FROM THE DESK OF PRESIDENT DEB PETERSON
MARCH/APRIL 2015
So I read in USA Today that the Koch brothers’ political organization has, “…released a staggering $889 million budget to fund…the 2016 presidential contest.” Freedom Partners sits at the center of this vast operation. According to their website, “Freedom Partners, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(6) chamber of commerce that promotes the benefits of free markets and a free society…and…works with businesses, both large and small, to promote and preserve the foundations of a free society. (They) focus primarily on four issue areas: health care reform, federal spending, energy policy, and cronyism.” Charles and David Koch, “…intend to continue building an operation that could exceed the national political parties in size and scope to help advance their libertarian principles.” They spent more than double the nearly $400 million the Republican National Committee (RNC) raised and spent during the 2012 presidential election cycle as well as 290 million to help shape 2014 election results.
All of the above may seem fine, if you truly believe you will personally benefit from their economic, social and moral philosophies. I, however, am worried.
I worry about health care for my family, my friends, my community, and the less fortunate. I worry that the staggering cost of health care, without support from the Affordable Care Act, will force people to choose between living life to its fullest and barely being able to exist. I have witnessed a family member struggle to pay the Medicare Part B premium and feel her only recourse was to eat cereal twice a day to make ends meet. I shudder to think about her Social Security & Medicare benefits being slashed.
I worry about Federal spending being redirected from education, social reforms and energy oversight to enable large tax breaks and advantages for big corporations.
And yes, I worry about cronyism. Beginning in January, NYSUT and coalition partners sponsored and participated in Moral Mondays. I look forward to joining together with my Sisters and Brothers on Monday, March 2nd at the Million Dollar Staircase in Albany to share in spreading the collective message of “…fighting for fairness in education funding and stopping privatization of public education.” Moral Mondays began as a grassroots movement in North Carolina to protest: suppression of voter and labor rights; cuts to education, social programs and unemployment benefits; and a rejection to Medicaid expansion.
On a positive note, 82 Legislators signed a letter to Governor Cuomo, expressing concerns that the promises in the Campaign for Fiscal Equality for school districts throughout NY State were not being fulfilled. These courageous Legislators understand the need for NY State to invest in the future of our children and “…how important it is to improve schools and reduce inequality that exists across the state, in rural communities, suburban areas, and cities large and small.”
It’s time to bring back the joy of learning vs. a fear of testing; recommence compassion for all and rekindle humanitarianism over cronyism.