quote Originally posted by Formula88: Let's see, Rick Scott has an (R) after his name? Check. Neptune chimes in within 5 minutes to bash him and explain why anything he's done right doesn't count? Check. No comment from Neptune in the Anthony Weiner, (D)ick thread after 21 hours? Check.

partisan BS? Check.....
how does this in anyway do anything at all for this thread?

there are those of us who dont need (D) or (R) to know a good thing.

quote Originally posted by datacop: Right.. he just butchered the ever-lovin piss out of the education system here.. Kudo's for that "My Man Mitch!"

I haven't heard the consequences. What has happened to student achievement since doing so?

And no offense, but I don't know what "...butchered the ever-lovin piss out of the education system here..." means because I don't know you personally.

Reason I bring it up, is because in Wisconsin, Walker was "gutting the employees union", when all he was asking was what amounted to the employees contributing something like $300/ month toward their benefits with zero reduction in the quality of their benefits.

quote Originally posted by frontal lobe: And no offense, but I don't know what "...butchered the ever-lovin piss out of the education system here..." means because I don't know you personally.

Seems to me its a matter of perspective. There are some who think that bringing government workers salary and benefits under control is an evil thing. They see collective bargaining and tenure as constitutional rights, no matter that the taxpayer doesn't have the same right.

quote Daniels Happy With Action on Indiana Schools The new laws greatly expand charter schools, end teacher tenure, narrow teachers’ collective bargaining rights and introduce a taxpayer-funded voucher of up to $4,500 for students to attend private schools. Unlike vouchers in other states that are limited to the poor or those in failing schools, Indiana’s vouchers will be available to any student from a family with a middle-class income of up to about $60,000.

Doesn't seem to be such an evil thing to me.

quote Originally posted by frontal lobe: I haven't heard the consequences. What has happened to student achievement since doing so? And no offense, but I don't know what "...butchered the ever-lovin piss out of the education system here..." means because I don't know you personally. Reason I bring it up, is because in Wisconsin, Walker was "gutting the employees union", when all he was asking was what amounted to the employees contributing something like $300/ month toward their benefits with zero reduction in the quality of their benefits.

From what I understand, all the new teachers that had been hired by the stimulus plan, were turned around and let go after the stimulus money ran out. They also laid off a few more employees who were younger. Even though this is a right to work state, the union makes it fairly difficult to get rid of bad teachers that have tenure, so the result is that they might end up having to get rid of three good and well motivated (but significantly less paid) teachers.

quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I can't believe this hasn't made nation wide news... but apparently, Governor Rick Scott of Florida has balanced our state budget: http://www.sunshinestatenew...slature-got-it-right

NPR ran stories on this in various forms for the last several months.

Some serious hack and slash got done, Florida will never be the same state again, that's for sure.

quote Originally posted by JazzMan: NPR ran stories on this in various forms for the last several months. Some serious hack and slash got done, Florida will never be the same state again, that's for sure.

Well if NPR says that, then I may consider my retirement there.

And some believe the George Soros NPR media..

quote Originally posted by Cheever3000: I don't have a problem with Scott - I voted for him - except for the part about making state employees start paying 3% of their salaries for the retirement plan. Ordinarily I wouldn't be bothered with that, even tho I AM a state employee and it does sound fair. But it should start out only affecting employees who make enough to afford such a sudden hit on their paycheck, like those with an annual salary of $50k & up. Then phase in the rest of us peons over time. I make far less than 50k and I live from paycheck to paycheck, and can barely buy the gas to get to work, so to suddenly change the conditions of my employment just like that, well, that's a BIG hit on my grocery budget. Otherwise, I still don't regret voting for him. Regarding the accusations about his former career, I believe his side of the story. He seems to be a man of character. That's just my opinion. I could not have let myself vote for a career politician, like Bill McCollum or whatever his name was.

Please forgive my being blunt, but what about all of us out there that are living paycheck to paycheck and are the ones contributing the rest to your retirement? Why do I as a taxpayer have to suffer to support your retirement plan which *I* do not get? I have no pension but I have to help pay for yours. Even though I don't live in your state I am still affected by a state employee pension system. Wisconsin is going through this mess right now and we're having to fight the same arguments......." It's MY pension! You have to pay for it! ". Sorry, but with the economy as it is, the way that many, many people have lost jobs or been cut back on their wages ( as I have ) I don't get any reprieve from paying the pensions for state employees. I am also suffering.....but the state employees are not interested in hearing that. They feel that they are not required to take any cuts. NOT ME!!!! So my paycheck suffers but yours doesn't? Aren't we all in the same boat? Apparently not. My paycheck is still paying for state employee pensions.....but it's time to start paying in yourself. It's our money you are going to live on. With the attitudes that I hear about state employee ' rights ' ( they are priviliges ) I really want to just tell all of you to just go F O. But, that's not fair. As a statqe employee you were promised a pension. I believe in standing behind those promises as long as it's possible. But then at what expense? Am I supposed to lose my house and my valuables just so you can have a pension? What am I supposed to live on? Where am I supposed to live? Why do you think you are any more special than I am?

At what point is it no longer fair to tap into my wallet for these pensions that I don't get?

Mark

quote Originally posted by Firefox: Please forgive my being blunt, but what about all of us out there that are living paycheck to paycheck and are the ones contributing the rest to your retirement? Why do I as a taxpayer have to suffer to support your retirement plan which *I* do not get? I have no pension but I have to help pay for yours. Even though I don't live in your state I am still affected by a state employee pension system. Wisconsin is going through this mess right now and we're having to fight the same arguments......." It's MY pension! You have to pay for it! ". Sorry, but with the economy as it is, the way that many, many people have lost jobs or been cut back on their wages ( as I have ) I don't get any reprieve from paying the pensions for state employees. I am also suffering.....but the state employees are not interested in hearing that. They feel that they are not required to take any cuts. NOT ME!!!! So my paycheck suffers but yours doesn't? Aren't we all in the same boat? Apparently not. My paycheck is still paying for state employee pensions.....but it's time to start paying in yourself. It's our money you are going to live on. With the attitudes that I hear about state employee ' rights ' ( they are priviliges ) I really want to just tell all of you to just go F O. But, that's not fair. As a statqe employee you were promised a pension. I believe in standing behind those promises as long as it's possible. But then at what expense? Am I supposed to lose my house and my valuables just so you can have a pension? What am I supposed to live on? Where am I supposed to live? Why do you think you are any more special than I am? At what point is it no longer fair to tap into my wallet for these pensions that I don't get? Mark

Wonder how many folks who paid their taxes religiously which funded public worker's retirements, and had none where they worked are sucking it big time on SS?

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: Rick Scott ...[/URL].

Hes a creepy looking dude, too.
Normally I dont just go on looks, but since they seem to hold some kind of political water around here for other politicians, at least for discussion, I thought I would share. Dont know his politics, but..

Creepy.

[This message has been edited by tbone42 (edited 06-03-2011).]

quote Originally posted by JazzMan: NPR ran stories on this in various forms for the last several months. Some serious hack and slash got done, Florida will never be the same state again, that's for sure.

Perhaps, but I don't really see anything different than it was before. The schools have improved every year, even under Rick Scott's management. The past 6-8 years have seen consistent improvements in state by state rankings. I remember that we were at one point, #48 which is horrible, and if I understand correctly, we are now #14... which is a drastic improvement considering that more than half our population has English as a second language.

The state parks are still well funded, I just went to Secret Woods Park this afternoon, it's always been one of my favorites... (had the day off). There's tons of them, and they're all well funded.

The tourist and commercial areas have seen consistent improvements. Fort Lauderdale Beach just celebrated it's 100th anniversary... (love that beach). The state just underwent welfare reform, which is expected to improve the job growth in Florida. The money that was being set aside for the money-losing proposition for the high speed rail between Disney World and Tampa (which made no sense really) has been diverted to improvements in the Port of Miami and the Port of Fort Lauderdale. Two major cruise companies have already put in contracts for two new international cruise ships (huge ones). That will bring not only thousands of construction jobs, but tons of new port jobs, security positions, maritime positions, you name it. All that will have an immediate return on investment that will actually bring even MORE income. Miami just ousted it's Mayor, and they're now reforming many of the laws including passing term-limits for city comissioners.

Honestly... it's a good time to live in South Florida, and Florida in general. Rick Scott I know has been scouring the nation to recruit new businesses to come here. I don't know yet how successful he's been in that, but time will tell.

I can tell you one thing... almost no one I know likes him... so that tells me something... either he's absolutely horrible... OR... just maybe, he's actually doing something right. From what I've seen, I've been very pleased so far with a lot of what he's done. I don't agree with everything, but he balanced our budget without raising my taxes... heck... our property taxes went down.

He did deregulate the insurance industry down here, so... that sounds pretty bad, I might get screwed... we'll see.

quote Originally posted by tbone42: Hes a creepy looking dude, too. Normally I dont just go on looks, but since they seem to hold some kind of political water around here for other politicians, at least for discussion, I thought I would share. Dont know his politics, but.. Creepy.

We could have a poll who is creepier, him or Barney F.

quote Originally posted by partfiero: Wonder how many folks who paid their taxes religiously which funded public worker's retirements, and had none where they worked are sucking it big time on SS?

In theory, those that paid their taxes religiously also paid into the SS system. It's deducted from your paycheck automatically as a seperate line item. So, those people paid for their own Social Security and are also paying for the full pension for the state employees. That means the taxpayer is paying for 2 retirement plans.... their own and a contribution for a state employee but only receives one ( the SS ), and the state employee is paying for 1 retirement plan....the SS but receives 2 ( the SS and the pension from the state ).

The numbers change all the time but in theory we pay for our SS retirement pay. So does the state employee. Why is it ok for my paycheck to diminish for the state employee unwilling to make a contribution to his own retirement? I'm forced to and I get no benefit out of it. They are told they need to pay more and they whine and cry but they get the benefits......forced savings?

Ok. Make a deal with you and any other state employee. You don't want to pay into your retirement account? Fine. Lose it. Drop it. You can't afford it? You don't get it. I can't afford it either and I get nothing out of it.

quote Originally posted by Firefox: In theory, those that paid their taxes religiously also paid into the SS system. It's deducted from your paycheck automatically as a seperate line item. So, those people paid for their own Social Security and are also paying for the full pension for the state employees. That means the taxpayer is paying for 2 retirement plans.... their own and a contribution for a state employee but only receives one ( the SS ), and the state employee is paying for 1 retirement plan....the SS but receives 2 ( the SS and the pension from the state ). The numbers change all the time but in theory we pay for our SS retirement pay. So does the state employee. Why is it ok for my paycheck to diminish for the state employee unwilling to make a contribution to his own retirement? I'm forced to and I get no benefit out of it. They are told they need to pay more and they whine and cry but they get the benefits......forced savings? Ok. Make a deal with you and any other state employee. You don't want to pay into your retirement account? Fine. Lose it. Drop it. You can't afford it? You don't get it. I can't afford it either and I get nothing out of it.

As far as I know... many state pension plans are totally out of whack with what is considered normal. Even the Federal Government reformed it's pension plan many years ago, and now, as I understand it... if you are a Federal employee, the government only matches in it's pension what you also put into it as well? Anyone here a Federal employee? Can anyone confirm or deny?

I'm no expert when it comes to these retirement packages and schemes but I thought part of the problem was that the Gov't decided to use the retirement funds and are now on the hook for paying back what should have been there.

quote Originally posted by newf: I'm no expert when it comes to these retirement packages and schemes but I thought part of the problem was that the Gov't decided to use the retirement funds and are now on the hook for paying back what should have been there.

That's a completely seperate topic, but I think you may be right......

A couple years ago Florida's Governor cut property taxes to keep a campaign promise. In return, city, county and state services got their budgets slashed. We had to pay special "assessments" (around $300) in addition to our property taxes for our fire department and some other services I think. I know the biggest chunk was for fire departments. Since then all of our state's fees for permits, auto tags, driver's licenses, traffic citations, etc... (think any fee or fine that we have to pay, like it or not) have about doubled. At least my property taxes are the same. They never really went down. I have paid between $1,000 and $1,150 every year since 1994. (Not complaining... Just using real numbers)

As far as our state having a balanced budget... WOOHOO!!!! If we can't afford a government funded program, it should be cut. "The government should pay for..." lots of stuff. I should spend more money on cars and fishing. But I don't have the money... So I can't... no matter how much I'd love to. No matter how much I would love for our state to pay for additional programs, if we don't have the money, we CAN'T. The reason he gets such bad press and hatred from other politicians is because he isn't a career politician. HE SOLD THE STATE JET for goodness sake. I loved that. Make the politicians fly coach!!! Yeah he has his own plane. Good for him. He pays for it.

And I don't want to hear anything about cutting Seminole County's school budget. Our 7% sales tax is due to expire and go back to 6%. We had a vote on our ballot to extend 0.5% that would be ear-marked ENTIRELY for the schools and it lost by a landslide because of voters who were too stupid and lazy to know what they were voting on. Most people thought it was supposed to bump the sales tax to 7.5%. Our schools lost MILLIONS. But it wasn't the politicians. It was the voters that took it away.

I hope Rick Scott runs for office again. I'll surely vote for him again.

[This message has been edited by 2002z28ssconv (edited 06-05-2011).]

I haven't kept track of this, but balancing a budget means making cuts. Doesn't matter if it is Florida's, the US, or the family next door. The idea that any government can solve all problems and be all things to all people is idiotic, and it is way past time we recognized that and acted accordingly.

As for state employees paying a larger share of pension contributions and for insurance, I have trouble being bothered by that. In 2010 I had to find a new job. Linda and I made together in 2010
what I made in 2009. That came to about a 30% cut. I know several people who have had to make similar adjustments. That makes it tough to get excited about someone paying 3-5% more toward a pension.

quote Originally posted by 2002z28ssconv: A couple years ago Florida's Governor cut property taxes to keep a campaign promise. In return, city, county and state services got their budgets slashed. We had to pay special "assessments" (around $300) in addition to our property taxes for our fire department and some other services I think. I know the biggest chunk was for fire departments. Since then all of our state's fees for permits, auto tags, driver's licenses, traffic citations, etc... (think any fee or fine that we have to pay, like it or not) have about doubled. At least my property taxes are the same. They never really went down. I have paid between $1,000 and $1,150 every year since 1994. (Not complaining... Just using real numbers) As far as our state having a balanced budget... WOOHOO!!!! If we can't afford a government funded program, it should be cut. "The government should pay for..." lots of stuff. I should spend more money on cars and fishing. But I don't have the money... So I can't... no matter how much I'd love to. No matter how much I would love for our state to pay for additional programs, if we don't have the money, we CAN'T. The reason he gets such bad press and hatred from other politicians is because he isn't a career politician. HE SOLD THE STATE JET for goodness sake. I loved that. Make the politicians fly coach!!! Yeah he has his own plane. Good for him. He pays for it. And I don't want to hear anything about cutting Seminole County's school budget. Our 7% sales tax is due to expire and go back to 6%. We had a vote on our ballot to extend 0.5% that would be ear-marked ENTIRELY for the schools and it lost by a landslide because of voters who were too stupid and lazy to know what they were voting on. Most people thought it was supposed to bump the sales tax to 7.5%. Our schools lost MILLIONS. But it wasn't the politicians. It was the voters that took it away. I hope Rick Scott runs for office again. I'll surely vote for him again.

We pay substantially more per year for our property taxes. We pay just shy of $5,000 bucks, but over the past year it dropped by $100 bucks... heh. I pay much more than you because I bought my house in 2003, where as you bought yours in 1994. But overall, I have seen some increase in vehicle registration. The nice thing though, is that we can now register our vehicles for 2 years at a time... rather than having to do it every year. Plus... since Jeb Bush was elected many years ago, we no longer have to get our cars inspected for safety or emissions.

I had NO idea that he sold the state jet... that's awesome...

quote Originally posted by heybjorn: I haven't kept track of this, but balancing a budget means making cuts. Doesn't matter if it is Florida's, the US, or the family next door. The idea that any government can solve all problems and be all things to all people is idiotic, and it is way past time we recognized that and acted accordingly. As for state employees paying a larger share of pension contributions and for insurance, I have trouble being bothered by that. In 2010 I had to find a new job. Linda and I made together in 2010 what I made in 2009. That came to about a 30% cut. I know several people who have had to make similar adjustments. That makes it tough to get excited about someone paying 3-5% more toward a pension.

Yup... just got a 20% paycut as of my last paycheck... NOT pleased...

Another interesting article about our Governor,
http://www.orlandosentinel....,7458253,full.column

quote Florida Rick vs. Texas Rick: It's just business I have this recurring nightmare. It is 2013. Yet another major corporation from California or New York or Massachusetts has moved to Florida. The economy here is booming. We in the media are confronted with the horrifying truth: Rick Scott was right! The path to prosperity indeed is gutting regulations, paving paradise, cutting taxes, eliminating corporate taxes, shrinking the social safety net and ignoring editorials and columnists. There is disturbing anecdotal evidence that the Ruthless Conservatism model may work. It's called Texas. In Texas, home to the Texas Miracle, things are less bad than they are everywhere else. Scott wants to out-Texas Texas so things will be less bad here than in Texas. In a challenge to Texas Gov. Rick Perry last month, Scott wrote, "Well, my friend, Florida is already the best place to live…And with all we are doing to make Florida number one in job creation, I am certain Texas' days at the top are numbered." Look out, little people below, it's a big-time Republican smackdown between the Ricks. And though Florida may stomp Texas in the NBA finals, out-cutting and out-deregulating these guys will be another matter. Consider this. Despite facing a $27 billion budget shortfall, Texas lawmakers not only are not raising taxes, but they also are pushing tax cuts for yacht owners and tobacco chewers. Supporters of the tobacco-tax cut say it would be deficit neutral because it would encourage more people to stuff the stuff in their mouths. Patooee! Trickle-down chewing! Texas has no corporate income tax and no personal income tax. Texas hardly manages growth. Less than 7 percent of the labor force is unionized. The government debt per capita is 49th lowest in the nation, meaning companies moving to Texas don't have to worry about paying off public debt. Texas has enacted so many tort reforms that suing people poses more risk to the plaintiff than to the defendant. How well is all this working? CNBC rates Texas as the best state to do business. For the seventh straight year, a poll of CEOs by ChiefExecutive.net picked Texas as the top state to do business. Texas is home to more Fortune 500 companies than any other state. Texas cities hold five of the top six spots for future job growth in rankings by NewGeography.com. In a Milken Institute list of "Best Performing Cities," Texas placed five in the top 10, and 11 in the top 25. Texas' success is such a threat to liberal theology that New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, a Nobel laureate, wrote an entire column trashing Texas. He took aim at its looming deficits, calling Texas a "future that does not work." Unless you are looking for work. Florida hardly makes a dent in jobs production and was shut out of the Milken list. This is interesting because in one survey, our business taxes are actually lower than those in Texas, and we rank third on the ChiefExecutive.net list of top business states. Nobody screws the little people more than we do. So what gives? University of Central Florida business professor Sean Snaith says our problem isn't taxes and it isn't regulations. It's houses. "Texas didn't go through the insanity of the housing boom and bust," he says. "They don't have that albatross around their neck. The fallout here is dramatic and weighs on Florida's economy." Ross DeVol, a lead author of the Milken "Best Performing Cities" study, agrees. "You have to be cautious about drawing too many lessons from Texas," he says. He also notes that Texas has particularly benefited from high energy prices. But that said, DeVol does credit Texas for its business-friendly climate and aggressive recruiting campaign aimed at California companies and research institutes. In 2010, of 193 companies bailing out of California, 33 went to Texas. Swallowing their pride, a group of California legislators went to Texas this year to find out how their once mighty state was being trumped by a bunch of neo-con cowboys. "The research companies are much more sensitive to cost and regulations," DeVol says. "They say it takes forever to get a permit to build anything in California. It takes three years compared to three months in Texas." And now it will take three days in Florida! So we can start luring all those California companies from Texas. Stealing from a thief is not thievery. May the best Rick win.