Yay For Learning!

Tim Kaine, head of the Democratic National Committee, said "There could not be a better example of the difference in priorities between Republicans and Democrats than this legislation." He said this in response to a $26 Billion state-aid bill that the House passed on Tuesday this week. This bill has been approved to aid states in funding for teachers and public employees in order to prevent layoffs. In a blog titled "Where Do Government Bailouts End?", the blogger, who goes by Jd1502, creates an argument against such bill.

In the blog, it is expressed that the bill,or bailout, will cause an inflation in taxes and that these states are looking for short lived remedies to their financial problems. The blogger also sides with an opinion that the bill is "a giveaway to teacher's unions." Although Jd1502 does not consider himself a Republican, he or she does have very conservative thoughts when it comes to government spending and tends to side on the side of the Republican party. Therefore, I believe that this blog is geared towards people who are more to the right side of the spectrum.

I believe that education is an important thing and I can't think of anything I would rather spend tax dollars on than health care and education. This will allow states to keep teachers on their payroll and rehire teachers who may have already been laid-off thus preventing overcrowded classrooms and more individual attention. The bill is not only aiding school districts, $16 billion is going towards state Medicaid reimbursement which will help the health care industry and also possibly allow for more individuals to qualify for Medicaid. It is predicted that some of this funding will help keep law enforcement officials and public employees on the payroll.

In a time where the economy is being hit hard it is very imperative that we pay close attention to these necessities. The Democrats see this but the Republicans...well not so much. In order for the American citizens to get the best education, health care, and safety our government needs to step in, help the states if needed, and not slap them on the wrist and tell them to fend for themselves. This bill is offering them that help and for the majority, I give a thumbs up!

Hospitals Cutting Corners at the Expense of Employees

In the midst of a health care renovation, it is not only the patients who are feeling the pressures of today's economy. The Obama administration is seeking an investigation into several hospitals and their overtime pay practices.

Nurses tend to be the primary victims of these pay practices. They are being classified as exempt employees and are expected for work 50+ hours a week without being paid for that extra time. Throughout hospitals many workers are working through their lunch time but since the time is automatically deducted from their daily hours they are essentially working for no pay.

I believe that this practice is not only happening in health care. Many employers have developed a system which deducts meal times from daily hours under the assumption that said employees are taking their lunch. This problem is becoming more apparent within the hospital systems because major systems are losing law suits in this area and are having to pay back the money that is owed to the employees. Kaiser Permanente of California will have to pay 7.25 million if they decide to settle on a lawsuit which claims that many workers were wrongfully classified as exempt and denied any overtime pay.

With the economy how it is, it is no surprise that everyone is trying to cut costs in several areas. Even the health care industry, which is in constant demand, needs ways to conserve. This does not mean that it needs to come at the expense of their employees. It seems that they are working their employees to the extremes but are not willing to compensate for their time. I have seen a lot of waste within the health care industry so maybe they should hire employees who can analyze these areas and develop some efficient and cost conscious processes.

Regulations need to be put in place to make sure that employees aren't being taken advantage of. Health care workers aren't typically a part of a union and it takes maintenance on a federal level. There is The Joint Commission who creates regulations for hospital practices but there needs something similar for hospital personnel. With the law suits that are arising from this maybe a commission will be instituted to maintain pay and employment practices in health care.

Oh Arizona...Have You No Hope?

It is not new news that Arizona is attempting to pass their Immigration Law to protect their borders. Recently Judge Susan Bolt of Federal District Court ruled against major provisions of the law. This ruling sent outrage to both sides of the argument, those opposed were upset because the whole law wasn't rejected and those for are upset for obvious reasons. On the blog "From My Point of View..." blogger Andrea Van Cleave voices her opinion on the court ruling in a blog titled "Attacks on Arizona."

In this blog, Van Cleave argues that Arizona is "just carrying out the law." She cites this through the everyday border laws that are being broken by immigrants and Arizona's attempts at enforcing those laws. Van Cleave reflects over the violence that has occurred since the judgment. Through her words she is appealing an audience that is in support of the Arizona Immigration Law.

I disagree with this stance. To say that Arizona is only upholding a law that already exists is incorrect. One of the provisions of the Immigration Law was to allow law enforcement to approached citizens and non-citizens and request documentation, which is a form of racial profiling. The result would thus be that people will be wrongfully detained due to lack of documentation and according to the law they will be detained until they are able to prove they have a legal right to be here.

Judge Susan Bolt's argument was that border laws are the responsibility of the Federal government and not that of the states. The whole border should be enforced the same. This law has created a lot of controversy but I stand on the side of opposition. Does Arizona really have the authority to execute racial profiling? I think not.