A Red State Privatization Horror Story

A Monday morning drive-by (and excuse to leave for work late - LOL):

www.truth-out.org...

The idea:

Conservatives and libertarians have been saying for a long time that if we just get rid of government and replace it with the private sector, everything will run a whole lot better.

The results:

In Florida, Gov. Rick Scott has made growing for-profit education one of his top priorities. And, in doing so, he helped out his political buddies and donors while screwing over Florida’s students. One of the biggest winners in Scott’s privatization push, for example, was an ALEC-linked company called K12, Inc. that actually got an “F” from Florida’s education department.

In Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Corbett has given huge legal contracts for defending his state’s voter ID suppression law to some of his top donors. Corbett is also trying to privatize Pennsylvania’s state liquor stores, a move that would mean big bucks for corporate allies like Walmart and Sheetz, a local gas station chain.

And in Michigan, Gov. Rick Snyder has handed prison food services over to corporate giant Aramark. While the move has meant big bucks for Aramark, the report suggests it’s been an absolute disaster in every other possible way. Meals are infested with maggots, employees have been caught having sex with inmates, and now there are reports that one Aramark employee actually tried to hire a prisoner to kill someone for him. All in all, not a pretty picture.

The disaster of privatization in places like Florida, Michigan and Pennsylvania clearly shows us how public issues - things having to do with the commons - like education, health care and criminal justice are just too important to outsource to corporations.

And Republicans will never change their mind about selling the commons off to the highest bidder, because from the Republican point of view, these aren’t scandals or horror stories, they’re success stories.

Have a terrific week....

With the advent of the fascist corporate Oligarchy, the neocons have realized their ultimate goal.

Capitalism as the guiding principal and the Constitution be damned. The right wing conservatives have won this battle but the war is not over by any stretch of the imagination.



deus succurro nos totus.

Once again, it's not about privatization, per se, but rather the epidemic of political corruption and cronyism. Until we pass laws that make political corruption a Class C or higher felony nothing will change. Politicians have learned that that are no real repercussions for their actions but a rather impressive financial upside. So the problem gets geometrically worse with each new bus load of politicians.

My avatar says it all: Bring out the guillotines. It worked in France.

originally posted by: jtma508
Once again, it's not about privatization, per se, but rather the epidemic of political corruption and cronyism.

I agree to a point. It's not privatization, per se, but the corruption, greed and cronyism that many power-hungry PEOPLE (not just politicians) are willing to exercise to get more money, more power and more control.

ANY system of organization would work fine if the PEOPLE in charge were honorable. But they are not. People who run for political office these days are not doing so because they want to help the people. They do it for their own self-interest and that of their supporters (read financial supporters).

We live in a world motivated by greed and ruled by fear.

It's time for a change!

a reply to: FyreByrd
Deleted non-relevant post.

Keep walking... nothing to see here.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: FyreByrd

Did the Republicans privatize Detroit?

Is that what caused the collapse there?

Fascinating questions. Not relevant though. That's a different topic.

originally posted by: intrepid

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: FyreByrd

Did the Republicans privatize Detroit?

Is that what caused the collapse there?

Fascinating questions. Not relevant though. That's a different topic.

Removing post blaming OP for political trolling.

originally posted by: butcherguy

originally posted by: intrepid

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: FyreByrd

Did the Republicans privatize Detroit?

Is that what caused the collapse there?

Fascinating questions. Not relevant though. That's a different topic.

It is a point.
The point is that both RED and Blue states have their FAILURES.
That is relevant when someone posts a politically trolling thread.

The thread is not trolling. It's a valid topic and no where did I see mention of Detroit in the source material.

originally posted by: FyreByrd
A Monday morning drive-by (and excuse to leave for work late - LOL):

www.truth-out.org...

The idea:

Conservatives and libertarians have been saying for a long time that if we just get rid of government and replace it with the private sector, everything will run a whole lot better.

Wow,
Never heard that.
Seems to me that a government that consists of 1/3rd of the population is a bit excessive though.

a reply to: FyreByrd

None of that is libertarianism. It's just the government colluding with business at the expense of the tax payer. Libertarianism is about LESS government, not government spending money to fund private corporations.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: FyreByrd

Did the Republicans privatize Detroit?

Is that what caused the collapse there?

No. Several factors over many years contributed to the collapse of Detroit. Its dependence on one industry is probably the most influential.

This is a good article that outlines the fall.

Source

Between 1947 and 1963, Detroit lost 140,000 manufacturing jobs, said Sugrue, the Pennsylvania professor.
...
Detroit's unraveling can't be blamed solely on the city's reliance on one industry that itself buckled.
...
The migration of blacks into Detroit, which helped power its economic rise, was followed by an exodus of white residents for the suburbs. In the last decade alone – from 2000 to 2010 – Detroit lost about a quarter-million residents.
...
The consequences of that population loss and segregation extend beyond the declining property values and erosion of the city's tax base. The result is an isolated city.]

Oops! Sorry - Off Topic.

originally posted by: intrepid

originally posted by: butcherguy

originally posted by: intrepid

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: FyreByrd

Did the Republicans privatize Detroit?

Is that what caused the collapse there?

Fascinating questions. Not relevant though. That's a different topic.

It is a point.
The point is that both RED and Blue states have their FAILURES.
That is relevant when someone posts a politically trolling thread.

The thread is not trolling. It's a valid topic and no where did I see mention of Detroit in the source material.

Then the OP is not obligated to answer my question, I suppose.
I will go strike my post so that the OP can continue to bash whatever it is that needs bashed in some peoples opinions.

a reply to: intrepid

Yea it is trolling. Whenever anyone cites either party (or the other polarization labels: conservative, liberal, progressive, etc.) to the exclusion of the other (implied or otherwise) it is political trolling. And it is this my-party-is-better-than-your-party mindset that is the crux of our problems and largely responsible for our collective inability to do anything about it. Both parties (and their minions) are part of the same system designed to screw us all to their mutual benefit. They just fight between themselves over how the spoils are divided. If we turn on them en masse just see how quickly things change.

a reply to: jtma508

If one's party, affiliation, mindset, whatever can't stand any scrutiny without obfuscation and deflection, it ain't much of one. And I've worked in this industry, both private and public and privatization is a disaster.

a reply to: jtma508
Apparently there is a certain set of criteria that defines political trolling here.

originally posted by: butcherguy
a reply to: jtma508
Apparently there is a certain set of criteria that defines political trolling here.

A set of criteria that shifts, depending on which side of an argument certain people fall on too it seems.


As far as the rick scott for profit education.....how is it screwing students? If you actually looked into the allegations, you would find that the expansion is for online schooling. This particular case, at least the majority of it, is an expansion of programs and services for those who wish to home school their children. So, how excactly is that detrimental to the students? Oh, I get it, it provides an easy way for parents to avoid the left wing indoctrination and nonsensical BS that comes with public education these days, so therefore it has to be stopped. Heaven forbid people want to have choices or the option to not listen to latest liberal propaganda, or at least avoid the travesty that is Common Core.

a reply to: FyreByrd
Here is something that is relevant.....

From your OP:

In Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Corbett has given huge legal contracts for defending his state’s voter ID suppression law to some of his top donors. Corbett is also trying to privatize Pennsylvania’s state liquor stores, a move that would mean big bucks for corporate allies like Walmart and Sheetz, a local gas station chain.

How is this different from a blue state governor?

Just look at the news. All politicians, regardless of the letter after their names, hand out contracts to their friends and political donors.... ever hear of Solyndra?

And as far as privatizing liquor stores.... PA residents have been calling for this to be done for years. The State of PA has a monopoly on the sale of wine and liquor inside the state. How many others do?

Here is a little bit about truthout.org:

As Truthout's major selling point is as an alternative to the mainstream media, they must necessarily position themselves as different from that media. Hence, their contributors often, as might be expected, put forth some of the waffle about how "the mainstream media doesn't do this" or "the mainstream media doesn't tell you that." For example, in 2011, the site publshed a piece revealing facts about Iceland that the mainstream media would not have told, such as that it was a member of the E.U. After this article was endorsed by Naomi Klein, fact-checkers went over it and found almost more errors in it than there were words

Rational wiki
"Almost more errors than words"
That's a good source.

a reply to: butcherguy

Why don't you put in the same energy Googling "privatization" and REALLY join the conversation?