I make more than that at my brain-dead part-time job! Maybe if American Axle lets you live in your car on their property as that's all you can do at $10 an hour these days - that, or have five other roommates sharing a two-bedroom apartment. The master bedroom closet is pretty spacious.
"I'm off to work Zutroi! Have a nice day at the rendering plant! Oh, don't forget, I'm picking up Paco at the Home Depot after his day-labor job and Chang's going to work at the shirt factory tonight. I'll be sure to pick up some juice! Hey, Elmo's bringing home some nice delicious leftover burgers from Mickey D's tomorrow, so it'll be a nice break from ramen noodles! Oh, tell LeRoy his mom called!"
Heck, there should be a lot of work in the demolition business as most of the recently built houses are atrocious construction bungles that'll blow down in the next bad storm. Yeesh! What passes for plumbing these days!
Money was going to be paid to the UAW by GM in two payments. I believe it was '09 and '10 and the UAW was going to take over the health care in 2010. GM has said there are going to delay those payments.
However when they make the payments ('11?) they will include interest.
So the plan has always been that GM pay the UAW healthcare until 2011.
If GM does not pay into the account they would continue to pay for the health care until they do. Then again who knows what will really happen.
Anyway I believe the above is how it is working out. Could have a few items incorrect. UAW negotiations is not in my area.
Add to that the brilliant decision to "Damned the Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead" as gas prices reached $4/gal by ALL of the Detroit Three, and we are we we are.
How you can say that with a straight face I do not know! Then again here on the net we cannot see your face.
Gas hit $4, what, 3 months ago? A year ago it was under $2.75. And was bouncing from $2 the $3 for the previous 3 years.
GM had the Volt on the boards 3 years ago and was improving their car lines at the same time. GM has a huge number of new cars and crossovers coming out this year. They were concieved 4 years ago. Every new car intro/crossover in the last 2 years have been great vehicles. So GM was working toward a more car oriented mix at least 4 years ago.
I know you do not like the CTS but they are selling great. The Cobalt and Malibu are in short supply and GM is working toward increasing capacity to meet demand.
And as far as "full speed ahead", Toyota and Nissan were not only going full speed ahead but were accelerating the tub as fast as they could to get more trucks out.
And as far as "full speed ahead", Toyota and Nissan were not only going full speed ahead but were accelerating the tub as fast as they could to get more trucks out.
In all fairness to GM, they are working 3 shifts at the Malibu and Enclave factories from what I read. Toyota is shutting down their much touted Tundra factory for several months. Honda is selling the Accord at near invoice here in San Diego. I expect to see a lot of Accords & Camrys at the rental places in the near future.
And as far as "full speed ahead", Toyota and Nissan were not only going full speed ahead but were accelerating the tub as fast as they could to get more trucks out.
Agreed, dumb decisions had by all. The point is that the management did not see oil prices going up? Perhaps on another planet, you could defend that lack of vision. Please don't tell me you thought oil would go back to $20/BBL...
Being that unprepared shows in the current numbers. Simple as that.
Electric cars could have been developed far earlier than the Volt.
Electric cars could have been developed far earlier than the Volt.
The Volt will not be an EV. It will be a plug in hybrid. The only EVs on the road are limited to low speed roads and restricted areas. We do need a practical EV. I do not see any real progress over the last 10 years. The Tesla is a joke.
None of which can be blamed on the UAW. They just build what the Auto makers design and put in front of them. You can blame the EPA and CARB for NO EVs. That is where the fault is, not the Big 3.
"You forgot to include the words "government schools" which is the typical smear used against the schools and the teachers by some who prefer to destroy them and substitute their own schools. "
I have nothing against schools or teachers. My wife used to be a school teacher, and eventually quit because it became obvious that the public school's purpose was not to teach but to keep kids idle during day time as some sort of glorified youth prison while extracting the maximum from taxpayers. What I am against is the consolidated monopoly in the education industry. When there is a monopoly, parents don't have choice, and children suffer because without competition, a monopoly always acts for the benefit of the monopoly itself. When the monopoly is the government, and we are talking about vulnerable young minds, we have a serious problem. The old joke was that Castro not only taught the Cubans how to read, but also what to read. The same thing is happening to our kids in many a public schools. For example:
1. How many kids are taught that when the Mayflower landed, they tried to practice communism/communitarianism, only leading to the death of nearly half the entire population in the first winter? When everthing was "shared" nobody had direct incentive to work. Only the division of land plots to each family and/or individual the following year saved the colony?
2. How many kids are taught that Lincoln was a tyrant that shut down northern newspapers and arrested his northern domestic political opponents without habeas corpus? That made government subsidized railroad go through speculative land he previously purchased? That General McLellan was the president of the railroad company that Lincoln was the chief lawyer for? That Sherman's march through Atlanta systematicly waging war against civilians (killing blacks and whites alike) was capital war crime? Many a German and Japanese have been hanged for doing far less?
3. Hoover was a big government interventionist and formed all sorts of committees and government programs from 1929-32, and that FDR ran on a platform to rollback the size of the government and abolish Hoover's committees and programs. Read the contemporary newspapers in 1932.
Instead, the public school agenda taught that the Mayflower was a successful religious commune because the leadership dealt with Indians diplomaticly, Lincoln was a saint, burning Atlanta was necessity of war, Hoover was a do-nothing president who opposed public works programs (yeah, sure, that's why it's called Hoover Dam not FDR Dam), and FDR had the mandate to build a socialist commonwealth. Any wonder why kids coming out of that kind education system think wage ought to be set by the government, and the government has all the answers? Because that's the wishful thinking of the teachers' union, and public schools become the useful brainwashing machine for the government's self-aggrandizement.
Search for sludge toyota and gel toyota. Read this Wiki article about sludge in general which occurs in other engines too... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_sludge
I have a collection of info -- email at address in profile. Carspace doesn't seem to have its email working anymore.
So blindsided isn't adequate enough to explain the non-existent electric GM, FORD or Chrysler vehicle!
I find this utterly funny! How can a company with so much miss an opportunity? Do you think greed comes into the picture here again? Why are we, as an auto manufacturing nation, so blind? :surprise:
It sounds like you were hammered in your divorce...here in GA, we have the concept of "equitable distribution" which is not perfect, but tries to split family assets equally...Child support is calculated as a percentage of the (almost always) father's income, altho our new law now takes into account the mother's income, too, which can reduce the father's child support payment amount, all in the name of attempted equality...it isn't bad, and it could be worse...sounds like you have worse...
That sounds like something from stretching anecdotal examples given by someone with a purpose. While it's off topic somewhat, it's related to the same tactics smearing the UAW.
Here in Ohio we had a confluence of politicians wanting to use money for pork rather than education, retired folk not wanting to pay taxes, and parochial school people wanting their schools paid for more by public monies than they already are. We ended up with charter schools which were touted by one political party that were supposed to be the cure all for nonperforming students, mostly in the urban areas. We are second only to New Orleans in the concentration of charter schools here in the Dayton region--not a happy comparison.
Needless-to-say the huge sucking sound of great monies being siphoned off to private companies and groups forming their charter schools took lots of money away from the public schools and gave a bunch of charter schools who perform worse than the public schools that they were supposed to show how-to-do-it. Oh, and some of the companies had ties back to Republicans in the Ohio legislature, fancy that.
So stories about alleged examples of how things were mistaught one way or another fit right in with all the stories about UAW or other union folk putting beer bottles into doors or leaving parts out intentionally, etc. Poppycock.
Did I mention my wife is a retired public school teacher. I also have seen the inside of higher education classrooms. I don't know in which state you are suggesting things aren't taught the way you would like, but the best thing you can do is go get the teaching credentials for your state (education is state controlled, not federal) and go teach. It would be an eye-opening education for you. I had eye-opening experiences when I was inside some union factories over the years here in the Greater Dayton Area.
the best thing you can do is go get the teaching credentials for your state (education is state controlled, not federal) and go teach. It would be an eye-opening education for you. I had eye-opening experiences when I was inside some union factories over the years here in the Greater Dayton Area.
Not all public school systems are equal. My ex was a school teacher in Anchorage in the poorest part of town. That helped pay her student loan back faster in 1971. She loved that school and the ethnic mix of students. After being sent to NM for several classes on teaching children that did not speak English, she took a job in NM. She loved that school also. Then in 1986 I moved her and the kids to San Diego. She taught one year in the public schools and quit. She has worked in a church school ever since, at about half the pay. The liberalism that allows students to do and say what they want to teachers in CA is absolutely horrible. I would kill the little rug rats if I was subjected to what teachers are today.
That brings me to my point on the UAW. The guys that won the good wages and benefits with the Unions 60-70-80 years ago appreciated their jobs and were willing to work hard. Those work ethics have gotten eroded just as the tolerance levels in our public schools. When it takes a year or more of perfect documentation to fire a worthless employee the Union is not doing a good job of policing the members.
In 1970 when I went to Alaska it was quite obvious that the IBEW members had fallen into a real rut of featherbedding. They were horrible to new workers coming in that were gungho to do a good job. If that is the way it is in the UAW they deserve to die. Unions need to protect the workers and the integrity of the work performed.
I expect to see a lot of Accords & Camrys at the rental places in the near future.
Why do you say this?
I expect GM to push the LaCrosse/Impala and Lucerne/DTS for rentals this year. Every other car/plant is selling well and using up their capacity(rental type vehicles). Next year the Lacrosse will be new and the Oshawa plant will be building the Camaro. I do not know what will happen to the Impala when the Camaro is there. Actually Oshawa is two plants but the plan was to shut down the one plant when the LaCrosse went out and build the Impala as a RWD with the Camaro. That plan has changed and I am not sure what will happen with the Impala.
GM's big problem right now is getting more capacity in their cars. They cannot keep up with demand for the high volume models.
Hey, perhaps GM can use trucks for rentals and subsidize the gas price for the renters?? :P
It's just a matter of time. The economy and societal conditions are a pendulum.
Maybe all of the Misean rhetoric floating around here is good...it will result in a serfdom state, and from that come a revolt. It's not a matter of if, but when. The ill effects of the specter of globalization will create something new.
My condolences about the actions of your worse half...the women around here scare me for those same reasons, disaster waiting to happen.
I grew up in under sociolism in Europe and am now a retired school teacher. I felt very comfortable teaching in american schools as I was with fellow sociolists. I am not sure why americans call them democrats, but that's another issue. The teachers union essentially guaranteed us employment for life (unless our picture made the news, but even then, the union would defend us). and I think the UAW is under the same perception/promise. However, I wont buy a union-made car. I was burned by the big 3 on serveral occasions and have opted for japanese cars built in the usa. And on your teaching theories... Europeans never heard anything about the earth being flat - that is purely american! We learned that Marco Polo's trade routes were no longer useful because the Muslims took over Turkey in 1452 and killed all non-muslims entering the area, thus the need for a different route and Columbus made his trips. But Karl Marx tenet #8 was a guaranteed education for all - provided by the government - and they can make up their own history
dallasdude: So you don't think that tax rebates work? The stimulus check was given to Americans because GW wanted to be remembered as a kind president?
It wasn't just President Bush...the local paper ran a story yesterday that featured a quote from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi taking credit for the most recent stimulus package.
dallasdude: You were mentioning that auto makers were unable to get the govt to enforce the Sherman anti trust Act. Where does it cost any firm to enforce the law of the land?
Laws such as the Sherman Anti-trust Act are not enforced by private firms (or individuals). They are enforced by government, perhaps in response to a complaint by a company or individual. But companies do not enforce laws.
The government can, in fact, choose not to act on a company's complaint.
dallasdude: Without interchangeable parts the assembly line is worthless. Eli was the first machinist and inventor of the cotton gin.
Interchangeable parts for the auto industry began when Henry Leland applied the principles of firearms production to Cadillacs, with the result that in 1908, the 1907 Model K Cadillac won the very prestigious Dewar Trophy. Henry Leland was noted for the use of precision manufacturing techniques that brought interchangeable parts to the automobile industry. Prior to his work, parts had to be either made individually for each car, or "forced" to fit.
dallasdude: He would absolutely have been UAW.
Given his talents and abilities, he would have OWNED any company (as the Lelands and Henry Ford did) producing his products, and therefore been in management. Which means that, by law, he could not have joined any union, even if he wanted to (which I doubt).
dallasdude: Ford was not any great inventor but rather a pathetic soul. The assembly line is a no brainier.
He was a superb visionary, and several of the cars developed on his watch - the Model T, the Model A and the 1932 V-8 - were brilliant for their times. He was personally responsible for their development. The layout of his factory and his use of inventory control methods were studied by the Japanese and later refined by Toyota.
That hardly qualifies him as "pathetic."
If the adoption of the assembly line was such a no-brainer, then one wonders why no one else adapted it to auto manufacturing to the extent that he did (although Ransom E. Olds had made tentative steps in that direction in the early 1900s). After all, he wasn't the only person making cars in 1908.
His failures were in administration. Ford was a poorly run company by the mid-1930s, unable to adequately respond to the competitive threat represented by GM and Chrysler. He did not delegate enough responsibility to his son, Edsel Ford I, who showed brilliance in the area of styling and knew that Ford needed to adopt more advanced engineering features. Unfortunately, Henry Ford I insisted on keeping the solid axle front suspension, and even held off on adopting hydraulic brakes until the 1939 model year.
He also put way too much faith in Harry Bennett, who was a thug and a bully. Ford's decision to allow Bennett to handle the company's response to early unionization attempts was disastrous.
There is also evidence that in the late 1930s he suffered a series of minor strokes that impaired his abilities. But Ford was a family-owned company then, so unless his family moved against him (as his daughter-in-law finally did in 1945, when she demanded that he step aside in favor of her son, Henry Ford II, or else she would sell her share of the company), there was nothing that anyone could do.
dallasdude: So then it reasonable to assume that all the qualified workers will compete to get hired by the union shop. Hence, the cream of the crop will work at the best paying job.
Not necessarily. There are geographic considerations (unlike college-education people, most blue-collar people are reluctant to move great distances for a job), as well as other factors (some people prefer a more flexible work place, and don't like getting paid the same as a slacker).
dallasdude: Its good to know that the skills and abilities of the UAW union worker are superior to those of the non union market rate job.
There is no proof of this. If anything, assembly quality of transplant vehicles made by non-union labor in the U.S. is superior to that of vehicles made with UAW labor. Trust me, I've examined them closely. The gap has been narrowed greatly in the past decade, but it's still there.
We can debate until the cows come home as to which party is responsible for this, but there is no proof whatsoever that having a unionized blue-collar workforce results in either better build quality or superior reliability in the auto industry.
dallasdude: Its an acquired taste. CTS stands for Catera Touring Sedan. Besides all the foreign car will soon ape this design.
The Art & Science look debuted in production form with the original CTS, and was previewed by the Evoq show car before that. Foreign car makers have had plenty of time to copy this design, and so far they have shown no inclination to do so.
Which isn't surprising, as the only remotely successful vehicles that have carried this look have been the CTS and the short-wheelbase Escalade. The XLR, SRX and STS are all flops. And even the CTS does not have the prestige of the BMW 3-series.
imidazol97: We ended up with charter schools which were touted by one political party that were supposed to be the cure all for nonperforming students, mostly in the urban areas.
Yes, because the public schools were doing such a bang-up job of educating those students.
imidazol97:Needless-to-say the huge sucking sound of great monies being siphoned off to private companies and groups forming their charter schools took lots of money away from the public schools and gave a bunch of charter schools who perform worse than the public schools that they were supposed to show how-to-do-it. Oh, and some of the companies had ties back to Republicans in the Ohio legislature, fancy that.
When you can prove that expenditures are linked to student achievement, let me know. And no studies from the teacher's unions or education "advocacy" groups, please. I see these all the time in my job. They make excellent "flooring" for our kitty litter box.
there is no proof whatsoever that having a unionized blue-collar workforce results in either better build quality or superior reliability in the auto industry.
As a total product coming from the US auto companies, the parts are cheaper and affect build quality the most. If you cheapen all parts past a certain point to save money without true innovation, the overall product quality, dependability, fit and finish suffer. Add to that bland design and there you have it!
Unions just add high human cost to the equation which force even lower product degradation to make up for the costs.
Let me see, should I add the $5 torsion bar or the $1 Wal-Mart part to the Cobalt suspension?
I remember working at CHOP the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia a few years back. Union negotiations were going on at the time with many hospital employees. I watched the hospital negotiator come into the hospital with a bullet proof vest on. I asked what the heck was going on. "Oh, last time we had an impasse in negotiations someone shot at the rep. So now its SOP to wear a vest until the negotiations are over."
Shooting...at a negotiator...entering a Children's hospital...madness.
That's why we do not have electric cars. How does blind-sided sound to you? It's all connected.
Electric cars with todays tech are just not feasible. That is why they are not around. Maybe someday batteries will be developed that would work but they are not here yet. Perhaps in somebodies reality though?
So now GM rushes for a hybrid that gets the equivalent of 40 - 50 MPG...sounds like a Prius clone to me.
No the Volt will go 40 miles w/o any fuel. That is not the same as a Prius. Most commuters will be able to charge up at night, go to work and home again the next day, and not use any gas. That is the difference. What is different from the electric car is that once the battery is dead an auxilary powertrain will charge the battery and get you home. Of course in your reality the battery would never go dead and you would always make it home.
The measure, called the Employee Free Choice Act, would allow labor organizations to unionize workplaces without secret ballot elections. It was co-sponsored by Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic presidential candidate, and opposed by John McCain, the presumed Republican nominee.
My question is how is this supposed to be better than having a secret ballot election? This will be horrible with Union goons pressuring people to sign a card. This bill should lose Obama a few million votes all by itself. This only takes free choice and throws it out the Window. Having been involved in two NLRB elections where we did vote to go with the Union, I see no problem with the current system. I sure would not want someone telling me to sign this card or we bust out your headlights.
My question is how is this supposed to be better than having a secret ballot election? This will be horrible with Union goons pressuring people to sign a card.
How is that any worse than Management goons firing those that DO sign a card before organizing is done??
Maybe what should happen for "free choice" is that any employee who signs a card in the union must be collectively bargained for as of that moment. Those who don't, aren't. This would allow some to unionize, and those who aren't sure, can wait to do so, w/o any fear of pressure.
Anybody who gets pressured by a union good would feel fairly comfortable going to management, where that employee can get repremanded for their threats, and if management threatens the employee, they then have the choice to sign the card and complain, or quit or file a complaint w/ the labor board.
SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. -- Some workers at a local plant will no longer to be able to take their Labor Day holiday because of religious reasons.
Workers at the Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Shelbyville will no longer have a paid day off on Labor Day but will instead be granted the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr.
According to a news release from the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, a new five-year contract at the plant included the change to accommodate Muslim workers at the plant.
Tyson's director of media relations Gary Mickelson said the contract includes eight paid holidays -- the same number as the old contract.
Eid al-Fitr -- which falls on Oct. 1 this year -- marks the end of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting.
Union leaders said implementing the holiday was important for the nearly 700 Muslims, many of them Somalis, who work at the plant that employs a total of 1,200 people.
Nineteen-year plant veteran William Pentecost doesn’t agree with the decision.
"I don’t think it's right. I really don't think it's right," he said.
Tyson company spokeswoman Libby Lawson said by phone that, "This isn't a religious accommodation, this is a contractual agreement. The majority asked for it."
"It shouldn't happen. I mean, I think, we're in America, you're in America, I think that they should go with our holidays," Pentecost said.
Channel 4's Cynthia Williams could not reach any of the plant’s Muslim workers, because Channel 4 News' crew was not permitted on the property.
Former employee and Shelbyville resident Anthony Proctor said he thinks what's happening is wrong.
He said he helped build a special Muslim prayer room that's located inside the plant and that no other Tyson facility has been that accommodating for any other religion.
"If we want to go pray, we don’t have one for Christians," he said.
How is that any worse than Management goons firing those that DO sign a card before organizing is done??
There is Federal protection for workers that are harassed or fired for Union activity. More than not when there is a move to go Union there will be more than one Union involved. Which Union gets the contract if you have 50% for one Union and 50% for the other? Having an NLRB election just seems more Democratic to me. I would think this would open the door for more states to adopt "Right to Work" laws. That would not be good either. If the laws need to be tougher on companies that try to intimidate those that want to become Unionized, I could get behind that. I do think the law needs to address time limits on negotiating new contracts with mandatory arbitration. I just do not like doing away with secret ballots. I think that is dangerous.
62, I still just don't see how this car is going to be successful if it costs in the neighborhood of $40K. I've always appreciated your level-headedness while you make your position known, but aren't you perhaps wishful thinking here? The Prius has been successful only because it is not THAT much more expensive than a comparable non-hybrid car, and it doesn't sacrifice much to offer substantially better fuel economy. Forty-plus K for the Volt, recharge times, etc. - how is this going to be a product that can be anywhere near the success of the Prius? Unless it is intended to be halo car, in which case it is more a marketing effort than anything that will make a substantial improvement for GM. Please tell me what I'm missing; I just don't see it.
I agree $40k is too much for a volume product. At this point in time the battery tech is just too expensive for a volume vehicle. However I think that by 2011 we will see battery prices come way down, and the government will be giving a $5k break which will bring it under $30k. And I believe it will continue to go down. Just the way technology pricing works especially with volume.
If you look at the price of gas vs. electricity there is a good chance of a reasonable pay back period. I cannot remember the exact numbers but the cost to charge the batteries to go 40 miles was peanuts compared to buying ~1.5 gallons of gas. So if gas is at $4 that is $6 a day x 300 days =$1800 / years savings. And I think some are thinking gas will be over $4 in a few years so payback will be faster.
Some of that stuff is over 30 years old. Not thats not important, but one could bring up the hired Pinkerton's/goons that companies had on the payroll eons ago. I see more of these consultants hired by companies during an organizing drive. The companies have employees as a captive audience and use company time to coerce the employee. If the company knows that an employee is going to vote yes to representation, they need only fire that employee and therefore remove a YES vote. Fact is that about the only folks who don't hire these consultants is schools and govt. The govt and university employees are going union more than any other sectors.
So one can only conclude that these consultants are effective and also that a cost benefit must be favorable to the company. Why their tactics are effective and or are needed to make a decision of opting for a union/representation is the question.
they need only fire that employee and therefore remove a YES vote
A company would have to be mighty stupid to do that. Once the cards are turned into the NLRB the employees have an advocate in the Federal law. That is a good way to end up with paying back pay and punitive damages. Can the employer try to seduce the employees not to vote for a Union? They can and do. In Alaska the second largest communications company GCI had at least 2 elections that I can remember. They gave big raises and bonuses to try and sway the techs from going Union. It worked both times the people voted against the Union. Then the company fell back into their old routine. That is no fault except the people thinking that management was the good guys. Stupid is as Stupid Does.
The real key is there is a LABOR SHORTAGE of skilled people in the USA, right today. You may have to leave Kansas or Michigan to get a job. If you have a good skill there is work.
The govt and university employees are going union more than any other sectors
I think the Teachers Union is the largest Union in the country. Ever wonder why they need a Union? If they are a good teacher they will be in demand. If they are a lousy teacher we don't need them teaching our kids. The truth is that a lot of older teachers are just worn out. They are no long effective at teaching. They know it and the kids for sure know it. Tenure keeps them coming back to waste our money year after year after year. That was one reason my ex wife left the public school system and spent the last 20 years in a private school. Some Unions like the NEA and AMA are just there to protect the incompetents.
Thanks for the answer - so it all hinges on the batteries and whether they can be made cheaply enough, and also economies of scale (something Toyota is accomplishing with the Prius).
It seems that the market wants a usable and reasonably efficient vehicle that doesn't have too many compromises. The Insight was the first hybrid but was too small, handled too poorly -- even though it had outstanding fuel economy. The Prius has hit the right buttons. The GM big truck hybrids, the RX hybrid, the Lexus LS hybrid are all much more expensive and still not all that efficient. Honda gave us 6cyl performance with 4cyl mileage in the Accord hybrid and it was a flop. Interesting how the mix of features, costs, and mileage has to be correct or the market is not going to buy. I still have big skepticism for the Volt, but I hope GM pulls it off with a successful product. Can they put the two mode hybrid in a Cobalt or a Malibu? That would seem to be a better targeted area.
It's just a matter of time. The economy and societal conditions are a pendulum.
Maybe all of the Misean rhetoric floating around here is good...it will result in a serfdom state, and from that come a revolt. It's not a matter of if, but when. The ill effects of the specter of globalization will create something new.
100% agree !!!
My condolences about the actions of your worse half...the women around here scare me for those same reasons, disaster waiting to happen.
Yeah 16 months is a long time to go and still no final divorce hearing or one is site. She has been able to keep continuing it. Fintail, one of the many things I've learned pal, is if you can't call your spouse "your best friend" then that is a major problem.
Some of ya'll really just amaze me with the way some of you think !!! Holy Cow !!! :surprise:
That was one reason my ex wife left the public school system and spent the last 20 years in a private school. Some Unions like the NEA and AMA are just there to protect the incompetents.
Gagrice, unions aside, private schools can pick and choose their students. For example, I doubt a private school would accept my autistic son. They probably don't have a curriculum for him. Also, any special services he would need comes from the public school system.
Now, granted, my son would be an extreme example, but the point is that only certain kids can enter a private school, kids w/ good grades. The only requirement for public schools is that the student be disease free. There is a BIG difference.
>Ever wonder why they need a Union? If they are a good teacher they will be in demand...Tenure keeps them coming back to waste our money year after year after year
Have to disagree with you there. You're saying my wife was a poor teacher for 30 years? I don't know how the teacher association works in California, but in Ohio the association protects all teachers within their rights, otherwise it's time for a new occupation. Or they leave public school and go to private, charter, and parochial schools to teach.
But the mistreatment of teachers by administration is sickening. I heard stories through my wife and her school friends of people not being reemployed who were not on tenure so that a friend or relative of the administration would have a job opening. I've heard of people being unemployed, and tenured teachers moved to less suitable position, to make room for coaches to get a job. And our schools here outside of the core city school are mostly in very good shape educationwise. Just an over emphasis on athletics.
As for the unions protecting workers who could be judged by others to e less than competent, they can make sure laws are followed but they can't maintain their jobs as can some other unions who can strike over having Joe Cocaine nose fired. If schools have a less-than-effective teacher all they have to do is document per state law in Ohio and the procedure is clear. The teaching license in Ohio was become a professional license much like a doctor or opthamalogist rather than a driver license where just having a degree and applying for license guarantees a license forever. I suspect my disagreement with your attitude toward teachers is that you view the union as having the same ability as, oh, say the UAW, to go on strike. They can't. There are many constraints on their ability to do so, in Ohio at least.
Comments
"I'm off to work Zutroi! Have a nice day at the rendering plant! Oh, don't forget, I'm picking up Paco at the Home Depot after his day-labor job and Chang's going to work at the shirt factory tonight. I'll be sure to pick up some juice! Hey, Elmo's bringing home some nice delicious leftover burgers from Mickey D's tomorrow, so it'll be a nice break from ramen noodles! Oh, tell LeRoy his mom called!"
However when they make the payments ('11?) they will include interest.
So the plan has always been that GM pay the UAW healthcare until 2011.
If GM does not pay into the account they would continue to pay for the health care until they do. Then again who knows what will really happen.
Anyway I believe the above is how it is working out. Could have a few items incorrect. UAW negotiations is not in my area.
How you can say that with a straight face I do not know! Then again here on the net we cannot see your face.
Gas hit $4, what, 3 months ago? A year ago it was under $2.75. And was bouncing from $2 the $3 for the previous 3 years.
GM had the Volt on the boards 3 years ago and was improving their car lines at the same time. GM has a huge number of new cars and crossovers coming out this year. They were concieved 4 years ago. Every new car intro/crossover in the last 2 years have been great vehicles. So GM was working toward a more car oriented mix at least 4 years ago.
I know you do not like the CTS but they are selling great. The Cobalt and Malibu are in short supply and GM is working toward increasing capacity to meet demand.
And as far as "full speed ahead", Toyota and Nissan were not only going full speed ahead but were accelerating the tub as fast as they could to get more trucks out.
http://www.gasbuddy.com/gb_retail_price_chart.aspx
In all fairness to GM, they are working 3 shifts at the Malibu and Enclave factories from what I read. Toyota is shutting down their much touted Tundra factory for several months. Honda is selling the Accord at near invoice here in San Diego. I expect to see a lot of Accords & Camrys at the rental places in the near future.
Some searches show it as "gel."
Toyota Engine Sludge
Agreed, dumb decisions had by all. The point is that the management did not see oil prices going up? Perhaps on another planet, you could defend that lack of vision. Please don't tell me you thought oil would go back to $20/BBL...
Being that unprepared shows in the current numbers. Simple as that.
Electric cars could have been developed far earlier than the Volt.
Regards,
OW
photo--wikipedia
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
The Volt will not be an EV. It will be a plug in hybrid. The only EVs on the road are limited to low speed roads and restricted areas. We do need a practical EV. I do not see any real progress over the last 10 years. The Tesla is a joke.
None of which can be blamed on the UAW. They just build what the Auto makers design and put in front of them. You can blame the EPA and CARB for NO EVs. That is where the fault is, not the Big 3.
I have nothing against schools or teachers. My wife used to be a school teacher, and eventually quit because it became obvious that the public school's purpose was not to teach but to keep kids idle during day time as some sort of glorified youth prison while extracting the maximum from taxpayers. What I am against is the consolidated monopoly in the education industry. When there is a monopoly, parents don't have choice, and children suffer because without competition, a monopoly always acts for the benefit of the monopoly itself. When the monopoly is the government, and we are talking about vulnerable young minds, we have a serious problem. The old joke was that Castro not only taught the Cubans how to read, but also what to read. The same thing is happening to our kids in many a public schools. For example:
1. How many kids are taught that when the Mayflower landed, they tried to practice communism/communitarianism, only leading to the death of nearly half the entire population in the first winter? When everthing was "shared" nobody had direct incentive to work. Only the division of land plots to each family and/or individual the following year saved the colony?
2. How many kids are taught that Lincoln was a tyrant that shut down northern newspapers and arrested his northern domestic political opponents without habeas corpus? That made government subsidized railroad go through speculative land he previously purchased? That General McLellan was the president of the railroad company that Lincoln was the chief lawyer for? That Sherman's march through Atlanta systematicly waging war against civilians (killing blacks and whites alike) was capital war crime? Many a German and Japanese have been hanged for doing far less?
3. Hoover was a big government interventionist and formed all sorts of committees and government programs from 1929-32, and that FDR ran on a platform to rollback the size of the government and abolish Hoover's committees and programs. Read the contemporary newspapers in 1932.
Instead, the public school agenda taught that the Mayflower was a successful religious commune because the leadership dealt with Indians diplomaticly, Lincoln was a saint, burning Atlanta was necessity of war, Hoover was a do-nothing president who opposed public works programs (yeah, sure, that's why it's called Hoover Dam not FDR Dam), and FDR had the mandate to build a socialist commonwealth. Any wonder why kids coming out of that kind education system think wage ought to be set by the government, and the government has all the answers? Because that's the wishful thinking of the teachers' union, and public schools become the useful brainwashing machine for the government's self-aggrandizement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_sludge
I have a collection of info -- email at address in profile. Carspace doesn't seem to have its email working anymore.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
No change, no gain.
That's why we do not have electric cars. How does blind-sided sound to you? It's all connected.
So now GM rushes for a hybrid that gets the equivalent of 40 - 50 MPG...sounds like a Prius clone to me.
Regards,
OW
Thats not chicken, but it tastes like chicken. Have you any knowledge of the Burlington Coat Factory and dog fur as lining in the coats?
http://www.caft.org.uk/factsheets/cats-and-dogs.html
http://www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr/index.en.php?id=477
Well we know what they did with the dog fur. What did they do with the rest of the dog?
I find this utterly funny! How can a company with so much miss an opportunity? Do you think greed comes into the picture here again? Why are we, as an auto manufacturing nation, so blind? :surprise:
Regards,
OW
Here in Ohio we had a confluence of politicians wanting to use money for pork rather than education, retired folk not wanting to pay taxes, and parochial school people wanting their schools paid for more by public monies than they already are. We ended up with charter schools which were touted by one political party that were supposed to be the cure all for nonperforming students, mostly in the urban areas. We are second only to New Orleans in the concentration of charter schools here in the Dayton region--not a happy comparison.
Needless-to-say the huge sucking sound of great monies being siphoned off to private companies and groups forming their charter schools took lots of money away from the public schools and gave a bunch of charter schools who perform worse than the public schools that they were supposed to show how-to-do-it. Oh, and some of the companies had ties back to Republicans in the Ohio legislature, fancy that.
So stories about alleged examples of how things were mistaught one way or another fit right in with all the stories about UAW or other union folk putting beer bottles into doors or leaving parts out intentionally, etc. Poppycock.
Did I mention my wife is a retired public school teacher. I also have seen the inside of higher education classrooms. I don't know in which state you are suggesting things aren't taught the way you would like, but the best thing you can do is go get the teaching credentials for your state (education is state controlled, not federal) and go teach. It would be an eye-opening education for you. I had eye-opening experiences when I was inside some union factories over the years here in the Greater Dayton Area.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Not all public school systems are equal. My ex was a school teacher in Anchorage in the poorest part of town. That helped pay her student loan back faster in 1971. She loved that school and the ethnic mix of students. After being sent to NM for several classes on teaching children that did not speak English, she took a job in NM. She loved that school also. Then in 1986 I moved her and the kids to San Diego. She taught one year in the public schools and quit. She has worked in a church school ever since, at about half the pay. The liberalism that allows students to do and say what they want to teachers in CA is absolutely horrible. I would kill the little rug rats if I was subjected to what teachers are today.
That brings me to my point on the UAW. The guys that won the good wages and benefits with the Unions 60-70-80 years ago appreciated their jobs and were willing to work hard. Those work ethics have gotten eroded just as the tolerance levels in our public schools. When it takes a year or more of perfect documentation to fire a worthless employee the Union is not doing a good job of policing the members.
In 1970 when I went to Alaska it was quite obvious that the IBEW members had fallen into a real rut of featherbedding. They were horrible to new workers coming in that were gungho to do a good job. If that is the way it is in the UAW they deserve to die. Unions need to protect the workers and the integrity of the work performed.
When I saw "acquired taste" I thought you were heading for the Kentucky Fried Dog!
Somehow KFD doesn't have the same ring!
Why do you say this?
I expect GM to push the LaCrosse/Impala and Lucerne/DTS for rentals this year. Every other car/plant is selling well and using up their capacity(rental type vehicles). Next year the Lacrosse will be new and the Oshawa plant will be building the Camaro. I do not know what will happen to the Impala when the Camaro is there. Actually Oshawa is two plants but the plan was to shut down the one plant when the LaCrosse went out and build the Impala as a RWD with the Camaro. That plan has changed and I am not sure what will happen with the Impala.
GM's big problem right now is getting more capacity in their cars. They cannot keep up with demand for the high volume models.
Hey, perhaps GM can use trucks for rentals and subsidize the gas price for the renters?? :P
When the price is right, why wouldn't the car rentals want CamCords in the fleet? You see a lot of Corollas and Camrys in Canada for rent.
Maybe all of the Misean rhetoric floating around here is good...it will result in a serfdom state, and from that come a revolt. It's not a matter of if, but when. The ill effects of the specter of globalization will create something new.
My condolences about the actions of your worse half...the women around here scare me for those same reasons, disaster waiting to happen.
It wasn't just President Bush...the local paper ran a story yesterday that featured a quote from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi taking credit for the most recent stimulus package.
dallasdude: You were mentioning that auto makers were unable to get the govt to enforce the Sherman anti trust Act. Where does it cost any firm to enforce the law of the land?
Laws such as the Sherman Anti-trust Act are not enforced by private firms (or individuals). They are enforced by government, perhaps in response to a complaint by a company or individual. But companies do not enforce laws.
The government can, in fact, choose not to act on a company's complaint.
dallasdude: Without interchangeable parts the assembly line is worthless. Eli was the first machinist and inventor of the cotton gin.
Interchangeable parts for the auto industry began when Henry Leland applied the principles of firearms production to Cadillacs, with the result that in 1908, the 1907 Model K Cadillac won the very prestigious Dewar Trophy. Henry Leland was noted for the use of precision manufacturing techniques that brought interchangeable parts to the automobile industry. Prior to his work, parts had to be either made individually for each car, or "forced" to fit.
dallasdude: He would absolutely have been UAW.
Given his talents and abilities, he would have OWNED any company (as the Lelands and Henry Ford did) producing his products, and therefore been in management. Which means that, by law, he could not have joined any union, even if he wanted to (which I doubt).
dallasdude: Ford was not any great inventor but rather a pathetic soul. The assembly line is a no brainier.
He was a superb visionary, and several of the cars developed on his watch - the Model T, the Model A and the 1932 V-8 - were brilliant for their times. He was personally responsible for their development. The layout of his factory and his use of inventory control methods were studied by the Japanese and later refined by Toyota.
That hardly qualifies him as "pathetic."
If the adoption of the assembly line was such a no-brainer, then one wonders why no one else adapted it to auto manufacturing to the extent that he did (although Ransom E. Olds had made tentative steps in that direction in the early 1900s). After all, he wasn't the only person making cars in 1908.
His failures were in administration. Ford was a poorly run company by the mid-1930s, unable to adequately respond to the competitive threat represented by GM and Chrysler. He did not delegate enough responsibility to his son, Edsel Ford I, who showed brilliance in the area of styling and knew that Ford needed to adopt more advanced engineering features. Unfortunately, Henry Ford I insisted on keeping the solid axle front suspension, and even held off on adopting hydraulic brakes until the 1939 model year.
He also put way too much faith in Harry Bennett, who was a thug and a bully. Ford's decision to allow Bennett to handle the company's response to early unionization attempts was disastrous.
There is also evidence that in the late 1930s he suffered a series of minor strokes that impaired his abilities. But Ford was a family-owned company then, so unless his family moved against him (as his daughter-in-law finally did in 1945, when she demanded that he step aside in favor of her son, Henry Ford II, or else she would sell her share of the company), there was nothing that anyone could do.
dallasdude: So then it reasonable to assume that all the qualified workers will compete to get hired by the union shop. Hence, the cream of the crop will work at the best paying job.
Not necessarily. There are geographic considerations (unlike college-education people, most blue-collar people are reluctant to move great distances for a job), as well as other factors (some people prefer a more flexible work place, and don't like getting paid the same as a slacker).
dallasdude: Its good to know that the skills and abilities of the UAW union worker are superior to those of the non union market rate job.
There is no proof of this. If anything, assembly quality of transplant vehicles made by non-union labor in the U.S. is superior to that of vehicles made with UAW labor. Trust me, I've examined them closely. The gap has been narrowed greatly in the past decade, but it's still there.
We can debate until the cows come home as to which party is responsible for this, but there is no proof whatsoever that having a unionized blue-collar workforce results in either better build quality or superior reliability in the auto industry.
The Art & Science look debuted in production form with the original CTS, and was previewed by the Evoq show car before that. Foreign car makers have had plenty of time to copy this design, and so far they have shown no inclination to do so.
Which isn't surprising, as the only remotely successful vehicles that have carried this look have been the CTS and the short-wheelbase Escalade. The XLR, SRX and STS are all flops. And even the CTS does not have the prestige of the BMW 3-series.
Yes, because the public schools were doing such a bang-up job of educating those students.
imidazol97:Needless-to-say the huge sucking sound of great monies being siphoned off to private companies and groups forming their charter schools took lots of money away from the public schools and gave a bunch of charter schools who perform worse than the public schools that they were supposed to show how-to-do-it. Oh, and some of the companies had ties back to Republicans in the Ohio legislature, fancy that.
When you can prove that expenditures are linked to student achievement, let me know. And no studies from the teacher's unions or education "advocacy" groups, please. I see these all the time in my job. They make excellent "flooring" for our kitty litter box.
And my wife, incidentally, is a teacher, too.
Problem solved!
Regards,
OW
As a total product coming from the US auto companies, the parts are cheaper and affect build quality the most. If you cheapen all parts past a certain point to save money without true innovation, the overall product quality, dependability, fit and finish suffer. Add to that bland design and there you have it!
Unions just add high human cost to the equation which force even lower product degradation to make up for the costs.
Let me see, should I add the $5 torsion bar or the $1 Wal-Mart part to the Cobalt suspension?
Regards,
OW
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,905747,00.html
http://www.geocities.com/cordobakaf/weller.html
Here, UAW members admit it:
http://www.geocities.com/cordobakaf/dodge_wildcat.html
UAW intimidation:
http://www.nrtw.org/blog/more-foxwoods-dealers-allege-uaw-harassment-intimidatio- n-hearing-closes
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2000/feb2000/uaw-f04.shtml
UAW corruption:
http://www.nlpc.org/olap/UCU2/03_17.htm
http://www.nlpc.org/olap/UCU2/04_11_05.htm
http://www.labornotes.org/node/1228
http://labornotes.org/node/1302
Shooting...at a negotiator...entering a Children's hospital...madness.
True story.
Electric cars with todays tech are just not feasible. That is why they are not around. Maybe someday batteries will be developed that would work but they are not here yet. Perhaps in somebodies reality though?
So now GM rushes for a hybrid that gets the equivalent of 40 - 50 MPG...sounds like a Prius clone to me.
No the Volt will go 40 miles w/o any fuel. That is not the same as a Prius. Most commuters will be able to charge up at night, go to work and home again the next day, and not use any gas. That is the difference. What is different from the electric car is that once the battery is dead an auxilary powertrain will charge the battery and get you home. Of course in your reality the battery would never go dead and you would always make it home.
My question is how is this supposed to be better than having a secret ballot election? This will be horrible with Union goons pressuring people to sign a card. This bill should lose Obama a few million votes all by itself. This only takes free choice and throws it out the Window. Having been involved in two NLRB elections where we did vote to go with the Union, I see no problem with the current system. I sure would not want someone telling me to sign this card or we bust out your headlights.
Problem solved!
Have a nice trip, and don't let the door hit you where the Good Lord split ya!!!!
How is that any worse than Management goons firing those that DO sign a card before organizing is done??
Maybe what should happen for "free choice" is that any employee who signs a card in the union must be collectively bargained for as of that moment. Those who don't, aren't. This would allow some to unionize, and those who aren't sure, can wait to do so, w/o any fear of pressure.
Anybody who gets pressured by a union good would feel fairly comfortable going to management, where that employee can get repremanded for their threats, and if management threatens the employee, they then have the choice to sign the card and complain, or quit or file a complaint w/ the labor board.
Workers at the Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Shelbyville will no longer have a paid day off on Labor Day but will instead be granted the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr.
According to a news release from the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, a new five-year contract at the plant included the change to accommodate Muslim workers at the plant.
Tyson's director of media relations Gary Mickelson said the contract includes eight paid holidays -- the same number as the old contract.
Eid al-Fitr -- which falls on Oct. 1 this year -- marks the end of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting.
Union leaders said implementing the holiday was important for the nearly 700 Muslims, many of them Somalis, who work at the plant that employs a total of 1,200 people.
Nineteen-year plant veteran William Pentecost doesn’t agree with the decision.
"I don’t think it's right. I really don't think it's right," he said.
Tyson company spokeswoman Libby Lawson said by phone that, "This isn't a religious accommodation, this is a contractual agreement. The majority asked for it."
"It shouldn't happen. I mean, I think, we're in America, you're in America, I think that they should go with our holidays," Pentecost said.
Channel 4's Cynthia Williams could not reach any of the plant’s Muslim workers, because Channel 4 News' crew was not permitted on the property.
Former employee and Shelbyville resident Anthony Proctor said he thinks what's happening is wrong.
He said he helped build a special Muslim prayer room that's located inside the plant and that no other Tyson facility has been that accommodating for any other religion.
"If we want to go pray, we don’t have one for Christians," he said.
http://www.wsmv.com/news/17063986/detail.html#-
There is Federal protection for workers that are harassed or fired for Union activity. More than not when there is a move to go Union there will be more than one Union involved. Which Union gets the contract if you have 50% for one Union and 50% for the other? Having an NLRB election just seems more Democratic to me. I would think this would open the door for more states to adopt "Right to Work" laws. That would not be good either. If the laws need to be tougher on companies that try to intimidate those that want to become Unionized, I could get behind that. I do think the law needs to address time limits on negotiating new contracts with mandatory arbitration. I just do not like doing away with secret ballots. I think that is dangerous.
62, I still just don't see how this car is going to be successful if it costs in the neighborhood of $40K. I've always appreciated your level-headedness while you make your position known, but aren't you perhaps wishful thinking here? The Prius has been successful only because it is not THAT much more expensive than a comparable non-hybrid car, and it doesn't sacrifice much to offer substantially better fuel economy. Forty-plus K for the Volt, recharge times, etc. - how is this going to be a product that can be anywhere near the success of the Prius? Unless it is intended to be halo car, in which case it is more a marketing effort than anything that will make a substantial improvement for GM. Please tell me what I'm missing; I just don't see it.
If you look at the price of gas vs. electricity there is a good chance of a reasonable pay back period. I cannot remember the exact numbers but the cost to charge the batteries to go 40 miles was peanuts compared to buying ~1.5 gallons of gas. So if gas is at $4 that is $6 a day x 300 days =$1800 / years savings. And I think some are thinking gas will be over $4 in a few years so payback will be faster.
So one can only conclude that these consultants are effective and also that a cost benefit must be favorable to the company. Why their tactics are effective and or are needed to make a decision of opting for a union/representation is the question.
A company would have to be mighty stupid to do that. Once the cards are turned into the NLRB the employees have an advocate in the Federal law. That is a good way to end up with paying back pay and punitive damages. Can the employer try to seduce the employees not to vote for a Union? They can and do. In Alaska the second largest communications company GCI had at least 2 elections that I can remember. They gave big raises and bonuses to try and sway the techs from going Union. It worked both times the people voted against the Union. Then the company fell back into their old routine. That is no fault except the people thinking that management was the good guys. Stupid is as Stupid Does.
The real key is there is a LABOR SHORTAGE of skilled people in the USA, right today. You may have to leave Kansas or Michigan to get a job. If you have a good skill there is work.
I think the Teachers Union is the largest Union in the country. Ever wonder why they need a Union? If they are a good teacher they will be in demand. If they are a lousy teacher we don't need them teaching our kids. The truth is that a lot of older teachers are just worn out. They are no long effective at teaching. They know it and the kids for sure know it. Tenure keeps them coming back to waste our money year after year after year. That was one reason my ex wife left the public school system and spent the last 20 years in a private school. Some Unions like the NEA and AMA are just there to protect the incompetents.
It seems that the market wants a usable and reasonably efficient vehicle that doesn't have too many compromises. The Insight was the first hybrid but was too small, handled too poorly -- even though it had outstanding fuel economy. The Prius has hit the right buttons. The GM big truck hybrids, the RX hybrid, the Lexus LS hybrid are all much more expensive and still not all that efficient. Honda gave us 6cyl performance with 4cyl mileage in the Accord hybrid and it was a flop. Interesting how the mix of features, costs, and mileage has to be correct or the market is not going to buy. I still have big skepticism for the Volt, but I hope GM pulls it off with a successful product. Can they put the two mode hybrid in a Cobalt or a Malibu? That would seem to be a better targeted area.
Maybe all of the Misean rhetoric floating around here is good...it will result in a serfdom state, and from that come a revolt. It's not a matter of if, but when. The ill effects of the specter of globalization will create something new.
100% agree !!!
My condolences about the actions of your worse half...the women around here scare me for those same reasons, disaster waiting to happen.
Yeah 16 months is a long time to go and still no final divorce hearing or one is site. She has been able to keep continuing it. Fintail, one of the many things I've learned pal, is if you can't call your spouse "your best friend" then that is a major problem.
Some of ya'll really just amaze me with the way some of you think !!! Holy Cow !!! :surprise:
"The Rock"
Gagrice, unions aside, private schools can pick and choose their students. For example, I doubt a private school would accept my autistic son. They probably don't have a curriculum for him. Also, any special services he would need comes from the public school system.
Now, granted, my son would be an extreme example, but the point is that only certain kids can enter a private school, kids w/ good grades. The only requirement for public schools is that the student be disease free. There is a BIG difference.
Sounds far fetched but that's what I want.
Regards,
OW
Sounds far fetched but that's what I want.
No, not farfetched at all. That is the FUTURE. You asked why electrics are not here TODAY and why the EV1 was killed.
Electrics are the longer term future. They will be feasible after E85 and plug ins are well entrenced here. Hydrogen is longer term yet.
Now that's life changing!
Regards,
OW
Have to disagree with you there. You're saying my wife was a poor teacher for 30 years? I don't know how the teacher association works in California, but in Ohio the association protects all teachers within their rights, otherwise it's time for a new occupation. Or they leave public school and go to private, charter, and parochial schools to teach.
But the mistreatment of teachers by administration is sickening. I heard stories through my wife and her school friends of people not being reemployed who were not on tenure so that a friend or relative of the administration would have a job opening. I've heard of people being unemployed, and tenured teachers moved to less suitable position, to make room for coaches to get a job. And our schools here outside of the core city school are mostly in very good shape educationwise. Just an over emphasis on athletics.
As for the unions protecting workers who could be judged by others to e less than competent, they can make sure laws are followed but they can't maintain their jobs as can some other unions who can strike over having Joe Cocaine nose fired. If schools have a less-than-effective teacher all they have to do is document per state law in Ohio and the procedure is clear. The teaching license in Ohio was become a professional license much like a doctor or opthamalogist rather than a driver license where just having a degree and applying for license guarantees a license forever. I suspect my disagreement with your attitude toward teachers is that you view the union as having the same ability as, oh, say the UAW, to go on strike. They can't. There are many constraints on their ability to do so, in Ohio at least.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,