill.

Despite the weather today’s rally was the biggest in the thirteen days of protests. The people of Wisconsin will continue to fight for their rights. It is time for our elected officials to show leadership, come to the table and move Wisconsin forward.


DSC01813Wisconsin’s teachers, nurses, snow plow drivers, and other public employees have agreed to Walker’s pension and health care concessions, which he said would solve the budget challenge. The Governor’s continued attacks on our state’s working families harm us all. It is now up to the Governor to be reasonable and listen to his constituents.

The whole nation has taken notice of what we are doing in Wisconsin. Today solidarity rallies were held in all fifty states, as America stands with Wisconsin.

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What’s happened in our state has made the whole labor movement stronger. None of this would have been possible without the support, dedication and solidarity of both union members and non-union members who understand more than they have in a long time just how much we’re all in this together.

For photos of past rallies and select solidarity actins visit theWisconsin State AFL-CIO flickr page. Be sure to “like” us on Face Book and follow us on twitter so you can be up-to-date as we continue the fight for worker fights.