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How killing pensions rousted teachers in Alaska
At first, I didn’t take it seriously. “What politician in their right mind,” I thought, “would want to strip Alaska public employees of their pensions, especially since they have already been denied Social Security?” It was 2005, and conservative legislators were pushing to do just that. Moreover, this was way beyond a strictly local effort. […]
Medicare for All offers a real solution
The United States spends more per person on health care than any other country. We are not talking a smidgeon more, we are talking a lot more. As of 2021 we spent an average of $12,914 per year per person. The runner-up, Germany, spent an average of $7,383 per person. We spend at least 70% […]
Nuclear reactors in Alaska: First, let’s poke out our eyes
Here’s a swell idea. We’ll bury a bunch of nuclear bombs on the North Slope right near the Chukchi Sea, detonate them and create an artificial harbor. Not really sure how it will affect people, animals, plants or water in the area…but we’ll find out afterwards. This was seriously advocated in the late 1950s and […]
Social Security is a bedrock of Alaska and the entire U.S.
“We can never insure 100% of the population against 100% of the hazards and vicissitudes of life. But we have tried to frame a law which will give some measure of protection to the average citizen and to his family against the loss of a job and against poverty-ridden old age.” –Franklin D. Roosevelt, Aug. […]