Legislators On BART Strike: ‘The Time Is Now To Start The Healing’

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

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As we return to the topic of BART:

Our thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

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Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

LikeLike

That is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

Temper Temper Anti-Union and Sexist Troll:

This is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Glazer won't even get into the top two. It will be Tim Sbranti and the Republican woman, Baker (the only woman in the race.) Tim will have too many precinct walkers and volunteers plus money from police,fire, teachers and nurses to lose. He will also have both Glazer's and Arnerich's support in the general election.

It's not a Contra Costa seat even though they have a few more registered voters. It's a Democratic seat for sure though as more and more progressives make up the district. It's gone from Contra Costa to Alameda County to Contra Costa with Joan Buchanan. It will go back to Alameda again since Tim has all the major Contra Costa and Alameda Democrats lined up in support, including Joan Buchanan who is extremely popular in the district, and will most likely appear with him at campaign events and mail pieces.

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Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

A message from our next Assemblyman Steve Glazer:

Six months ago, calling for a ban on BART strikes might have seemed ludicrous. Yet after 20,000 of us took action against the strikes, organized and signed the petition, a recent Bay Area survey showed that the majority of residents now support a ban.

With your help, we have put an issue on the map and built momentum for sensible change.

But as you know, change is never easy. Yesterday in the State Legislature, the BART workers union quickly killed a bill to ban BART strikes. You can see the TV news story here.

The sad fact is that our elected representatives were intimidated and hid under the bed. It’s no wonder they’re scared. When I first rallied public opinion behind a ban on BART strikes, a labor leader accosted me in a restaurant and told me “you have sealed the nail in your coffin.”

But I’m not backing down, and neither should you. With your help, I will win my campaign for State Assembly and together we can solve this problem. I call it the BART Riders' Revenge.

The Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle and Contra Costa Times have all written about my race, calling it one of the most hotly contested Assembly races in California.

It pits the independent outsider (me) against the most powerful special interests in the state. Usually the moneyed interests prevail. But the pundits smell an upset in the making because I have the background and broad community base (you) to get my message out.

The BART workers union has already pledged to do everything in their power to destroy my candidacy. They want to send a message to any other candidate in California with the courage to take an independent stand. I know I can prevail – with your help.

Will you pledge to support my campaign for State Assembly? There are so many ways to help – making a small donation, posting a yard sign, volunteering, holding a house party. If you can do any of these things, please click HERE to send me an email.

Anything you can do will make a difference.

Thanks so much for your support.

Steve Glazer

Council Member

City of Orinda

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

We're with you, Steve. Thanks.

You give a damn about the public, and we'll remember it! You don't shit on the public like the union whores always do!

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

This is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

This is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

Thank you, Assemblyman Glazer:

A message from Assemblyman Steve Glazer:

Six months ago, calling for a ban on BART strikes might have seemed ludicrous. Yet after 20,000 of us took action against the strikes, organized and signed the petition, a recent Bay Area survey showed that the majority of residents now support a ban.

With your help, we have put an issue on the map and built momentum for sensible change.

But as you know, change is never easy. Yesterday in the State Legislature, the BART workers union quickly killed a bill to ban BART strikes. You can see the TV news story here.

The sad fact is that our elected representatives were intimidated and hid under the bed. It’s no wonder they’re scared. When I first rallied public opinion behind a ban on BART strikes, a labor leader accosted me in a restaurant and told me “you have sealed the nail in your coffin.”

But I’m not backing down, and neither should you. With your help, I will win my campaign for State Assembly and together we can solve this problem. I call it the BART Riders' Revenge.

The Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle and Contra Costa Times have all written about my race, calling it one of the most hotly contested Assembly races in California.

It pits the independent outsider (me) against the most powerful special interests in the state. Usually the moneyed interests prevail. But the pundits smell an upset in the making because I have the background and broad community base (you) to get my message out.

The BART workers union has already pledged to do everything in their power to destroy my candidacy. They want to send a message to any other candidate in California with the courage to take an independent stand. I know I can prevail – with your help.

Will you pledge to support my campaign for State Assembly? There are so many ways to help – making a small donation, posting a yard sign, volunteering, holding a house party. If you can do any of these things, please click HERE to send me an email.

Anything you can do will make a difference.

Thanks so much for your support.

Steve Glazer

Council Member

City of Orinda

LikeLike

Temper Temper anti union sexist and childish Hayward troll. When you resort to swearing and sexist language— you have lost and know it.

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

John Q. Citizen
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

LikeLike

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Temper Temper anti union sexist and childish Hayward troll. When you resort to swearing and sexist language— you have lost and know it.

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

John Q. Citizen
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

This is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

Back to the issue of BART:

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

What do Tim Sbranti, Joan Buchanan, Susan Bonilla, Tom Torlakson and Mark DeSaulnier all have in common?

They all had the endorsements of Teachers, Nurses, Deputy Sheriffs, Labor Councils, Democratic party, etc. This gives them the phone bankers and precinct walkers they need to win. Your candidate will have very few endorsements and the hundreds of volunteers needed to win this campaign.

This is how it is in both Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. Politics 1A and 1B the combined course.

LikeLike

A message from Assemblyman Steve Glazer:

Six months ago, calling for a ban on BART strikes might have seemed ludicrous. Yet after 20,000 of us took action against the strikes, organized and signed the petition, a recent Bay Area survey showed that the majority of residents now support a ban.

With your help, we have put an issue on the map and built momentum for sensible change.

But as you know, change is never easy. Yesterday in the State Legislature, the BART workers union quickly killed a bill to ban BART strikes. You can see the TV news story here.

The sad fact is that our elected representatives were intimidated and hid under the bed. It’s no wonder they’re scared. When I first rallied public opinion behind a ban on BART strikes, a labor leader accosted me in a restaurant and told me “you have sealed the nail in your coffin.”

But I’m not backing down, and neither should you. With your help, I will win my campaign for State Assembly and together we can solve this problem. I call it the BART Riders' Revenge.

The Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle and Contra Costa Times have all written about my race, calling it one of the most hotly contested Assembly races in California.

It pits the independent outsider (me) against the most powerful special interests in the state. Usually the moneyed interests prevail. But the pundits smell an upset in the making because I have the background and broad community base (you) to get my message out.

The BART workers union has already pledged to do everything in their power to destroy my candidacy. They want to send a message to any other candidate in California with the courage to take an independent stand. I know I can prevail – with your help.

Will you pledge to support my campaign for State Assembly? There are so many ways to help – making a small donation, posting a yard sign, volunteering, holding a house party. If you can do any of these things, please click HERE to send me an email.

Anything you can do will make a difference.

Thanks so much for your support.

Steve Glazer

Council Member

City of Orinda

LikeLike

Our thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

This is why your man Glazer can't win: His BART stand hurt him.

Went to Tim Sbranti's site and found this-In spite of the one Glazer supporter who keeps posting, it looks like Tim is a winner and will be our new Assemblyman

I am honored to endorse Tim Sbranti for State Assembly. As an educator, Tim understands the challenges our schools face and the importance of education to improving our economy. As Mayor of Dublin, Tim understands the challenges of our cities of ensuring our quality of life and attracting new businesses. He also understands the need to be fiscally responsible and live within our budget. His knowledge and experience will prove to be valuable assets in the Assembly.

-Assemblymember Joan Buchanan

With Joan's support along with the teachers and nurses Tim Sbranti wins easily. He will have all the walkers and hundreds of volunteers. You'll be saying Assemblyman Sbranti.

LikeLike

A message from Assemblyman Steve Glazer:

Six months ago, calling for a ban on BART strikes might have seemed ludicrous. Yet after 20,000 of us took action against the strikes, organized and signed the petition, a recent Bay Area survey showed that the majority of residents now support a ban.

With your help, we have put an issue on the map and built momentum for sensible change.

But as you know, change is never easy. Yesterday in the State Legislature, the BART workers union quickly killed a bill to ban BART strikes. You can see the TV news story here.

The sad fact is that our elected representatives were intimidated and hid under the bed. It’s no wonder they’re scared. When I first rallied public opinion behind a ban on BART strikes, a labor leader accosted me in a restaurant and told me “you have sealed the nail in your coffin.”

But I’m not backing down, and neither should you. With your help, I will win my campaign for State Assembly and together we can solve this problem. I call it the BART Riders' Revenge.

The Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle and Contra Costa Times have all written about my race, calling it one of the most hotly contested Assembly races in California.

It pits the independent outsider (me) against the most powerful special interests in the state. Usually the moneyed interests prevail. But the pundits smell an upset in the making because I have the background and broad community base (you) to get my message out.

The BART workers union has already pledged to do everything in their power to destroy my candidacy. They want to send a message to any other candidate in California with the courage to take an independent stand. I know I can prevail – with your help.

Will you pledge to support my campaign for State Assembly? There are so many ways to help – making a small donation, posting a yard sign, volunteering, holding a house party. If you can do any of these things, please click HERE to send me an email.

Anything you can do will make a difference.

Thanks so much for your support.

Steve Glazer

Council Member

City of Orinda

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

Bob Huff deserves the PUBLIC'S thanks and eternal gratitude. He gives a damn. This is not over.

If the SPACE HO had been listening it was said that this legislation will be introduced going forward in other committees. This was only the first step.

The public will will this eventually. Down with the union whores!

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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Temper Temper antiunion troll. Steve Glazer doesn't have a chance and you know it. Tim Sbranti will kick his ass and you know it.

P.S. Stop pretending to be Steve Glazer. Are you really that mentally ill that you have pretend to be another person. LOL

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We're with you, Steve. Thanks.

You give a damn about the public, and we'll remember it!

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Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

LikeLike

Temper Temper anti union sexist and childish Hayward troll. When you resort to swearing and sexist language— you have lost and know it.

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Our thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

Temper Temper anti union sexist and childish Hayward troll. When you resort to swearing and sexist language— you have lost and know it.

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

LikeLike

Our thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

LikeLike

Chronicle makes excellent case. Strikes to be banned.

I'm on board.

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.

She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

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You are dreaming if you think the legislature will do what you want. The Supreme Court of Calif. has ruled that public employees have the right to strike and they have more conservative Republicans on it than Dems. Even Brown said he would look at any bill brought before him, but that management and the unions argued against binding arbitration, and he didn't see any way a bill taking away the right to strike would ever get to him. You can keep dreaming but it will never happen in your lifetime or mine. I'm not opposed to binding arbitration for public safety as the Supreme Court said, but it will never happen for public inconvenience.

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Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

A recent analysis compiled for The Chronicle by the nonpartisan MapLight.org found the Service Employees International Union, which represents many BART workers, contributed $2.6 million to state Senate and Assembly candidates during the 2011-12 election cycle. The Amalgamated Transit Union, the other major BART union, gave $311,570 to state Senate and Assembly candidates over the same period.
$11.4 million for Prop. 30

SEIU also dropped $11.4 million into last year's campaign for Proposition 30, the successful measure that Gov. Jerry Brown put on the ballot to raise taxes and bail the state out of its fiscal hole.

“I'm disappointed, but it's not surprising that no Democratic legislators have stood up and supported a ban on transit strikes,” said Glazer, a former adviser to Brown. “People have to activate and let legislators know they are accountable to the voting public.”

And that's apparently just what Keller has in mind.

As for his chances to get the rest of the BART directors on board, “I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't think I had a chance, but I wouldn't bet my mortgage on it yet.”

As for the unions, they haven't addressed the idea of banning strikes.

Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross are San Francisco Chronicle columnists. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or e-mail matierandross@sfchronicle.com.

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Chronicle makes excellent case. Strikes to be banned.

I'm on board.

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

John Q. Citizen
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

LikeLike

Most antiunion letters express class resentment over BART salaries and benefits. There's hardly a word about the ratio between the highest paid administrators and the lowest paid BART worker. The unions are fighting for good pay and benefits as well as safety, and trying to stop the austerity policies that are sweeping the globe. If you want those salaries, benefits and safety work rules, then unionize.

John Q Public–The silent majority

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

John Q. Citizen
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

LikeLike

Thank you, future Assemblyman Steve Glazer.

BART directors wisely rejected part of this flawed contract, but they still must do more.

The latest BART contract shocker is the newly discovered cost of a disputed family-leave provision. No one really should be surprised: Most of the contract details have been hidden from riders, taxpayers and even BART's own directors.

Every BART commuter and Bay Area taxpayer should root for the BART Board to reject this contract – not just because of its unsustainable costs and weak work-rule reforms, but because it does nothing – zero – to prevent the next BART strike.

And get ready. Because another strike is inevitable.

We deserved better. After suffering eight days of strike and four days of midnight misery as we waited to learn whether the trains would run the next morning, we are left with an absolute surrender. The contract negotiated by BART management:

— Raises BART costs by at least $67 million over four years. The final labor costs negotiated by management is as much as 48 percent higher than BART's “last, best and final” offer (16.4 percent compounded salary increase over four years, plus bonuses). This does not even include the disputed family-leave benefit clause – which may cost tens of millions more. Existing revenues will not cover these costs. Undoubtedly, fares will be raised and new debt-financing proposals floated.

— Adds non-safety work rules that are no different than what we learned in kindergarten: Be honest, don't cheat, be diligent and responsible. And don't skip the fine print – work rules changes are subject to binding arbitration, so they might raise BART costs even more. Management uses work rule changes to justify the higher pay and benefits.

— Does nothing to prevent the next strike. In fact, the new contract retains a key provision that serves to encourage future strikes: the ban on training replacement workers until a strike begins. Because it takes weeks for workers to be fully and safely trained, BART riders can again be held hostage by union leaders.

This last provision is the key. BART management surrendered to its employees because it believed, in the face of the strike, that it had no better option to get the trains running again. It's not just BART riders who are hurt by a strike. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that each day of a BART strike sucks $73 million out of the regional economy. It also harms our environment by forcing riders into their cars and wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million pounds of carbon into the air we breathe.

BART is facing escalating pension costs and enormous capital needs. The most disappointing element of this conflict is how it has eroded public confidence in our transit managers when future needs and improvements demand just the opposite.

People have had enough. More than 20,000 Bay Area residents already have signed a petition asking state lawmakers to add California to New York, Massachusetts, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, governments that restrict transit strikes.

This episode proves why a state law is needed to backstop a regional body such as the BART board. Whatever the board's intentions, it is not equipped to handle a highly combustible labor situation.

The latest dispute over whether the family-leave provision was part of the final labor package reinforces the need to prevent BART riders and our economy from bearing the consequences of management and union dysfunction.

Until our elected leaders listen and act, it will be deja vu all over again.

Steve Glazer is an Orinda City Council member and organizer of the Ban BART Strikes Web page.

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.

No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

LikeLike

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

My thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, Merry fuckin Xmas, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

To the Space HO, here is YOUR present since you are the ONLY ONE to read or write anything here. This one's for you, bitch:

My thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, Merry fuckin Xmas, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

To the union whores:

Merry fuckin Xmas, ya'll! Your day of being thrown under the BART express is just about here. You will never be able to fuck with the public again. We own the system, not you. After anti-strike leg. passes in the next session, you will lick your chops and ask the question “Why were we such sickening whores who always screwed the public so that we could reap the gravy train express!”

Always for the public, Merry fuckin Xmas, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

John Q. Public
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

LikeLike

Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.

No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

LikeLike

Do you even read your own posts? From your 11:37

Logan, however, said strike bans are unlikely to get far in the Legislature, where union-friendly Democrats enjoy a two-thirds supermajority.

“And as for putting it on the ballot,” Logan said, “do you think anybody in Southern California would care about that?”

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Anyone who has been on strike knows what a hardship it is for all including the public, management and the workers.

Fortunately, enough working folks have been willing to bear that hardship so that progress as the 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, overtime pay,child labor laws, living wages, the weekend and the right to strike have been secured for many of us.

This right has created the middle class, which was instrumental in keeping our economy going as more of us were able to purchase the goods and services we needed and wanted. This middle class has started to shrink as the labor movement is weakened and our economy has weakened along with it.

One of the biggest fights was over working conditions, particularly safety! A few years ago a BART employee needlessly lost his life as he inspected the tracks. There was not enough done to correct this and now two more employees have lost their lives needlessly. The lack of real leadership at BART, particularly their overpaid general manager Grace Crucican't, is quite distressing.

P.S. Live in Fremont, ride BART, don't belong to a union, but wish I did.

LikeLike

One thing we can do is put pressure on the BART Board to fire the General Manager and reduce the levels of management to save millions of dollars over the next few years and put that money to work sprucing up our BART stations.

LikeLike

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

The anti-union troll's extreme predictions are really his opinions.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. His predictions or opinions are mostly proven wrong.

LikeLike

My thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, Merry fuckin Xmas, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

Here comes the BART PUBLIC EXPRESS, rolling down the tracks:

Fresh from grinding labor negotiations and two strikes, BART board member Joel Keller on Thursday plans to propose a three-county advisory ballot measure supporting state legislation to ban the transit district's 2,500 union workers from walking off the job.

Future labor disputes would instead have to be settled by binding arbitration – no strikes allowed.

“We have to do something to change the cycle, where the negotiations create chaos, disrupt the economy and people don't know from one day to the next if BART is going to be on strike,” Keller said.

Keller, who is expected to take over as board president at BART's meeting Thursday, said he wouldn't push for other changes to the district's collective bargaining process as part of the planned November 2014 measure.

“But I think conflict resolution has gotten out of hand, and I think fact-finding and arbitration are better than a strike,” he said Wednesday.

According to BART board Secretary Ken Duron, the directors have the authority to place a measure before voters in San Francisco, Alameda and Contra Costa counties – places where the district has elected representatives.
No strikes at Muni

BART wouldn't be the first transit agency to ban strikes; San Francisco's Muni drivers already are barred.

Keller's move comes just days after a statewide Field Poll found that, for the first time, a plurality of California voters have a negative view of labor unions. The poll also found voters split on the right to strike, with 47 percent saying that public transit employees should have the right to walk off the job, while 44 percent said they should not.
Legislature must vote

Still, it would be up to the Legislature to change state law on transit strikes – and that's already proving a tough political sale.

Two Democrats from suburban Contra Costa – state Sen. Mark DeSaulnier, D-Concord, and Assembly candidate and Orinda City Councilman Steve Glazer – floated the ban idea after BART strikes in July and October. Glazer even collected 20,000 names in an online petition in support of the idea.

And Republican state Sen. Bob Huff of Diamond Bar (Los Angeles County) has introduced legislation to strip BART employees of the right to strike.

But that's as far as it has gone, in part because BART officials hadn't supported the idea, and some experts in labor law have questioned the effectiveness of a no-strike provision.

One thing's for sure: Unions, traditional friends of Democrats, will put up a fight.

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The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

The anti-union troll's extreme predictions are really his opinions.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. His predictions or opinions are mostly proven wrong.

LikeLike

We all agree. Space HO is a real abomination and belongs back in Napa, where her troll fat ass can be medicated and warehoused. Don't need her type in our community.

Bitch needs to have her plug pulled like the one in Children's.

What do the Space HO and the dead one in the hospital have in common: both are vegetables.

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It looks like the antiunion sexist troll is incapable of any intelligent or meaningful dialogue which shouldn't surprise anyone. If anyone is still reading this string you will see that only children like the antiunion troll have to resort to sexist remarks and swearing to try an have a conversation. That usually happens when they feel they have lost the argument. Please get the help you need from a professional. Think of it this way—even though what you wish for won't happen, middle class wages and benefits will benefit our society.

LikeLike

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

The anti-union troll's extreme predictions are really his opinions.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. His predictions or opinions are mostly proven wrong.

LikeLike

My thanks to Grace Crunican, Joel Keller, Mark Desaulnier, of course our mentor Steve Glazer, and most of all John Q. Public.

All of these folks care about the public not the entrenched interests. John, you've even inspired me to borrow your catch phrase, which I now proudly use as a bumper sticker on my wife's and my cars. Here's to you, John!

Always for the public, and FUCK THE UNION WHORES!

LikeLike

Thank you, Joel Keller–we love you!

We'll have your back as the union whores attempt to vilify you and stab you in the back. Their day of reckoning is coming and the public will be the winners as we take back our BART from the entrenched larded interests.

The gravy train aint rolling down the tracks no mas!

LikeLike

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

LikeLike

To the ANTI UNION CHAUVINIST PIG above who posted the last 3 posts

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it. LMAO

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A recent analysis compiled for The Chronicle by the nonpartisan MapLight.org found the Service Employees International Union, which represents many BART workers, contributed $2.6 million to state Senate and Assembly candidates during the 2011-12 election cycle. The Amalgamated Transit Union, the other major BART union, gave $311,570 to state Senate and Assembly candidates over the same period.
$11.4 million for Prop. 30

SEIU also dropped $11.4 million into last year's campaign for Proposition 30, the successful measure that Gov. Jerry Brown put on the ballot to raise taxes and bail the state out of its fiscal hole.

“I'm disappointed, but it's not surprising that no Democratic legislators have stood up and supported a ban on transit strikes,” said Glazer, a former adviser to Brown. “People have to activate and let legislators know they are accountable to the voting public.”

And that's apparently just what Keller has in mind.

As for his chances to get the rest of the BART directors on board, “I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't think I had a chance, but I wouldn't bet my mortgage on it yet.”

As for the unions, they haven't addressed the idea of banning strikes.

Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross are San Francisco Chronicle columnists. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or e-mail matierandross@sfchronicle.com.

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited below. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” I think he is correct.

John Q Public

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Thank you, Joel Keller–we love you!

We'll have your back as the union whores attempt to vilify you and stab you in the back. Their day of reckoning is coming and the public will be the winners as we take back our BART from the entrenched larded interests.

The gravy train aint rolling down the tracks no mas!

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Most antiunion letters express class resentment over BART salaries and benefits but don't resort to sexism and name calling because it shows a lack of intelligence. There's hardly a word about the ratio between the highest paid administrators and the lowest paid BART worker. The unions are fighting for good pay and benefits as well as safety, and trying to stop the austerity policies that are sweeping the globe. If you want those salaries, benefits and safety work rules, then unionize.

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The last 4 posts on this topic have all come from the antiunion sexist Troll who has 2/3 rds of the posts on this string.

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited below. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” I think he is correct.

John Q Public

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A recent analysis compiled for The Chronicle by the nonpartisan MapLight.org found the Service Employees International Union, which represents many BART workers, contributed $2.6 million to state Senate and Assembly candidates during the 2011-12 election cycle. The Amalgamated Transit Union, the other major BART union, gave $311,570 to state Senate and Assembly candidates over the same period.
$11.4 million for Prop. 30

SEIU also dropped $11.4 million into last year's campaign for Proposition 30, the successful measure that Gov. Jerry Brown put on the ballot to raise taxes and bail the state out of its fiscal hole.

“I'm disappointed, but it's not surprising that no Democratic legislators have stood up and supported a ban on transit strikes,” said Glazer, a former adviser to Brown. “People have to activate and let legislators know they are accountable to the voting public.”

And that's apparently just what Keller has in mind.

As for his chances to get the rest of the BART directors on board, “I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't think I had a chance, but I wouldn't bet my mortgage on it yet.”

As for the unions, they haven't addressed the idea of banning strikes.

Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross are San Francisco Chronicle columnists. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or e-mail matierandross@sfchronicle.com.

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You don't stand by your statement. You lie–on the train tracks.

The public is rolling right over you and your demented fantasies, Space HO!

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Most antiunion letters express class resentment over BART salaries and benefits. There's hardly a word about the ratio between the highest paid administrators and the lowest paid BART worker. The unions are fighting for good pay and benefits as well as safety, and trying to stop the austerity policies that are sweeping the globe. If you want those salaries, benefits and safety work rules, then unionize.

John Q Public–The silent majority

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This is so over the top ridiculous, to now claim a clerical error after the vote has been taken to the unions to ratify. BART Board, ratify the contract and do not put us commuters at further risk of strikes. If you all remember, both sides had agreed on *everything* except the safety rules, and the need for the safety rules was highlighted by the unfortunate deaths of two workers, showing that the union concerns were valid. To go back to the bargaining table now shows bad faith.

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” It is totally unprecedented for an employer, after extensive negotiations and where they have signed off on individual tentative agreements, to later come back and say, Oh, we made a mistake, said veteran Boalt law school professor David Rosenfeld.

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No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

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BART employees “continue to be in the fire for taking a stand for getting a living wage and decent health care benefits,” said Anna Bakalis, a spokeswoman for Service Employees International Union Local 1021, one of the BART unions that went on strike this year.

“Unfortunately, the riding public is caught in the crosshairs,” Bakalis said.

Unions in California are in better shape than elsewhere in the country. Seventeen percent of workers in the state are union members, compared with 11 percent nationally. And while union membership dropped in nearly every state last year, unions in California gained 110,000 members, said John Logan, a professor of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University.

Unions also retain political power in Sacramento. This fall, they persuaded Gov. Jerry Brown to sign a measure raising the minimum wage to $10 an hour – the highest in the nation – by 2016.
Big issue next year

Politically, bad feelings from the BART strikes may have an effect in 2014.

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and four other California mayors are trying to qualify a ballot initiative that would force public employees to pay more toward their retirement. This month, state Sen. Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar (Los Angeles County), introduced a measure that would bar public transit workers from striking. Steve Glazer, an Orinda city councilman whose constituents spent idle hours on Highway 24 during the BART strikes, has made such legislation a cornerstone of his Assembly campaign.

Logan, however, said strike bans are unlikely to get far in the Legislature, where union-friendly Democrats enjoy a two-thirds supermajority.

“And as for putting it on the ballot,” Logan said, “do you think anybody in Southern California would care about that?”

The Field Poll surveyed 1,002 registered voters in California between Nov. 14 and Dec. 5. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.

Joe Garofoli is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli

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On behalf of the residents of Alameda County, we want to thank Senators De Saulnier and Huff for introducing the anti-strike legislation that will soon restore the rights of the PUBLIC, not the entrenched interests. We also thank soon to be Assemblyman-elect Steve Glazer for carrying forward our concerns as well.

Gentlemen, you GET IT and give a damn about us, the riding public. We applaud your bravery against the bureaucracy and union whores who would and have held us hostage for the very last time.

John Q. Public
The official representative of the BART-riding public.

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EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY!

'SF Chronicle' 12-11-13

If we're going to rely on mass transit, we have to make mass transit reliable.

As pointed out by The Chronicle, Bay Area legislators have been promoting mass transit for decades. Californians like mass transit – when their mass transit systems work. But when taxpayer- and rider-funded transit systems shut down over salary and benefit disputes, it has a devastating impact on families and the economy. Students and teachers can't attend classes. Workers don't get paid because they're stranded. Worse, the traffic nightmares can impair the ability of police and firefighters to keep us safe. Nearly every major mass transit system in the United States is prohibited from striking. It's time for California to follow suit.

Three months ago, I put forward a balanced solution to keep BART running on time while allowing contract negotiations to continue. It required BART unions to honor the no-strike clause in their contracts. They ignored it and went on strike a second time, disrupting the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. #BARTStrike was one of the highest trending topics on Twitter because just about everyone resented being caught in the middle – especially when both sides acted so arrogantly.

According to the state controller's office, there are approximately 400 public transit agencies in California serving millions of riders on 1.3 billion trips each year. When union contracts are up, threats of strikes increase dramatically. Workers for the two largest transit systems in California – San Francisco and Los Angeles – have combined to strike nine times since 1976. Management is just as responsible for creating these situations, and enough is enough.

Shutting down public transit is neither safe nor fair. That's why when the Legislature returns in January, I'll expand my bill to ban strikes against public transit systems in California. This is not a radical idea. It's based on New York's Taylor Law, which prohibits public employee strikes. That law was passed by a progressive Legislature.

It's already against the law for California police officers and firefighters to strike because they provide essential public services. It's time we recognize that public transit is also an essential public service that must be protected. Public transit employees should be prohibited from abandoning the millions of riders who ride public transit each year in California.

My bill is a reasoned response to a very real problem. By design, public transit is a day-to-day necessity for millions of Californians who have no other way to get to work, see a doctor or go to school. Local and state governments have adopted policies that encourage, if not compel, us to use public transit. It's not right to make people dependent on public transit but fail to make sure those systems stay up and running dependably.

We must also adopt laws to keep transit running.

Both management and unions claim they want to negotiate contracts at the bargaining table, and that's how it should be. Not everybody is going to like this proposal, and I know there will be intense lobbying to persuade some lawmakers to oppose it. It will take both Democrats and Republicans in the California Legislature to stand up and do the right thing.

Public transit is a vital public service, and it's too important to be used as a bargaining chip against the needs of the people.

Sen. Bob Huff, Diamond Bar (Los Angeles County), serves as the state Senate Republican leader.

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

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The General Manager of BART, Grace Crunican't, should be fired or asked to resign like she was in her last job in Seattle. She and other managers(and they have many multiple layers of management), are overpaid even more, with even more benefits, than the rest of the BART workers. She snatched defeat from sure victory. What an overpaid joke she is!

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” It is totally unprecedented for an employer, after extensive negotiations and where they have signed off on individual tentative agreements, to later come back and say, Oh, we made a mistake, said veteran labor attorney and Boalt law school professor David Rosenfeld.”

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No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

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Now the anti union, sexist, foul mouthed troll thinks he knows more than a Boalt law school professor. When you get your law degree you might not sound so stupid.

The smart John Q. Public not the sexist, anti union stupid one.
Always for the public and not an apologist for incompetent management. LOL

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” It is totally unprecedented for an employer, after extensive negotiations and where they have signed off on individual tentative agreements, to later come back and say, Oh, we made a mistake, said veteran labor attorney and Boalt law school professor David Rosenfeld.”

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After a 4 day strike in which 2 workers are killed, management agrees to give another 3% beyond what the workers said they would accept if management would take the work rules to binding arbitration. How stupid was management? I'm sure the union would have got the safety work rules they wanted and management would have got the technology work rules they wanted in binding arbitration.

Management also sent the wrong message at the start by hiring a known antiunion negotiator and antagonized the labor side needlessly. This $400,000 negotiator took frequent time off in the middle of negotiations much to the chagrin of most of us riders. What do we expect for 400,000 dollars?

I do agree that we probably won't get anything out of the legislative process or the initiative process. One thing we can do is put pressure on the BART Board to fire the General Manager and reduce the levels of management to save millions of dollars over the next few years and put that money to work sprucing up our BART stations.

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The General Manager of BART, Grace Crunican't, should be fired or asked to resign like she was in her last job in Seattle. She and other managers(and they have many multiple layers of management), are overpaid even more, with even more benefits, than the rest of the BART workers. She snatched defeat from sure victory. What an overpaid joke she is!

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Here is part of a S.F. Chronicle editorial:

Should the riders and taxpayers who are going to pay for this contract put their faith in management to come out of another round of negotiations with anything better. We say no.

BART's directors should train their attention on how BART's top management and the chief negotiator brought in for $399,000 allowed a potentially $44.2 million mistake to happen.

Anti union troll, even you should be calling for the firing of BART management. They are totally overpaid and incompetent.

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No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

LikeLike

Most antiunion letters express class resentment over BART salaries and benefits. There's hardly a word about the ratio between the highest paid administrators and the lowest paid BART worker. The unions are fighting for good pay and benefits as well as safety, and trying to stop the austerity policies that are sweeping the globe. If you want those salaries, benefits and safety work rules, then unionize.

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The poison pill provision of the union whore contract was rejected recently, and now the whores have broken down BART so that it wouldn't run. Really hated to be right, but I'm batting 1000. The public is the big loser in all of this. Boy, is reform coming.

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

If you continue to falsify my identity again, Space HO, legal action will be taken against your old, bloated fat ass–bitch.

John Q. Public

The official representative of, by, and for the people.

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Most antiunion letters express class resentment over BART salaries and benefits. There's hardly a word about the ratio between the highest paid administrators and the lowest paid BART worker. The unions are fighting for good pay and benefits as well as safety, and trying to stop the austerity policies that are sweeping the globe. If you want those salaries, benefits and safety work rules, then unionize.

LikeLike

No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.
John Q Public
OH YEAH

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Don't bet on the legislature, because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

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I review contracts at my company, and I actually READ the whole thing. BART had lots of supposedly competent people to review the contract, yet they agreed to it with these clauses, therefore…they AGREED to it, then the milktoasts back off. Time to dump every single staff member and consultant that was responsible for vetting the language. Whether it was in there “by accident” or deliberately, it was still in there.

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.
John Q Public OH YEAH

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The poison pill provision of the union whore contract was rejected yesterday, and today the whores have broken down BART so that it wouldn't run. Really hated to be right, but I'm batting 1000. The public is the big loser in all of this. Boy, is reform coming.

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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This is so over the top ridiculous, to now claim a clerical error after the vote has been taken to the unions to ratify. BART Board, ratify the contract and do not put us commuters at further risk of strikes. If you all remember, both sides had agreed on *everything* except the safety rules, and the need for the safety rules was highlighted by the unfortunate deaths of two workers, showing that the union concerns were valid. To go back to the bargaining table now shows bad faith. What say you antiunion sexist troll?

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Don't bet on the legislature, because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.
The real John Q Public

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BART directors wisely rejected part of this flawed contract, but they still must do more.

The latest BART contract shocker is the newly discovered cost of a disputed family-leave provision. No one really should be surprised: Most of the contract details have been hidden from riders, taxpayers and even BART's own directors.

Every BART commuter and Bay Area taxpayer should root for the BART Board to reject this contract – not just because of its unsustainable costs and weak work-rule reforms, but because it does nothing – zero – to prevent the next BART strike.

And get ready. Because another strike is inevitable.

We deserved better. After suffering eight days of strike and four days of midnight misery as we waited to learn whether the trains would run the next morning, we are left with an absolute surrender. The contract negotiated by BART management:

— Raises BART costs by at least $67 million over four years. The final labor costs negotiated by management is as much as 48 percent higher than BART's “last, best and final” offer (16.4 percent compounded salary increase over four years, plus bonuses). This does not even include the disputed family-leave benefit clause – which may cost tens of millions more. Existing revenues will not cover these costs. Undoubtedly, fares will be raised and new debt-financing proposals floated.

— Adds non-safety work rules that are no different than what we learned in kindergarten: Be honest, don't cheat, be diligent and responsible. And don't skip the fine print – work rules changes are subject to binding arbitration, so they might raise BART costs even more. Management uses work rule changes to justify the higher pay and benefits.

— Does nothing to prevent the next strike. In fact, the new contract retains a key provision that serves to encourage future strikes: the ban on training replacement workers until a strike begins. Because it takes weeks for workers to be fully and safely trained, BART riders can again be held hostage by union leaders.

This last provision is the key. BART management surrendered to its employees because it believed, in the face of the strike, that it had no better option to get the trains running again. It's not just BART riders who are hurt by a strike. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that each day of a BART strike sucks $73 million out of the regional economy. It also harms our environment by forcing riders into their cars and wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million pounds of carbon into the air we breathe.

BART is facing escalating pension costs and enormous capital needs. The most disappointing element of this conflict is how it has eroded public confidence in our transit managers when future needs and improvements demand just the opposite.

People have had enough. More than 20,000 Bay Area residents already have signed a petition asking state lawmakers to add California to New York, Massachusetts, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, governments that restrict transit strikes.

This episode proves why a state law is needed to backstop a regional body such as the BART board. Whatever the board's intentions, it is not equipped to handle a highly combustible labor situation.

The latest dispute over whether the family-leave provision was part of the final labor package reinforces the need to prevent BART riders and our economy from bearing the consequences of management and union dysfunction.

Until our elected leaders listen and act, it will be deja vu all over again.

Steve Glazer is an Orinda City Council member and organizer of the Ban BART Strikes Web page.

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure. How does she represent the people?

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Always for the public, and fuck the union whores!

John Q. Public.

The official representative of, by, and for the people

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.

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Thank you, Assemblyman Steve Glazer. You're the public's advocate.

Always for the public, and fuck the union whores!

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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Don't bet on the legislature, because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

LikeLike

Don't bet on the legislature, because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

LikeLike

This is so over the top ridiculous, to now claim a clerical error after the vote has been taken to the unions to ratify. BART Board, ratify the contract and do not put us commuters at further risk of strikes. If you all remember, both sides had agreed on *everything* except the safety rules, and the need for the safety rules was highlighted by the unfortunate deaths of two workers, showing that the union concerns were valid. To go back to the bargaining table now shows bad faith.

LikeLike

Don't bet on the legislature, because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

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The following is direct quotes from two paragraphs in yesterdays Chron. in the editorial section—in your face troll:

Should the riders and taxpayers who are going to pay for this contract put their faith in management to come out of another round of negotiations with anything better. We say no.

BART's directors should train their attention on how BART's top management and the chief negotiator brought in for $399,000 allowed a potentially $44.2 million mistake to happen.

The real John Q (non-sexist) Citizen

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Here is part of a S.F. Chronicle editorial:

Should the riders and taxpayers who are going to pay for this contract put their faith in management to come out of another round of negotiations with anything better. We say no.

BART's directors should train their attention on how BART's top management and the chief negotiator brought in for $399,000 allowed a potentially $44.2 million mistake to happen.

Anti union troll, even you should be calling for the firing of BART management. They are totally overpaid and incompetent.

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Thank you, Steve. YOU give a damn about the PUBLIC.

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No one could really be that stupid, could they? How could anyone in BART's management side fail to notice what was in the agreement before signing it.

What is clear is that these well compensated people either did not read the agreement or didn't understand it. Either way they should be fired for incompetence along with BART's legal advisors.

LikeLike

The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.She was asked to resign in Seattle for screw-ups, before she was hired here. Go figure.

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

LikeLike

I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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Need to read 'today's' news, kid. DeSaulnier is now offering up legislation to put a crucible through the hearts of the dirty union whores once and for all. The bill will be debuting in the next legislative session–next Feb.

The public wins and you lose!

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The BART Board is scheduled to vote next week on the new BART contract. Here is the truth about the proposed deal and the consequences.

The contract negotiated by BART management contains huge cost increases which will likely result in fare increases, new tax proposals, and will do nothing to prevent strikes in the future:

Raises BART costs at least $67 million dollars. The final deal negotiated by management is as much as 48% higher than BART’s “last, best and final” offer. Undoubtedly, fares will be raised multiple times during this contract period and new financing proposals floated. This will seriously impact riders and taxpayers.

Non-safety work rules are no different than what we learned in Kindergarten. The work rule changes negotiated by management are being used to justify the higher pay and benefit package. However, they are aren’t any different than what we learned in kindergarten: be honest, don't cheat, be diligent and responsible.

Does NOTHING to prevent a future strike. The new contract continues the ban on training replacement workers until after a strike happens. Because it takes many weeks to conduct this training, the BART riders and commuters can once again be held hostage in a future strike.

So, after suffering 8 days of strikes and 4 more nights of midnight misery as we waited to see if the trains were running the next day, we are left with an absolute surrender. And this will happen again, and again, and again, until we provide a backstop to the BART Board with a state ban on public transit strikes.

I am going to continue to speak out against this contract and for the transit ban. I commend BART Director Zakhary Mallet for having the courage to speak out against this bad deal. If you would like to communicate to your elected BART representative, you can find their emails here. And, you can find a district map here.

At a minimum, every elected BART Board member, whether they vote for this contract or not, should publicly support the ban on public transit strikes.

More than 20,000 people have signed our petition. We need many more if we are going to create a political force to counter the defenders of the status quo. Please continue to encourage your friends to join us at banBARTstrikes.com.

I appreciate everything you have done and we will keep up this fight together.

Steve Glazer

Council Member

City of Orinda

P.S. To see photos of our group of banBARTstrike.com volunteers delivering 20,000 signatures to State Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Mark DeSaulnier, like my Facebook page here.

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If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.

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I was right when I said that immigration 'reform' was DOA, and that was proven today. I'll bet on this, too. Legislature is already in the process of drafting and it will be offered up in the next session. Unions went off the deep end one time too many. It's precisely because of that that they have sealed their fate.

No short memories here. I guarantee it.

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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The General Manager of BART, Grace Crunican't, should be fired or asked to resign like she was in her last job in Seattle. She and other managers(and they have many multiple layers of management), are overpaid even more, with even more benefits, than the rest of the BART workers. She snatched defeat from sure victory. What an overpaid joke she is!

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Petition Background (Preamble):
BART carries nearly 375,000 passengers on an average week day. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that one day of a BART strikes cost the Bay Area economy $73 million. It also hurts our environment, wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million lbs of carbon into the air.

New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, and San Francisco restrict transit strikes. Due to the crippling impact a BART strike would have on the Bay Area and California economy, it is imperative that the State Legislature provide a backstop to the regional BART Board through a ban on BART strikes.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, support state legislation to prohibit public transit workers, including BART, from striking.

A BART strike will cripple our economy, hurt workers getting to their jobs, limit access to schools and health care, and damage our environment.

The impact of a BART strike will be felt across the state. It should not be in the hands of a regional BART board. We need a statewide law.
Sign the petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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I'm a Bart rider on a daily basis and thank the unions, management, legislators, etc. for the settlement. I believe this could have been settled a long time ago without a strike if the new management team hadn't hired a 400,000 dollar negotiator who specialized in causing strikes in other cities. He took weeks off in the middle of negotiations needlessly antagonized the other side. The safety concerns should have been addressed and solved in the beginning. As we just saw they were legitimate and management prevented them from going to binding arbitration. What a shame!

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Petition Background (Preamble):
BART carries nearly 375,000 passengers on an average week day. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that one day of a BART strikes cost the Bay Area economy $73 million. It also hurts our environment, wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million lbs of carbon into the air.

New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, and San Francisco restrict transit strikes. Due to the crippling impact a BART strike would have on the Bay Area and California economy, it is imperative that the State Legislature provide a backstop to the regional BART Board through a ban on BART strikes.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, support state legislation to prohibit public transit workers, including BART, from striking.

A BART strike will cripple our economy, hurt workers getting to their jobs, limit access to schools and health care, and damage our environment.

The impact of a BART strike will be felt across the state. It should not be in the hands of a regional BART board. We need a statewide law.
Sign the petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

I'm a Bart rider on a daily basis and thank the unions, management, legislators, etc. for the settlement. I believe this could have been settled a long time ago without a strike if the new management team hadn't hired a 400,000 dollar negotiator who specialized in causing strikes in other cities. He took weeks off in the middle of negotiations needlessly antagonized the other side. The safety concerns should have been addressed and solved in the beginning. As we just saw they were legitimate and management prevented them from going to binding arbitration. What a shame!

LikeLike

Petition Background (Preamble):
BART carries nearly 375,000 passengers on an average week day. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that one day of a BART strikes cost the Bay Area economy $73 million. It also hurts our environment, wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million lbs of carbon into the air.

New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, and San Francisco restrict transit strikes. Due to the crippling impact a BART strike would have on the Bay Area and California economy, it is imperative that the State Legislature provide a backstop to the regional BART Board through a ban on BART strikes.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, support state legislation to prohibit public transit workers, including BART, from striking.

A BART strike will cripple our economy, hurt workers getting to their jobs, limit access to schools and health care, and damage our environment.

The impact of a BART strike will be felt across the state. It should not be in the hands of a regional BART board. We need a statewide law.
Sign the petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

The General Manager of BART, Grace Crunican't, should be fired or asked to resign like she was in her last job in Seattle. She and other managers(and they have many multiple layers of management), are overpaid even more, with even more benefits, than the rest of the BART workers. She snatched defeat from sure victory. What an overpaid joke she is!

LikeLike

Petition Background (Preamble):
BART carries nearly 375,000 passengers on an average week day. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that one day of a BART strikes cost the Bay Area economy $73 million. It also hurts our environment, wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million lbs of carbon into the air.

New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, and San Francisco restrict transit strikes. Due to the crippling impact a BART strike would have on the Bay Area and California economy, it is imperative that the State Legislature provide a backstop to the regional BART Board through a ban on BART strikes.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, support state legislation to prohibit public transit workers, including BART, from striking.

A BART strike will cripple our economy, hurt workers getting to their jobs, limit access to schools and health care, and damage our environment.

The impact of a BART strike will be felt across the state. It should not be in the hands of a regional BART board. We need a statewide law.
Sign the petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

I'm a Bart rider on a daily basis and thank the unions, management, legislators, etc. for the settlement. I believe this could have been settled a long time ago without a strike if the new management team hadn't hired a 400,000 dollar negotiator who specialized in causing strikes in other cities. He took weeks off in the middle of negotiations needlessly antagonized the other side. The safety concerns should have been addressed and solved in the beginning. As we just saw they were legitimate and management prevented them from going to binding arbitration. What a shame!

LikeLike

Cleaning up Space HO's graffiti.

Yeah, with this kind of publicity and deeds our district really needs a yutz like Corbett. Not in this or any other lifetime, me says.

The entire congressional district is inside the BART district.

As noted in both the San Francisco Chronicle and the Hayward Daily Review (Argus, Tri Valley, etc ) Corbett was part of, if not the most aggressive legislator trying to pressure the BART board members into giving away the store to the BART unions.

This, after the public had made it clear that they wanted BART to hold firm with the 12% wage offer and to demand more contributions for pensions and especially medical and dental.

Corbett was part of the Thursday night arm twisting trying to prevent a strike by caving in to the unions.
The public saw those legislators as selling out the public's interests. Both that of taxpayers and fare paying passengers.

The, the BART management under pressure, including that from legislators like Corbett, caved in and gave away the store.
Popping up the wage offer from 12.0% to 15.38% overnight.
Anger is not a unreasonable word for how most of the public felt.
Corbett was leading the charge to have BART cave in to the excess demands.
She can't disown the play she made to get the union vote and campaign money from the BART workers.

I'm thinking many moderate Democrats West of the hills as well as everyone East of the hills is not going to be pleased with Corbett's working behind their backs to foist higher future fares onto the riders so that BART workers can keep their lofty compensation packages.

Perhaps Corbett can explain why she was fighting to have BART union members get their entire families covered for full medical, dental and vision for only $129 a month when many of us are paying over $500 a month for one person and that, without any dental at all.

Gold plated benefits and a excessive pay raise is what Corbett's pressure tactics contribute to.
Guess who will be paying that bill over the next 5 to 10 years?

The very same voters who reside in the congressional district that Corbett wants to win.

Most of us won't forget her pressuring our BART board members to vote against our interests.

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The General Manager of BART, Grace Crunican't, should be fired or asked to resign like she was in her last job in Seattle. She and other managers(and they have many multiple layers of management), are overpaid even more, with even more benefits, than the rest of the BART workers. She snatched defeat from sure victory. What an overpaid joke she is!

LikeLike

Petition Background (Preamble):
BART carries nearly 375,000 passengers on an average week day. The Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that one day of a BART strikes cost the Bay Area economy $73 million. It also hurts our environment, wasting 800,000 gallons of gas each day of a strike and putting 16 million lbs of carbon into the air.

New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, and San Francisco restrict transit strikes. Due to the crippling impact a BART strike would have on the Bay Area and California economy, it is imperative that the State Legislature provide a backstop to the regional BART Board through a ban on BART strikes.
Petition:
We, the undersigned, support state legislation to prohibit public transit workers, including BART, from striking.

A BART strike will cripple our economy, hurt workers getting to their jobs, limit access to schools and health care, and damage our environment.

The impact of a BART strike will be felt across the state. It should not be in the hands of a regional BART board. We need a statewide law.
Sign the petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

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The anti-union troll's extreme predictions are really his opinions.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one, including me. His
predictions or opinions are mostly proven wrong. Thank you.

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The anti-union troll's extreme predictions are really his opinions.
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one, including me. His
predictions or opinions are mostly proven wrong. Thank you.

LikeLike

What a dick you are, ABOVE. We know Glazer will be the next assemblyman. That's a no-brainer.

WE WANT HIM FOR GOVERNOR NEXT!

You really are pathetic and a loser to disrespect the people.

As for what Swalwell and the other union whores do, who gives a fuck?

Your opinion matters to me about as much as each time I wipe my ass with your views.

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What a dick you are, ABOVE. We know Glazer will be the next assemblyman. That's a no-brainer.

WE WANT HIM FOR GOVERNOR NEXT!

You really are pathetic and a loser to disrespect the people.

As for what Swalwell and the other union whores do, who gives a fuck?

Your opinion matters to me about as much as each time I wipe my ass with your views.

LikeLike

Your days of free rides on BART on the backs of taxpayers is soon to be over, Space HO. Aint nothing but a union bitch!

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

Steve Glazer, a TRUE Democrat for governor!

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Your days of free rides on BART on the backs of taxpayers is soon to be over, Space HO. Aint nothing but a union bitch!

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

Steve Glazer, a TRUE Democrat for governor!

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To the far out of this political world dreamer of the last 2 posts

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.LMAO

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This is about the public and RESPECT.

The public has been shit upon by both groups, but especially labor, for the longest time. I'm tired of rehashing the same thing over and over for your consumption.

Bottom line: Whether it's through the legislature or initiative, my prediction is that mass transit strikes will be made illegal within the next two years. I know for a fact that it is happening. You choose to believe otherwise; that is your right. I stand by my statement. Conversation is now over.

LikeLike

This is about the public and RESPECT.

The public has been shit upon by both groups, but especially labor, for the longest time. I'm tired of rehashing the same thing over and over for your consumption.

Bottom line: Whether it's through the legislature or initiative, my prediction is that mass transit strikes will be made illegal within the next two years. I know for a fact that it is happening. You choose to believe otherwise; that is your right. I stand by my statement. Conversation is now over.

LikeLike

This is about the public and RESPECT.

The public has been shit upon by both groups, but especially labor, for the longest time. I'm tired of rehashing the same thing over and over for your consumption.

Bottom line: Whether it's through the legislature or initiative, my prediction is that mass transit strikes will be made illegal within the next two years. I know for a fact that it is happening. You choose to believe otherwise; that is your right. I stand by my statement. Conversation is now over.

LikeLike

To the ANTI UNION CHAUVINIST PIG above

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.LMAO

LikeLike

After a 4 day strike in which 2 workers are killed, management agrees to give another 3% beyond what the workers said they would accept if management would take the work rules to binding arbitration. How stupid was management? I'm sure the union would have got the safety work rules they wanted and management would have got the technology work rules they wanted in binding arbitration.

Management also sent the wrong message at the start by hiring a known antiunion negotiator and antagonized the labor side needlessly. This $400,000 negotiator took frequent time off in the middle of negotiations much to the chagrin of most of us riders. What do we expect for 400,000 dollars?

I do agree that we probably won't get anything out of the legislative process or the initiative process. One thing we can do is put pressure on the BART Board to fire the General Manager and reduce the levels of management to save millions of dollars over the next few years and put that money to work sprucing up our BART stations.

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TO THE UNION WHORE ABOVE:

This is about the public and RESPECT.

The public has been shit upon by both groups, but especially labor, for the longest time. I'm tired of rehashing the same thing over and over for your consumption.

Bottom line: Whether it's through the legislature or initiative, my prediction is that mass transit strikes will be made illegal within the next two years. I know for a fact that it is happening. You choose to believe otherwise; that is your right. I stand by my statement. Conversation is now over.

LikeLike

To the ANTI UNION CHAUVINIST PIG above

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

If you want to do it through initiative you better start gathering your OVER HALF A MILLION signatures now which will take MILLIONS of dollars. The big TEA PARTY extremists have bigger fish to fry in 2014 and 2016. Your prediction is worthless and has no political understanding behind it.LMAO

LikeLike

Conversation is now over!

LikeLike

This is about the public and RESPECT.

The public has been shit upon by both groups, but especially labor, for the longest time. I'm tired of rehashing the same thing over and over for your consumption.

Bottom line: Whether it's through the legislature or initiative, my prediction is that mass transit strikes will be made illegal within the next two years. I know for a fact that it is happening. You choose to believe otherwise; that is your right. I stand by my statement. Conversation is now over.

LikeLike

I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

LikeLike

Sorry for you, but the momentum has already started. All the newspapers are for it, and it has a lot more to do with public safety than inconvenience. Everything that needs to be in play is, including two people dying. Normally you would be right, but the public will have a very long memory on this. They are royally pissed at labor, as all the polls reflect. This one is too important and its time has arrived. As for DeSaulnier, he will carry the legislation because he is in his final term and has nowhere else to go.

It's coming, either in this next legislative session or the one after. The public wants it and deserves it. There is also the initiative process, which has begun with banbartstrikes.org. Southern CA doesn't understand the bay area, so his point of view is less than credible.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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Sorry for you, but the momentum has already started. All the newspapers are for it, and it has a lot more to do with public safety than inconvenience. Everything that needs to be in play is, including two people dying. Normally you would be right, but the public will have a very long memory on this. They are royally pissed at labor, as all the polls reflect. This one is too important and its time has arrived. As for DeSaulnier, he will carry the legislation because he is in his final term and has nowhere else to go.

It's coming, either in this next legislative session or the one after. The public wants it and deserves it. There is also the initiative process, which has begun with banbartstrikes.org. Southern CA doesn't understand the bay area, so his point of view is less than credible.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Sorry for you, but the momentum has already started. All the newspapers are for it, and it has a lot more to do with public safety than inconvenience. Everything that needs to be in play is, including two people dying. Normally you would be right, but the public will have a very long memory on this. They are royally pissed at labor, as all the polls reflect. This one is too important and its time has arrived. As for DeSaulnier, he will carry the legislation because he is in his final term and has nowhere else to go.

It's coming, either in this next legislative session or the one after. The public wants it and deserves it. There is also the initiative process, which has begun with banbartstrikes.org. Southern CA doesn't understand the bay area, so his point of view is less than credible.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

LikeLike

Agreed. 3:45 is right on the money.

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I stand by my statement that it won't happen through the legislature for the reasons cited above. If it's going to happen, which I doubt, you better start the initiative process which will take a lot of money. Until the L.A. area is inconvenienced by a large mass transit strike that won't happen either. If you can get the Koch brothers or other conservative groups to kick in a few million the initiative might get off the ground. Better get started because they are pouring millions into other causes right now like Reed's pension initiative to change the California constitution in November 2014.

LikeLike

Wow–you do live in your anti-union dream world. Calif. is still a blue state and 99% of the population was not stranded like a few of us were. Don't get me wrong I wish they didn't go on strike, but you can spit in one hand and wish on the other—you still have only one wet hand. Anyway I'm glad it's settled.

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Don't bet on it because people have short memories. Even DeSaulnier has backed away from his earlier position. There's not even close to enough votes to get it out of either the Assembly or Senate. It only inconvenienced some of us in the Bay Area and not for very long. A political science professor from San Diego said ” until it makes me late for work, it's hard to have a strong view.” Like it or not, I think he is correct.

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It's on its way, 'friend,' whether you like it or not.

Oh, if only I could bet you the deed to your house. I'd make a killing!

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You're plucking your violin strings too zealously. The above made it clear, though it's not to your liking. Don't hand me that cock and bull about 'they HAVE to be able to strike.' Again, no dice. The above-mentioned EXTREMELY progressive labor communities have done very well while being exempt. Thank you very much.

This is no longer the age of Upton Sinclair's 'The Jungle.' Nobody said anything about going back to child labor, workhouses, or even debtors' prison. [That last one might not actually be so bad, though that's for another time.]

Fact is that police, fire, and others–including mass transit elsewhere–have not been allowed to strike and they're doing just fine. They have their union leadership; negotiating teams, etc. They do just fine, and so does the public. Again, no cigar. The public will no longer support this crap from a broken and dysfunctional system that is beyond repair. It happens like clock work every four years. That is why come hell or high water mass transit in CA is going to be made exempt. If the legislature doesn't have the balls to do it then it will happen through initiative, which is everybody's favorite sport. Again, I come down against both management and labor. My only interest is the public, who must be the winners.

I usually don't agree with Don Perata but he got it right this time. He said exemption is coming one way or the other, and he went further. BART should no longer be a special transit district with electeds. It needs to be folded into the state's transportation system–such as Caltrans. This makes a lot of sense.

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No dice. I can support the labor movement and also be against strikes. Progressive communities have done this: New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago., etc. The fact is I don't pledge blind obedience to anyone or anything. On this one the public needs to be the winners. Not management; not labor. The PUBLIC.

Change is coming, and that will be the everlasting legacy of these strikes. Just saying.

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The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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The time is now to ban strikes forever. Everybody sign:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-bart-strikes.html

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I'm a Bart rider on a daily basis and thank the unions, management, legislators, etc. for the settlement. I believe this could have been settled a long time ago without a strike if the new management team hadn't hired a 400,000 dollar negotiator who specialized in causing strikes in other cities. He took weeks off in the middle of negotiations needlessly antagonized the other side. The safety concerns should have been addressed and solved in the beginning. As we just saw they were legitimate and management prevented them from going to binding arbitration. What a shame!

LikeLike

Steve Glazer for Governor.

A real Democrat for a change!

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The public will be the winners in the long run when we get anti-striking legislation just like New York, Chicago, and other big metropolitan cities. We are way overdue, but the people will never be held hostage again by the big, bad, union whores! Never again!!

We will be getting legislation to ban strikes from mass transit– that's all that matters. The union whores are going to deliver that to the masses.

Viva la publica!

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The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.

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The public will be the winners in the long run when we get anti-striking legislation just like New York, Chicago, and other big metropolitan cities. We are way overdue, but the people will never be held hostage again by the big, bad, union whores! Never again!!

We will be getting legislation to ban strikes from mass transit– that's all that matters. The union whores are going to deliver that to the masses.

Viva la publica!

LikeLike

The new G.M. at BART — she should be fired. She hired that tax payer rip off negotiator for $399,000, who took all that time off in the middle of negotiations and wouldn't settle the safety issues.

LikeLike

The public will be the winners in the long run when we get anti-striking legislation just like New York, Chicago, and other big metropolitan cities. We are way overdue, but the people will never be held hostage again by the big, bad, union whores! Never again!!

We will be getting legislation to ban strikes from mass transit– that's all that matters. The union whores are going to deliver that to the masses.

Viva la publica!

LikeLike

The Hayward anti-union and sexist Troll lives in his own fantasy world. LOL

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I want to thank Assemblymembers Rob Bonta, Bill Quirk, Nancy Skinner, Bob Wiekowski and State Sens. Ellen Corbett and Loni Hancock for putting the pressure on management and the unions to end the strike.

As far as the above post—you can tell the anti union Hayward troll doesn't commute to SF like I do or he wouldn't wish for the strike to continue. What a sad piece of crap who doesn't seem to care for the rest of us. We don't care who you blame—we just wanted a settlement to end our misery. Viva la people and the legislators that helped make it happen.

Go back to your cave you heartless, sexist, neanderthal. LOL

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As long as we get legislation to ban strikes from mass transit that's all that matters. The union whores are going to deliver that to the masses.

Viva la people!

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I want to thank Assemblymembers Rob Bonta, Bill Quirk, Nancy Skinner, Bob Wiekowski and State Sens. Ellen Corbett and Loni Hancock for putting the pressure on management and the unions to end the strike.

As far as the above post—you can tell the anti union Hayward troll doesn't commute to SF like I do or he wouldn't wish for the strike to continue. What a sad piece of crap who doesn't seem to care for the rest of us. We don't care who you blame—we just wanted a settlement to end our misery. Viva la people and the legislators that helped make it happen.

Go back to your cave you heartless, sexist, neanderthal. LOL

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You're so full of shit, union whore! Don't presume to represent the people, because you don't. We'll get our mass transit exemption and it won't be with the help of ass-lickers like you who are willing to sell-out the masses!

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We need the strike to continue to break the unions. As long as we get legislation to ban strikes from mass transit that's all that matters. The union whores are going to deliver that to the masses.

Viva la people!

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