I haven't always paid as much attention to politics as I probably should have. I was always a worker trying to raise my family and it just wasn't high on my list of priorities . What I see are two ideologies which are more about supporting an opposing view of each other than exploring the better options concerning any issue. The main focus of politics it seems to me is to discredit the "enemy" who is a fellow countryman or woman regardless of how damaging and hurtful for the sole purpose of feathering the nest of our party and beliefs . Politics is not about building a strong "union" or instilling the imperative of working together for the common purpose of the ole Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness for everyone. .
Bernie Sanders was the only candidate trying to unify both sides so that everyone could have a decent existence.. Actually he is the only politician in the USA or Canada doing so but the media didn't want to disappoint their advertisers so he got little play.
He is still fighting for a reversal of these pension cut for miners and truckers.....
In October 2015, when word came down that hundreds of thousands of current and future Teamster retirees were facing the loss of a portion of their pension benefits—in some cases, more than half of the monthly payment—Jim Gallagher, a business columnist for the
St. Louis Post Dispatch, did what good journalists do. He started asking questions, understanding context, and crafting a cohesive narrative about a crisis that will ultimately reach far beyond the households of union truck drivers.
The result was a
strong early piece about a story that has drawn increasing attention from local media, but deserves a much bigger spot on the national news agenda.
Historically, it was illegal for pension plans to cut core benefits to people who are already retired; if the plan had money in the bank, it had to pay promised benefits. But many so-called “multi-employer” plans, which serve workers from multiple companies in a particular industry, have been
falling into financial distress for years. The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is supposed to backstop failing private pensions, but the guarantees are lower for multi-employer plans, and the PBGC itself is in trouble.
One response could have been to give the PBGC more funds to do its job. But there was no appetite for that in Congress, so in late 2014, federal lawmakers responded to the dilemma in another way: They made it
possible to cut retiree benefits.
The Central States filing to reduce benefits back in October drew a
little national coverage, too, and
The Washington Post recently reported on a similar concern with coal miner pensions.
But overall, the national press has done little to develop the story. That’s puzzling, especially given that Sen. Bernie Sanders, who’s made waves in the presidential race with a campaign focused on income inequality and financial security for the middle class, is the
sponsor of a bill that would repeal the provisions to cut workers’ benefits and close a couple tax loopholes to supply more funding for the PBGC.
more
Why the coming cuts to Teamster pensions deserve more national news coverage - Columbia Journalism Review