A blogfriend's post, worthy of rebroadcast.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
LET THEM EAT MORE CAKE
Last week Mr. Bush signed an executive order suspending something called the Davis-Bacon Act. The 1931 law requires federally-funded contractors to pay laborers the prevailing wage in the area where the construction takes place. In New Orleans, the prevailing rate for construction workers is $9 an hour.
The weight of Mr. Bush's suspension of Davis-Bacon is that contractors who have been given no bid and cost plus contracts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina may pay workers as little as they will take.
Hmm...let's see: homeless, unemployed, workers offered five or six bucks an hour on a take-it-or-leave-it basis by corporations guaranteed a fixed percentage of profit… That sounds about right. That's the American spirit I celebrate each and every Labor Day. And it's certainly what I imagine Jesus would do.
Is there no upright man or woman in the Congress who will call this man to account for this evil? Is there no prophet in the land to wake him from this spell? Does he not have a single friend with the heart to break his heart on behalf of the oppressed?
Not today. Today is business as usual.
It's a good thing Mr. Bush doesn't read. Otherwise he might hear the words of God and turn in mid-stride and spoil everything.
You can read more of Jim's stuff by clicking on the Hancock link under my FRIENDS section.
posted by Steve at 12:15 AM
3 Comments:
Hmmm, let's look at it in the other direction as well. Let's say you bring in workers from other areas and other contractors (yes, I'm looking at you, Mr. Halliburon... er, I mean Cheney). They can now be paid at higher rates than they would be paid under the law.
8:38 AM
Wow! You know, in a tragedy like this storm, everyone is angry and wants to blame somebody. It is beyond my understanding that people reduce this to Bush-bashing. There is so much more to the story. I have never witnessed anything like the hatred that exists for this man.
10:10 AM
I hear you, bird. I don't think it's one man's fault. However...this proves what a lot of people say about republicans - the no-bid contracts, etc. They don't deal fairly with labor, and it does rule in favor of corporations, in that regard.
If it's a perception problem we have, W needs not suspend things like Davis-Bacon. It sends a message that He doesn't care....
12:14 AM
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