President`s Report

Volume 5, Issue 07
Lafayette, IN
July, 2015
Anti-Presidential: Money Grubbing, Community Disdaining Candidates
By Leo W. Gerard
USW International President
USW Blog Posted: July 28, 2015
Donald Trump says exactly what
the GOP believes. It’s a simple
axiom: personal wealth
accumulation is everything.
Republican Party officials believe
individuals like The Donald attain
riches through their own guts,
glory and gumption with not an
iota of aid from community,
country or, frankly, inherited
wealth.
It’s just that when The Donald
expresses their credo, he ignores the
shinola and emphasizes the crass.
Instead of going with the slick 2012
GOP convention theme, “I built that,” to
aggrandize individual capitalist
conquest, The Donald slammed a group
of his primary competitors for serving
their nation instead of themselves.
What The Donald failed to acknowledge
is that some of them, like Wisconsin
Gov. Scott Walker, serve themselves
through their so-called public service.
This year, for example, Walker took a
Art on Flickr by DonkeyHotey
quarter billion dollars from Wisconsin
higher education, gave it instead to a
project by billionaire sports team
owners to construct a new arena for the
Milwaukee Bucks, and now one of
those rich guys, Jon Hammes, co-chairs
Walker’s national campaign fund
raising.
It’s a brilliant scam. The Donald, master
of bankruptcies with four under his belt,
really should be impressed. Walker is
forcing the great majority of
Wisconsin workers to pay taxes,
not for projects they prize like
schools or highways, but instead to
further enrich millionaires who, in
turn, fill Walker’s campaign
pockets!
The Donald elevates capitalist
endeavors, even those achieved
through bankruptcy, over public
service, suggesting nonmillionaires are unqualified for
office: “A number of my
competitors for the Republican
nomination have no business running
for president. . . . Many are failed
politicians or people who would be
unable to succeed in the private sector.”
This echoes the derisive comments the
previous Republican nominee for
President, the quarter billionaire Mitt
Romney, made about American people
generally. He slammed nearly half of
them, 47 percent, as slackers who
receive government aid after they failed
to be born to a famous rich man, as
Romney was, and then leverage that
silver spoon to make millions for
(Continued on page 7)
President’s Report
see our laid off members recalled to
work. I would also like clear the air
about layoff rumors. We have not had
From Spencer Buchanan
any meetings with the company to
Many departments and classifications
have been working excessive amounts of discuss future lay-offs or voluntary quit
package offers. I know there is
overtime. We will be meeting with the
company on Tuesday, August 4, 2015 to speculation throughout the plant, but we
have not had any meetings about these
understand the current and future
business conditions of the plant. We will topics.
The Company and the Union agreed to
be emphasizing the importance of
the job combination of the MEO and
training to help with relief of the
PSM classifications in the Extrusion
amounts of forced overtime. It goes
Department. The combination will go
without saying that we would like to
into effect on Monday, August 3, 2015.
The parties have also reached agreement
on two grievances that were set to be
heard at arbitration. The first was the
64/66 Hour Work Rule Modification. In
part, the agreement defines “work
overtime”, it allows the company to fill
the weekend overtime prior to filling
overtime during the week, and there is
flexibility language that allows each
department to modify the agreement
through mutual agreement. This
agreement will be posted on the union
(Continued on page 3)
Page 2
USW115 PULSE
Volume 5, Issue 07
Political Education: Do You Really Think Regressives Appreciate Your Vote?
A series of articles submitted by Doug Herr
From Doug Herr
We can’t out contribute the Koch brothers or anyone else who can afford to buy a politician. We just have to come out and
VOTE. I can’t imagine anyone voting for Mitch McConnell because he wants to cut Social Security. Dan Coats got elected
and he would like to do the same thing. The United States has the lowest voter turnout in the world. Indiana has the lowest
voter turnout in the United States.
Elderly woman rips Jeb in town hall: "I paid into that for years - now you want to take it away?”
by Lefty Coaster
From Daily KOS
Thu Jul 23, 2015 at 02:32 PM PDT
An angry elderly woman at a townhall
campaign event in New Hampshire let
Jeb Bush know just what she and most
Americans think of his plan to phase out
Medicare.
See the article “Jeb Bush defends
Medicare 'phase out' comment” on
Page 5
By ELI STOKOLS
“We’re not going to have adequate
coverage for our children or our
grandchildren without Medicare. I paid
into that for years and years just like
all these other seniors here and now
you want to take it away?” said the
woman, who did not identify herself and
left before the town hall concluded.
“Why are you always attacking the
seniors?”
“Well, I’m not,” Bush responded.
“Here’s what I said: I said we’re going to
have to reform our entitlement system.
We have to.”
“It’s not an entitlement,” the woman
shot back. “I earned that.”
“It’s an actuarially unsound
healthcare system,” said Bush, who
said something must be done before the
system burdens future generations with
$50 billion of debt. “Social Security is an
underfunded retirement system; people
have put money into it, for sure.
“The people that are receiving these
benefits, I don’t think that we should
touch that; but your children and
grandchildren are not going to get the
benefit of this that they believe they’re
going to get or that you think they’re
going to get, because the amount of
money put in compared to the amount of
money the system costs is wrong.”
Of course the Republicans would rather
scrap Medicare than make some minor
adjustments to how its financed. That
goes back to Republicans' pathological
fear of raising more revenue for any
purpose. Otherwise their Koch donors
might be disappointed in their substantial
investment in the Republican Party.
See the article “Jeb Bush pushes to ‘phase out’ Medicare” on page 6
By Steve Benen
Posted on DailyKos on THU JUL 23,
2015 AT 02:32PM PDT
It says something important about
Republican politics in 2015 when the
most mainstream candidate is also the
candidate who wants to scrap
Medicare altogether.
Regardless, there’s quite a bit wrong
with his take on the issue, both as a
matter of politics and policy. Let’s start
with the former.
The Florida Republican is convinced that
“people understand” the need to get rid
of Medicare. He’s mistaken. Given the
polling from the last several years,
what people understand is that
Medicare is a popular and successful
program, and a pillar of modern
American life.
As for the policy, there’s no point in
denying that the Medicare system faces
long-term fiscal challenges, but to argue,
as Jeb Bush does, that Democrats have
ignored the conversation is plainly
incorrect. On the contrary, while
Republicans fight to eliminate the
Medicare program, Democrats have had
great success in strengthening Medicare
finances and extending its fiscal health
for many years to come.
The secret,
apparently, was
passing the
Affordable Care Act.
Before “Obamacare”
was passed, Medicare
was projected to face a
serious fiscal shortfall
in 2017. As of
yesterday, Medicare
trustees now believe
the system is fiscally
secure through 2030.
This shows the extent
that Republicans no
longer care about typical Americans, its
all about pleasing their big donors. That
could be one of the factors adding to the
GOP base's embrace of Donald Trump.
For all his many glaring shortcomings
Trump doesn't spend his days begging
other members of the elite for money.
Political Education(Continued on page 5)
Volume 5, Issue 07
USW115 PULSE
Page 3
in helping us as we seek to
President’s Report leadership
resolve this issue for our members. The
(Continued from page 1)
boards in each department. Secondly, we
were able to reach agreement to return a
terminated employee from the Inspection
Department (Ultrasonic).
The union has met with the company
regarding the point roll back issue from
the forced overtime in the Tube Mill
Department. We have processed a
grievance and an information request on
this issue. Mike Wortman and Rick
Parker Jr. have shown persistent
They are troublesome for all Master
locations.
union has not dropped the ball on this
I have appointed James Melvin, Sonny
issue. “Stay Tuned!”
Graves and Clarence Walker to the
I also want to thank the grievance
Union Labor Participation Committee of
committee and departmental stewards for Lafayette. I have also appointed Randy
helping the membership with FMLA
Logan, Sonny Graves, and Larry Lewis
issues. We all know and understand that as delegates to the Northwest Central
Morningstar’s agenda is to make it a
Labor Council. I will be providing a list
challenge for our members to get FMLA. of all USW 115 committees the week of
I must admit HR has been helpful in
August 3, 2015.
helping our members when they can with
Thank you all for being
FMLA, however, Morningstar is there
to create havoc and make it hard for our
members to attain their FMLA benefits.
100% Union!
Labor History: The Virden Massacre 1898
This is an excerpt from an article that can
be found at:
http://www.illinoislaborhistory.org/virdenmassacre.html
by Carl Weinberg
It had been raining in Virden for days. A
cold October rain. Day and night, dozens
of members of the newly formed United
Mine Workers of America (UMWA)
patrolled the railroad tracks which led
northward toward the Chicago-Virden
Coal Company mine.
Joining Virden miners, a contingent of 60
miners from Mt. Olive patrolled in shifts
of 40, while the other 20 freezing and
exhausted men slept in the hayloft of a
friendly farmer's barn. Along with miners
from Springfield and smaller surrounding
towns, they watched and they waited.
The miners were organizing to fight back
against the intransigence of the ChicagoVirden Coal Company. Despite an
agreement arrived at between the new
union and coal operators statewide in
January of 1898 to settle a biter six-month
strike, Chicago-Virden and a handful of
other companies were determined not to
pay the new higher wage scale of 40 cents
per ton of coal mined.
All spring and summer, the coal operators
made their preparations. They recruited
African-American miners from
Birmingham, Alabama, promising them
high wages and good conditions. In this
way they sought to drive a wedge between
white and Black miners. They built a
stockade of four-inch oak around the
mine. They hired ex-police from Chicago
and private detectives from St. Louis and
bought them brand new Winchester rifles.
And now the train carrying strikebreakers
sped north from St. Louis to the big
Virden mine.
It was October 12, shortly after the noon
hour, when the miners stationed south of
the mine spied the train coming. A miner
posted on lookout fired a warning signal.
And soon the train, carrying strikebreakers
and armed train guards, approached the
stockaded mine. Miners waited, armed
with hunting rifles, pistols and shotguns.
As the train slowed down at the depot, a
shot rang out and then the battle began in
earnest, continuing as the train moved
along and then stopped in front of the
stockades. With the miners in an open
field they took the brunt of the carnage. To
a mine guard who survived, the bloodshed
conjured up images of the SpanishAmerican War then raging in Cuba and
the Philippines. It was "hotter than San
Juan Hill," he recalled. After ten minutes
of mayhem, having received a gunshot
wound, the train engineer thought better of
stopping in Virden and continued on to
Springfield, his strikebreaking cargo still
aboard.
The union miners paid for their militant
stand: eight died, four of these from Mt.
Olive, and some forty were injured. The
mine guards also paid a price: four dead
and five wounded. And at least one Black
strikebreaker aboard the train was
seriously wounded. For the UMWA, the
victory was worth the cost. A month later,
the company repented and granted the
wage increase and Illinois became a
bastion of union power in the coalfields
for decades.
…….
Which brings us to the relevance of the
Battle of Virden for working people today.
If Virden can teach anything to workers
facing the seemingly overwhelming power
today's global corporate giants, it is that
broad-based class solidarity workers, and
the broader the better. Despite the
persistence of racial divisions, and not
even considering that miners were 100%
male in that era, it was the solidarity and
rising class consciousness which did exist
that made the difference. Even the victory
in arms at Virden would not have been
possible without the rank-and-file style of
mobilization coal miners developed the
year before. The key tactic was the mass
march, led by General Bradley and others,
which sought to take the strike to every
nook and cranny of the Illinois coalfields.
The following year that determination was
reflected in miners willingness to stand in
the trenches, in the rains of October, to
defend their fellow workers against
corporate greed. It was the massive
disciplined action of the rank and file
which ultimately led the industry journal
Coal Age to call the Illinois coalfields a
"citadel of unionism." It was Bradley's
troops who made him a General. There are
plenty of unused troops and undiscovered
Generals in the world today. Learning the
history of the Battle of Virden is one way
to unleash that hidden but powerful
potential.
Page 4
The Last Word
(Continued from page 10)
nothing remarkable about it except for
this tall pillar in the back with two
bronze miners standing on each side of
it. It’s plaque’s read of a host of men and
woman “who gave their last full measure
of devotion” to the cause of CLEAN
unionism in America. Thanks for the
quote President Lincoln. Many of them
killed at the “Virden Massacre”.
As I looked at the monument and read
the names and dedications I began to
think about how hard it must have been
to organize back then. No dainty lawyers
and politicians coming after us but it was
From Teri Hunter
Please consider donating a bottle of
alcohol, wine, or a 6 pack of beer to
Lafayette Transitional Housing's
upcoming Bingo Extravaganza. This is
LTH's major fundraiser. Money raised
from the "bar cart" is used for veterans
services to assist homeless veterans in
the area with housing and other vital
services. Tickets to the extravaganza are
available from LTH for a fun night of
bingo and auction of many fun items and
services will be held too. More
information available on their website
and facebook.
With the closing of the Mental Health
Association's day shelter the need is even
greater than before to help members of
our community with getting their lives
back on track.
Thank you to everyone for their support.
Your Joint Life Committee members are:
Liz Inman, Abby Macari, Teri Hunter,
Denise Wagner, Kelli Lutrell, Terry
Allen, Tracey Bobazin.
USW115 PULSE
illicit law enforcement, company militia
and just plain hired thugs coming after
us. And yet this little lady was able to
rally the families to stand together and
push back at the companies. And by the
way, it was mostly the wives she would
enlist to kick us in the ass or stand in for
us to make a better future for our
families.
When did we lose sight of this?
We currently have a local union
administration in transition; these always
come with ill feelings for certain changes
as well as the questioning of sanity for
some committee position postings. And
yes, some of those postings may be from
the “Brotherhood of Nitwits.” For those
From Denise Wagner
We will be looking for volunteers to
serve snow cones at the “Annual
Laborers Family Day Picnic” the
Saturday before Labor day, September
5th, please come and join us. All the
unions get together and do this every
year. The kids have a blast., they get to
build tool boxes, climb rock walls, face
painting etc. A good time all the way
around, we look forward to seeing
everyone there.
Volume 5, Issue 07
in the Brotherhood it will be a chance to
transition to be a Steelworker or be
called out for what they are. Sometimes
the best way to stand up for each other is
to stand up to each other.
In Solidarity!
For our backpack program we were able
to drop off 66 back packs filled with
supplies to Miller Elementary School.
Good job USW 115.
Thank you for all you
help us do!
Volume 5, Issue 07
USW115 PULSE
Page 5
PoliEd:Democrats win as Social Security cuts removed from Senate highway bill
Joan McCarter
Posted on DailyKos on THU JUL 23,
2015 AT 09:55 AM PDT
Two provisions to cut Social Security
benefits in the proposed highway bill
caused Democrats in both the Senate and
House to revolt. Democrats have
succeeded in getting both of those
provisions removed, but now Senate
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is
facing a serious challenge in attribution:
getting the bill past his own party, in
both chambers of Congress.
Senate Democrats defeated McConnell's
first effort to bring the bill to the floor
for debate, arguing they didn't have time
to read the 1030-page bill in the few
hours he had given them, and because of
these spending provisions that hit Social
Security. Immediately following that
defeat, the Social Security cut to people
who were concurrently receiving
disability benefits and unemployment
insurance was removed. The second cut,
which would have ended benefits to
anyone with an outstanding felony
warrant, was was axed before a second
procedural vote Wednesday night.
Democrats pointed out that the last time
this was attempted, and stymied by the
courts, the government had to pay back
$500 million to some 80,000 people who
were wrongly cut off.
McConnell got the votes of 14
Democrats after removing these
provisions, and the bill is moving
forward this week in the Senate. But it's
not the end to his problems, and his
stubbornness in pushing this bill is
looking a lot like his Patriot Act debacle.
The House is ready to leave town for
August recess next month. It passed a
highway bill that lasts for the remainder
of the year, and leadership on that side
have made it clear that the Senate bill
"won't fly" in the House. And yet:
McConnell’s plans for weekend work
suggest he intends to jam the House by
passing the six-year measure and then
daring the House not to pass it, with just
days until federal infrastructure funding
expires at the end of the month.
Meanwhile, on the Senate side
amendments and grandstanding are
threats as Rand Paul and Ted Cruz try to
compete with fellow presidential
candidate Donald Trump for some
headlines. Between the two of them,
they've threatened to block the bill unless
they can get or block amendments on
Planned Parenthood, the Export Import
Bank, Obamacare, and Iran. Once again,
McConnell is having a really hard time
demonstrating that Republicans can
govern, even within the party.
At the same time, congressional
Democrats are learning that they can
stand together and stand tough on
protecting Social Security and win.
Jeb Bush hits back at criticism over Medicare comment
By ELI STOKOLS
From POLITICO 7/23/15 4:07 PM EDT
Updated 7/23/15 5:44 PM EDT
GORHAM, N.H. — Jeb Bush defended
comments he made Wednesday night in
which he seemed to advocate the
“phasing out” of Medicare, after he was
confronted during a town hall here
Thursday afternoon by an elderly woman
who said she was worried about losing
benefits.
“We’re not going to have adequate
coverage for our children or our
grandchildren without Medicare. I paid
into that for years and years, just like all
these other seniors here, and now you
want to take it away?” said the woman,
who did not identify herself and left
before the town hall concluded. “Why
are you always attacking the seniors?”
“Well, I’m not,” Bush responded.
“Here’s what I said: I said, ‘We’re going
to have to reform our entitlement
system.’ We have to.”
“It’s not an entitlement,” the woman shot
back. “I earned that.”
“It’s an actuarially unsound health care
system,” said Bush, who said something
must be done before the system burdens
future generations with $50 billion of
debt. “Social Security is an underfunded
retirement system; people have put
money into it, for sure.
“The people that are receiving these
benefits, I don’t think that we should
touch that; but your children and
grandchildren are not going to get the
benefit of this that they believe they’re
going to get, or that you think they’re
going to get, because the amount of
money put in compared to the amount of
money the system costs is wrong.”
While the questioner’s identity was not
verified, Bush’s communications
director, Tim Miller, dismissed her as a
“liberal activist” on Twitter during the
town hall.
The woman who pressed Bush on the
matter here Thursday afternoon noted
that she saw the comments earlier in the
day on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
As he was pressed, Bush sought to divert
attention from his comments, focusing
on the media’s fixation on them, alleging
that MSNBC and the media presented
“words taken out of context — exactly
what I predicted would happen.”
While Miller explained that Bush was
attempting to reference “the way we look
at entitlements,” not a full program, and
argued that it wouldn’t make sense for a
candidate to announce a hugely
controversial policy position by slipping
it into an answer at a town hall, it
appears Bush is more frustrated that
Democrats took his words literally, not
“out of context.”
Bush’s initial comments came during a
town hall the night before in Manchester,
when he said, in the context of
comments about reforming Medicare,
“We need to figure out a way to phase
out this program for others and move to
a new system that allows them to have
something — because they’re not going
to have anything.”
That drew a swift response from the
Democratic National Committee last
night.
(Continued on page 6)
Page 6
Jeb Bush hits back
(Continued from page 5)
“If Jeb Bush is president, people who are
working hard now, playing by the rules,
putting in long hours, and saving for
their retirement, won’t have the same
health benefits that seniors rely on,” said
the DNC’s Holly Shulman in a statement
Wednesday night. “It’s as simple as
that.”
On Thursday as he addressed the
USW115 PULSE
woman’s concerns, Bush tried to steer
the conversation back toward consensus,
explaining that reforms are essential to
making Medicare solvent for future
generations.
“We need to protect it for people that
have it, and we need to make sure we
reform it for people that are expecting
it,” Bush said. “There are solutions to
this.”
Bush wasn’t asked about the comments
during two earlier stops on Thursday at a
Volume 5, Issue 07
country store in Littleton and a VFW
post in Lancaster, part of a retail-heavy
swing across New Hampshire’s “North
Country.”
Following the town hall when he took
questions from reporters, Bush again
blasted the Democratic attack machine
for “demoniz[ing]” anyone who
addresses the problem.
“That’s just ridiculous,” he said. “We
need to have a grown-up conversation
about these issues.”
Jeb Bush pushes to ‘phase out’ Medicare
By Steve Benen
From MSNBC 07/23/15 10:05 AM
Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush
appeared at a New Hampshire event last
night sponsored by the Koch brothers’
Americans for Prosperity, and the former
governor raised a few eyebrows with his
comments on the future of Medicare.
“The left needs to join the conversation,
but they haven’t. I mean, when [Rep.
Paul Ryan] came up with, one of his
proposals as it relates to Medicare, the
first thing I saw was a TV ad of a guy
that looked just like Paul Ryan … that
was pushing an elderly person off the
cliff in a wheelchair. That’s their
response.
“And I think we need to be vigilant about
this and persuade people that our, when
your volunteers go door to door, and they
talk to people, people understand this.
They know, and I think a lot of people
recognize that we need to make sure we
fulfill the commitment to people that
have already received the benefits, that
are receiving the benefits. But that we
need to figure out a way to phase out this
program for others and move to a new
system that allows them to have
something – because they’re not going to
have anything.”
Remember, Jeb Bush is the ostensible
moderate candidate in the massive GOP
presidential field. It says something
important about Republican politics in
2015 when the most mainstream
candidate is also the candidate who wants
to scrap Medicare altogether.
Regardless, there’s quite a bit wrong with
his take on the issue, both as a matter of
politics and policy. Let’s start with the
former.
The Florida Republican is convinced that
“people understand” the need to get rid
of Medicare. He’s mistaken. Given the
polling from the last several years, what
people understand is that Medicare is a
popular and successful program, and a
pillar of modern American life.
Previous attempts to “phase out” the
program have met with widespread
public scorn and if Jeb Bush believes he
can “persuade people” to get rid of
Medicare, he’s likely to be disappointed.
As for the policy, there’s no point in
denying that the Medicare system faces
long-term fiscal challenges, but to argue,
as Jeb Bush does, that Democrats have
ignored the conversation is plainly
incorrect. On the contrary, while
Republicans fight to eliminate the
Medicare program, Democrats have had
great success in strengthening Medicare
finances and extending its fiscal health
for many years to come.
The secret, apparently, was passing the
Affordable Care Act.
Before “Obamacare” was passed,
Medicare was projected to face a serious
fiscal shortfall in 2017. As of yesterday,
Medicare trustees now believe the system
is fiscally secure through 2030.
Kevin Drum noted the slowdown in
costs, which is “spectacularly good
news.”
Ten years ago, Medicare was a runaway
freight train. Spending was projected to
increase indefinitely, rising to 13 percent
of GDP by 2080. This year, spending is
projected to slow down around 2040, and
reaches only 6 percent of GDP by 2090.
Six percent! That’s half what we thought
a mere decade ago. If that isn’t
spectacular, I don’t know what is.
Obviously, all of these projections come
with caveats because no one can say with
certainty what will happen in the future,
but the projections are encouraging – and
far more heartening than they were
before the ACA passed.
But Jeb Bush is under the impression that
Medicare is, without a doubt, doomed, so
we might as well get rid of the program
now and see what Paul Ryan has in store
for seniors in his far-right bag of tricks.
There’s a better way. Medicare’s future
is looking brighter, it’s as popular as
ever, and its fiscal challenges can be
addressed without tearing down the
entire system. It’s a matter of political
will – either elected policymakers will
fight to protect Medicare or they’ll push
to eliminate it.
Volume 5, Issue 07
In Memorial
James W.
"Bill" Payne
June 29, 2015
Page 7
USW115 PULSE
Pray for
the dead,
Fight for
the Living
7:30AM
1:00PM
UNION
MEETINGS 3:30PM
3rd Tuesday of Every Month
Watch the boards for emergency exceptions.
BE ACTIVE, STAY INFORMED,
ATTEND YOUR UNION MEETING
The Donald used his daddy.
Anti-Presidential: My union, the United Steelworkers,
(Continued from page 1)
themselves. Never mind that many of
the 47 percent receive Social Security
that they earned through a lifetime of
hard work. Never mind that guys like
Jon Hammes fatten their already
bulging wallets with government
handouts.
A specific “failed politician” that The
Donald blasted was U.S. Sen. John
McCain. The Arizona Republican, who
suffers to this day from injuries he
endured as a prisoner of war, didn’t
defeat Barack Obama for the
presidency. So The Donald called
McCain a loser, a person who The
Donald would fire, in fact, according to
The Donald, not even a war hero.
The Donald explained that he preferred
guys who didn’t get captured, guys like
himself who evaded military service
with a bone spur he claims he had on he
forgets which foot, guys who pursued
their self interest at the same time
soldiers like McCain risked their lives
for their country.
While The Donald cruised around
Manhattan in his daddy’s limo,
caroused at private clubs and collected
his first million working for his daddy’s
firm, McCain volunteered for military
service, suffered three shattered limbs
when his jet was shot down, endured
torture in a Viet Cong prisoner of war
camp for five years and refused to jump
ahead of other prisoners for release, an
offer the enemy made based on
McCain’s familial connection to
military brass. McCain joined up to
make his father and grandfather, both
four-star admirals, proud, not to exploit
them to benefit himself in the way that
supported Barack Obama for President
and agrees with John McCain on
virtually no policy issue. Ever. It is,
however, without question that McCain
responded honorably to the call of duty
for his country and sacrificed
incalculably for that.
Despite McCain’s achievements as a
soldier and a senator, The Donald felt
entitled to belittle him as “incapable of
doing anything” because he didn’t make
millions by demanding rent money from
impoverished tenants, as The Donald
launched his career doing.
Money is everything for politicians like
Trump and Romney and GOP candidate
Carly Fiorina, who laid off 30,000
workers when she ran Hewlett-Packard
then stuffed a $40 million golden
parachute in her purse before leaving
the ailing firm. For them, individual
schemes to accrue cash are paramount.
And the amount of dough collected is
the true measure of a man. Or woman.
It may come as a surprise, then, to these
self-aggrandizing capitalists that most
Americans don’t believe human
greatness is the sum of private jets and
mega yachts bought with profits made
on the backs of furloughed workers.
And particularly relevant to politicians
who evangelize careless Randian
capitalism in the Bible belt is a recent
poll that found the values of the faithful
to be the antithesis of money worship.
Lake Research Partners released a
survey last week of likely 2016 voters
who are religious or faith affiliated. It
found that devout voters reject the
Republican concept that individuals
build businesses by themselves and that
every citizen must struggle alone in
society competing for survival against
neighbors and work mates. They
rebuffed a culture based on the Donald
Trump reality show The Apprentice –
where contestants stomp each other to
get ahead.
Instead, these religious voters believe in
community where members sustain and
strengthen each other. They expressed
strong support for policies that inure to
the collective good including paid sick
leave, increasing the minimum wage to
$15 an hour and investment in children
even if that means raising taxes.
This, frankly, is not a surprising finding
in a religious country that is a closely
bound collection of states. Citizens of
the United States have found that they
can achieve far more through affiliation
and cooperation. No individual state,
not even the big ones like Texas or
California or New York, could have
won World War II. But 50 states
together, with young people
volunteering for military service and
women stepping up to work in factories
and old people buying war bonds,
generated the synergistic power of
community essential for victory.
Republicans who denigrate those values
do so at their own peril. Americans
aren’t selfish. They don’t live by The
Apprentice theme song, “For the Love
of Money.” Americans are better than
that. And they deserve better than meanspirited, self-serving politicians.
Puzzle Solutions
Page 8
USW115 PULSE
Volume 5, Issue 07
Volume 5, Issue 07
Across
1. Wonder
4. Bash
7. Faucet
10. Friend
11. Macaws
12. A bone that protects the lungs
13. Contenders
16. A city in northern Italy
17. Coarse obnoxious people
19. Bags
22. Knights
23. Mother of Zeus (Greek mythology)
24. Nipples
26. Plait
27. Instructor
29. Filling to excess
33. Delete (abbrev.)
34. N N N N
35. Estimated Time of Arrival
36. Rulers under the Ottoman Empire
37. Perceive visually
38. Timid
Page 9
USW115 PULSE
http://www.crosswordpalace.com
Down
1. Armored Personnel Carrier
2. Anagram of "Haw"
3. Intricately
4. Spheroids
5. Chocolate cookie
6. Twinges
7. Betrayals
8. What we breathe
9. Public Broadcasting System
14. A decapod crustacean
15. Deformed
17. Super Sonic Transport
18. An untruth
20. A New Zealand parrot
21. Saturday (abbrev.)
25. Purchases
26. A stage
28. Ice cream ____
29. Peculiar
30. V
31. The utmost degree
32. Formerly, it meant "Happy"
How to play: The numbers 1 through 9 will appear once only
in each row, column, and 3x3 zone. There are 9 such zones
in each sudoku grid. There is only one correct solution to
each sudoku. Good luck!
Difficulty level: medium.
11
academy
awakes
children
concern
core
count
crazy
cream
dime
effect
elect
fully
gent
guess
import
limited
loss
might
mirror
naval
necessary
origins
panic
pretty
reap
reek
request
resign
seam
sheep
spice
stole
sugar
task
tears
thee
tong
tough
toward
trust
vane
USW115 Pulse
Larr y Le wi s
Ed ito r
USW Local 115
2555 South 30th Street
Suite B
Hall Phone: 765-474-5000
Hall Fax: 765-474-5550
E-mail: [email protected]
Pulse is an official publication of the
United Steelworkers, Local 115,
AFL-CIO, CLC
See us on the web at
http://www.usw115.org
Proud member of the
United Steelworkers
Press Association
Submissions from members are
always welcome.
To submit an article.
Mail to: USW115 Pulse
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Lafayette, IN 47909
Or email: [email protected]
The Last Word
there’s nothing for us to do.” Yeah, I get
it. One of several problems with many
By Larry Lewis
locals is the reduction of leadership to
th
where, as some have mentioned, it looks
On July 19 several of our members,
including yours truly, rolled over to the like a social club. The disengagement of
our own leadership at all levels, local to
University of Illinois at Urbanathe international, is a major cause of this
Champaign for our annual union
and “yes Virginia” they are slowly
schooling at the Labor College. This
goes on over the course of several weeks starting to come around to this fact. Our
own President Buchanan has been
with programs introducing us to labor
history, grievance writing, Stewardship, making the rounds and has started his
own continuing education programs on
communication, politics, collective
the weekends for any members who wish
bargaining and many many more. It’s
quite eye opening and I recommend that to go. This weekend, August 8th@7AM,
ALL members take the opportunity to go he’ll be holding a class about Labor
History. You can’t know where we’re
there at least once.
To the crux of this thesis. As you talk to going if you don’t know where we’ve
been.
our sisters and brothers from the other
On Friday, after graduation, Randy and I
locals around District 7, regardless of
road to visit Mother. I had never been
size, we all seem to have one similar
before and I will get the slideshow of
major issue, total disengagement of
members with the local union. Oh yeah, pictures up on our webpage as soon as I
have time. The cemetery itself is a
we call ourselves union but beyond
paying dues how involved are we. “But simple old country cemetery. There is
(Continued on page 4)
Larry we contact the hall and get told
Leadership
Executive Board
President
Spencer Buchanan
Vice President
Scott Wolendowski
Recording
Secretary
Dylan Buchanan
Financial Secretary
Kenny Cox
Treasurer
Brian Schoolcraft
Guide
Willard Hammond
Inside Guard
Rick Parker Jr.
Outside Guard
Douglas Herr
Trustee
Larry Lewis
Trustee
Hilory(Butch)Hammond
Trustee
Clark McCorkle
Grievance Committees
District 1 Ingot
Committeeperson
Terri Waymire
Assistant
District 2 Tube Mill
Committeeperson
Mike Wortman
Assistant
Rick Parker Jr.
District 3 Maintenance
Committeeperson
Aaron Eldert
Assistant
Doug Herr
District 4 Extrusion/Sonic/Storeroom
Committeepersons
John Ragan
Robin Buschman
Assistant
Brian Schoolcraft
District 5 Tool & Die/Lithium Plant
Committeeperson
Susie Bending
Assistant
Hilory(Butch)Hammond