RFArea Newsletter February 2015

Feudalism Revisited                                   

By Bernie Brohaugh, President

                                   

 As long as there is greed and something to be greedy for, there will probably be widespread maneuvering to acquire as much wealth for oneself as one can.  ‘Twas ever thus.  With the rise of socialism and then communism, what had been considered the appropriate distribution of wealth seemed to be giving way to a kind of thinking that was, in theory, far more just and compassionate than the selfish predilections that had held sway until then.  ‘Twas just a pipedream.  In fact, here in the US, during the last 30-some years we have gone backwards in our thinking. proving to be no more enlightened than we were a hundred years ago.  We have entered what has been aptly dubbed the New Age of Feudalism.

Feudalism in the Middle Ages

Throughout Europe during the Middle Ages (400-1500 C.E.) almost all the land was owned by an aristocracy that leased out a large part of it to common folks who were thus able (usually) to provide for their personal needs.  In exchange, the tenants gave the lord of the manor a few days’ labor each year, doing chores such as tilling, haying, and harvesting grain.  In addition, if a daughter married someone from a different manor, the tenant had to pay a special tax because his child, regarded as chattel by the lord, was going off to increase the wealth of another lord.  When the tenant died, his heirs had to pay the lord a tax called a “heriot,” which was usually his best---perhaps his only—horse.  Sometimes, instead of the horse, the lord took the tenant’s best clothes, and if he was really grabby, he took both the horse and the clothes--as well as the pots and pans and uncut cloth and anything else he had a hankering for.  Then the local priest came along and took the second best animal—often the family’s one cow—and maybe another item or two.  Frequently, after all the collecting was over, the poor widow and her family had precious little that they could still call their own.

Of course, robbery so blatant as this isn’t happening today.  Over the past five centuries, our lords and masters have learned how to disguise their graft so that the rest of us are not even aware of what is happening.  The fact is that the modern restoration of feudalism consists of three stages: the amassing of great wealth by privileged individuals, their acquisition of political power, and their privatization of public ventures or their conglomeration of small ventures that are already private.

Robber Barons of the Gilded Age

Who are these privileged individuals? They are the Mucky-Mucks of the Mercantile Class, the Multi-Millionaire Movers and Shakers of Madison Avenue and Wall Street, the Wheeler Dealers of the Industrial World.  They are among the 20% of Americans who own 88% of the nation’s wealth, and they are among the 10% who each year pocket 50% of the nation’s income.   They include the 1% of Americans who own 37% of the wealth and who lay claim to 20% of the yearly income.  They are the folks who buy congressmen and state legislators as part of their strategy to carve out for themselves an even larger slice of the pie, which has been growing monstrously during the last 35 years while the portion available to the rest of us has been shrinking disastrously.  These are the folks who have six homes, two yachts, a private jet, and a fleet of limos and sports cars.  They shamelessly pig out while millions of the rest of us have to scrabble to stay alive.

Second question: How did they get so wealthy, and how are they able year after year to increase their treasures and incomes?  The answer is easy to find: Mainly by getting their tax rates reduced. 

The first cuts occurred early in Reagan’s first term and have continued in one form or another ever since.  The result is that

Data from the Congressional Budget Office

not only have personal taxes of the wealthy shrunk to less than half the official rate of the pre-Reagan years, but corporate taxes are now only one-third what they were in the early 1950s.  Besides these reductions there are hundreds of billions of tax dodges and government handouts that are available mainly for the benefit of the wealthy but paid for with everybody’s taxes—such things as mortgage deductions on second homes and on yachts; tax deductions for gambling losses and business expenses; bailouts for businesses “too big to fail”; various subsidies to big oil, mining and timber companies and to big ranching and farming operations; accelerated depreciation on buildings and equipment; subsidies to companies marketing abroad, and so on and so on.  One monetary ploy that I find particularly reprehensible is the one-hundred-million-plus remuneration packages of CEOs and the bloated salaries of other company officials, including boards of directors.  This plunder translates into multi-billion dollar losses to shareholders—including pension funds—every year.

Actually, the gap between rich and poor is due not only to the gains of the wealthy few but also to the losses of the less fortunate multitude.  For 50 or 60 years, American businesses of all kinds have been merging and remerging into conglomerates that typically produce products with less man power than the family-size operations that preceded them.  Put mechanization and population growth and the destruction of labor unions into the mix as well as overseas relocation of factories and you will realize what has happened to job opportunities in America. Finally, thanks to pressure from the rich, who can afford to send their kids to private schools, both federal and state support of education has been rapidly dwindling.  The result, as we know, is a huge cadre of unemployed young people unable to do the few well-paid jobs that are still available.

The one important point about the acquisition of political might is that though it has been going on forever, it got an unprecedented shot in the arm when the U.S. Supreme Court came out with its Citizens United ruling.  During the last six years, the Republican Party has undergone an almost unbelievable turnaround in popularity.  The modern lords of the manor, represented by their paid minions in the government, now control the Supreme Court, the Senate, the House, and a majority of state legislatures and governors’ offices.  At times, decisions from the White House, too, raise suspicions that the lords of the manor may be offering “guidance” there, also.

The privatization of public ventures presently amounts mainly to talk.  But that does not mean we should regard such talk as hot air.  All across the nation an effort to replace public education with mostly tax-supported private schools has been clearly

visible for years.  It is claimed everywhere that public education has failed and needs to be replaced.  Unfortunately, most of the fault-finders know little about either education or teaching and are simply selling a bill of goods on behalf of enterprisers to whom learning means little and making big bucks means a lot.  That is why charter schools so often fail and why, as in Milwaukee, they frequently get lower ratings than public schools.

Though “private” may not always mean “better,” it quite often means “more costly.”  In Chicago, for example, the city sold the privilege of collecting parking meter money to a bank (which got a ten-to-one return on its investment).  Then the bank imposed a usage fee even if a street was closed for repairs or a block party or whatever.

This “farming out” of publicly owned facilities occurs because a government has a dire need for cash.  Another example: The Indiana Toll Road was “farmed out” for 70 or 80 years so that the state could pay off its debt.  The fact that a large amount of future revenue was lost didn’t seem to matter.  Go figure.

More and more, the lords of the manor are taking charge.  What they have is not enough; they want it all.  Only when they are masters of a nation in which everybody else is a slave, will they be happy.  There will then be no one else for them to prey on . . . except each other.

Next Meeting—February 18, 2015 at 11:00 a.m., West Wind

Covered Wagons

February’s meeting will mix business with pleasure.  The first part of the meeting is our regular bimonthly business meeting, but the second part will include lunch, as usual, and a conversation from those among us about books they loved to teach and projects they loved to assign. 

We must all have memories of those times of the school year we looked forward to because we were teaching a favorite lesson—an art project, a social studies unit, a math or science concept, or perhaps a favorite book or play.  If you’ve got photos showing those lessons or if you still have the books or other objects from those lessons, bring them in to share.  We all love to hear about teaching triumphs (we all too often hear about the disasters!).  Let’s remember some of the reasons we went into teaching and share them with one another. 

Join Us March 4, 2015 at 10:30 for the Next Book Conversation 

We will meet again on March 4, 2015, at 10:30 in the River Falls Public Library to discuss Ben Logan's The Land Remembers:  A Story of a Farm and Its People.  This book has been chosen as a focus of the River Falls Reads program this year, so we decided to join in on the city’s festivities.

Ruth Wood assures us that it is a very well written book, the author insightful, and the content about more than just sentimental recollections of rural life in southwestern Wisconsin.  Bernie Brohaugh assures us that he will read the book because he is, after all, a farm boy himself.

For those of you who grew up on a farm, have taught kids from the farm, or are just looking for a good read, join us for the next discussion.  It will be held in the Main Floor Meeting Room (the first room immediately to your right in library entrance before entering the library gate) on Wednesday morning, March 4^th, at 10:30.  Please come.  We are having lots of fun at these discussions and would love to have more of you join us.

Long time member of Retired Educators, "Bea" Steltzner, passed away December 3, 2014.  A memorial service was held January 3, 2015 at the English Lutheran Church at Ellsworth, Wisconsin.

Bea was born at Dallas, WI.  She grew up, met and married Harry Steltzner in Dallas, Wisconsin.  They had two daughters Jan and Joy.  Jan and her husband, Joel, and two grandsons, Harrison and Cameron. are the closest

 surviving members of  the family.

       

Bea taught in the Ellsworth school district for many years.  She was a music enthusiast and an active member of the English Lutheran Church for over sixty years.  She sang in the choir and was an active member of the Order of Eastern Star.

Members of RFArea Retired Educators wish to express their sympathy to her friends and family at the loss of a loved one.

News From Around the State

By Jane Harred

WRS Announces Preliminary Returns, Predicts Modest Increases in Annuity Payments

According to the January edition of WRS News, both WRS’s Core Fund and Variable Fund ended the year 2014 with positive returns. The Core Fund’s preliminary return was 5.7%; the Variable Fund’s, 7.3%. These returns are projected to result in increased annuity payments for retirees.
These returns are only preliminary. Actual adjustments will be announced in March, and adjustments will first appear on May 1 payments.


Walker Proposes Fewer Teacher Licensure Requirements

Scott Walker has proposed that anyone with “real-life experience” and a bachelor’s degree be allowed to get a teaching license in any subject upon passing a test demonstrating proficiency in the subjects the applicant intends to teach. It is unclear whether the proposal would require any preparation for teaching at all, beyond the degree and the “life experience.”

State Has Large Budget Deficit

Over the next two and a half years, Wisconsin’s budget shortfall could reach $928 million. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau has released a report indicating that Wisconsin will end the fiscal year on 30 June 2015 with a budget deficit of $283.4 million, more than 3 times the trigger for a budget repair bill and more than twice the previous estimate issued by Walker’s Department of Administration.

The LFB also indicates that with the next two-year budget, which begins July 1, the shortfall will amount to another $648 million. The LFB has also projected that the state will face an additional $2.2 billion structural deficit in the upcoming 2015-17 budget.

The budget shortfall would become even larger, reaching more than $2 billion, if legislators provide all requested spending through June 2017 and all of Walker’s promised tax cuts.

UW System Faces Large Cuts, Loss of Tenure and Governance

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that in response to Wisconsin’s large budget deficit, Scott Walker plans to cut $300 million from the UW system’s budget over the next two years, likely the largest cut in the university system’s history.

Other recent, large budget cuts have left campuses without cash reserves, and tuition freezes have further diminished individual campuses’ resources.

Walker’s plan would also eliminate state laws governing the UW system, laws that provide professors with tenure and campuses with shared governance that gives faculty and students a voice in how universities are run. Authority over matters of tenure, governance, and tuition would be given largely to the Board of Regents, most of whom are Walker appointees.

Walker wants to give the Board of Regents more power to contract for services and construct buildings without following the rules that other state agencies must. He says that doing so will get the system out from “under the thumb” of state government. Yet under his plan, the system would continue to operate under the tuition freeze that the state government mandated in 2013.

Walker, who attended Marquette University but did not earn a degree, said that it’s time for faculty to teach more classes and do more work and that the “flexibility” his plan gives campuses will allow each campus to force professors to do so.  Under Walker’s plan, the UW system would also see a reduction of 13% in state aid.

These cuts in the budget and state aid along with the continued tuition freeze will likely lead to layoffs in the UW system and major cuts to courses and programs as well as increases in class sizes. The cuts will likely also lead to huge spikes in tuition after 2017. In addition, top-quality professors will abandon Wisconsin for other states where a quality, affordable higher education is a higher priority than in Wisconsin.

School officials have said that closing campuses as a result of the cuts is “not on the table at this time.” UWRF Chancellor Dean Van Galen reacted to Walker’s plan by saying, “If the budget reduction is approved by the legislature and is implemented, the impact on UW River Falls would be very serious. Based on historical distributions of budget reductions among UW System campuses, we would anticipate a base, recurring budget reduction of approximately $4.2 million for our campus. This is even more challenging based on last year’s required spend-down of university reserves.” The Chancellor added that “a budget reduction of this magnitude would involve some very difficult and painful choices and actions.”

Congressman Ron Kind blasted the plan, which he says “will put our students at a competitive disadvantage in the global economy, and make it harder for our UW schools to recruit and retain faculty.” Kind believes that “this short-sighted, politically motivated move by Gov. Walker will be harmful to Wisconsin for years to come.”

The United Council of UW Students issued a statement that says UW students are united against Walker’s plan. The statement notes that past budget cuts and the tuition freeze have led the UW System to make cuts mainly in academic department funding, which diminishes the value of the UW degree. The statement also notes that an underfunded system will result in “a state-endorsed tuition hike in 2017 that will surely price out Wisconsin citizens from an affordable UW education.”

Sen. Sheila Harsdorf, R-River Falls, defended the plan but admitted that the cuts would pose a tremendous challenge to UW campuses and that some legislators already are raising legitimate questions about potential tuition increases down the road.

Hearings Leave Questions About “School Accountability” Bills

Public hearings on “school accountability” bills drafted by Wisconsin’s Republican-dominated Assembly and Senate make clear that educators have serious questions about both bills but tend to favor the Senate version of the bill. Republicans will have to resolve the differences between the two bills before they can pass such legislation.

The Assembly held a 12-hour public hearing on its version of the bill in mid-January, at which widespread opposition to the bill’s contents was expressed. Particularly objectionable was the bill’s provision to close public schools that are judged as failing and re-open them as independently operated charter schools, not subject to local control.

The more recent hearing on the Senate’s version of the bill made clear that educators generally agree with its provision that all schools receiving public funding should take the same annual achievement test. The Assembly bill would allow schools to administer different achievement tests, which could mean that voucher schools are measured by different standards than public schools. Educators generally also accepted the Senate bill’s provision that schools be given general performance evaluations instead of the A to F grades the Assembly version proposes.

The Senate accountability bill calls for creating two new state review boards, one housed at the Department of Public Instruction to oversee public schools and one housed at the Department of Administration to oversee private voucher schools. The review board assigned to public schools would be appointed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction; the review board assigned to voucher schools would be appointed by the governor. Critics question the constitutionality of this attempt to create two separate school systems in Wisconsin as well as the legality of usurping the authority of the Department of Public Instruction and control of schools by local, democratically elected school boards.

Republican Sen. Dale Schultz reacted to the proposed review boards by saying, “I don’t think that the average citizen of Wisconsin realizes what we’re talking about is really eliminating completely the authority of local school boards and making them subject to a political board in Madison.”

Critics also point to an unfair system of sanctions for failing schools proposed in the Senate bill, which calls for the defunding of “chronically failing” public schools through withholding of state aid. Yet private voucher schools that are judged “chronically failing” would be allowed to remain open, though unable to enroll new students for three years. Students already enrolled could stay, and these failing private schools could therefore continue to receive tax dollars in the form of vouchers Speaking at a statewide convention hosted by education organizations in Milwaukee, Walker said he does not favor establishing review boards or sanctioning schools.

The Chippewa Herald reported that Walker’s remarks raise questions about whether legislation establishing school accountability measures will be passed quickly. 

Changes to the RFArea REA Bylaws

Bernie Brohaugh and Marylin Plansky proposed the following changes to our unit’s bylaws.  The Board approved the changes.  They are being presented to the full membership for approval at the February meeting.  The changes are indicated below in bold print.

RIVER FALLS AREA RETIRED EDUCATORS’ ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

(REVISED 1976, 1980, 1982, 1990, 1993, 1999, 2001, 2009, 2012, 2013)

CONSTITUTION

Article I                    The name of this association shall be the River Falls Area Retired Educators’ Association (hereafter referred to as RFAREA)

Article II                  The purpose of RFAREA shall be to promote the welfare of its members, provide them with fellowship, and help promote the aims and objectives of the Wisconsin Retired Educators’ Association (WREA).

Article III        1.     The members of RFAREA shall consist of regular and associate members.  Any retired professional educator (teacher, administrator, or school employee) qualifies for regular or associate membership upon payment of dues.  Spouses of regular members, actively employed educators, other Wisconsin Retirement System annuitants, or friends of education qualify for associate membership upon payment of dues.  Associate members are non-voting.  (See WREA Guidelines.)

                                    2.  Any RFAREA member who has failed to pay dues by April 1 of the year in which they are due shall be removed from the membership list.

Article IV.                The officers of RFAREA shall be the following:  a president, a vice president, a secretary, a treasurer, and a legislative chair.  These officers shall be elected for two-year terms.  The election of officers shall take place at the regular October meeting.  The duties of the officers shall be the usual duties of such officers.  (See Bylaw III.)

Article V.                 A meeting shall be held on the third Wednesday of every month (except July).  In the February, April, June, August, October, and December meetings, a business component will be included in addition to any program that might be scheduled.  The other meetings will consist of socializing and special programming, but they will be preceded by a board meeting of approximately one hour.  Other meetings may be called at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Article VI.                The annual fees shall be $10.00 per year for regular members and $5.00 per year for associate members.

Article VII.              The standing committees shall be the following:  Membership, Program, Nominations, Publicity, Telephone, Newsletter, Budget, Scholarship, Bylaws, Health and Education Issues, Community Participation, and Archives.

Article VIII.             The Constitution and Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present at a regular meeting provided that the proposed amendment was presented at the previous meeting.

Article IX.             The fiscal year for RFAREA begins on October 1 and ends on September 30 of the following year.

Article X.               Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, is the authority on all questions of procedure unless stated otherwise in these bylaws.

                          

BYLAWS

WREA MISSION STATEMENT

WREA is an issues-oriented association of retired educators and others interested in education.  We are committed to monitoring and improving the benefits for retired educators and other members of the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS).  We inform our members about and advocate for educational and other relevant social issues.  We structure opportunities for our volunteer members to collaborate with one another and with organizations sharing similar goals.  We provide a variety of intergenerational services for our members and the public

BYLAW I:  BOARD OF DIRECTORS

1. The Board of Directors shall consist of the elected officers, the chairpersons of standing committees, and the immediate past president.  The Board of Directors shall meet in January, March, May, July, September, and November.  Additional meetings may be called by the President or upon the request of three members of the Board of Directors.  If a special meeting is called, the purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call and shall constitute the only order of business.
2. Any RFAREA member may attend Board of Directors’ meetings.

BYLAW II:  QUORUM

To conduct business at a general meeting, a quorum of 10 members shall be required.

BYLAW III:   POWER OF OFFICERS 

1. The President shall preside over meetings of the Board of Directors and meetings of the general membership; appoint the chairpersons and members of committees; and serve as executive officer of RFAREA.  The President shall represent the Association before the public in person or shall appoint a delegate to do so.  The President shall perform all other functions usually associated with a president’s office.
2. The immediate Past President shall advise the Board of Directors and assist the President at the request of the latter.
3. The Secretary shall keep accurate minutes of all meetings of the Board of Directors and of the general membership, shall maintain the official files, and shall assist the President with Association correspondence.
4. The Treasurer shall prepare the budget to be presented to the membership.  The Treasurer shall report receipts and expenditures to the general membership and to the Board of Directors.  The Treasurer shall arrange for an annual audit of the books.
5. The Legislative Chair shall acquire information about legislative concerns and convey such information to the membership.

BYLAW IV:  PROCEDURAL POLICIE

1. If the President of RFAREA or an alternate chooses to represent the Association at the state convention, he/she shall be reimbursed for registration, food, lodging, and gasoline expenses.
2. One delegate, if any, from RFAREA to the fall district meeting shall be reimbursed for the registration fee and for the cost of gasoline for the trip to and from the convention site.
3. The cost of the luncheon of special guest shall be assumed by the treasury.
4. A twenty-five dollar memorial shall be allocated to RFAREA’s scholarship fund to honor a member who passes away.

RFArea REA Minutes—3 Dec. 2014

Submitted by Secretary Larry Harred

The meeting was called to order at 11:00.  October 2014 minutes and treasurer’s report, printed in the October newsletter, were approved by consensus.

Ethel Johnson and Inez Schubert were present to receive their Honored Member cards and pins.  They and 22 other members of our local unit have been recognized for more than 20 years of sustained Wisconsin Retired Educators' Association membership.  Both Ethel and Inez have served in leadership positions in our unit over the course of years.  

There were no reports from the committees.

Ruth Wood announced the January 14^th book club meeting to discuss The Teacher Wars.

The business meeting was adjourned at 11:30.  It was followed by the annual holiday entertainment, including Dave Wood’s Norwegian 'Twas the Night Before Christmas followed by holiday music provided by Bill Montgomery, Bernie Brohaugh, Ruth Wood, Gorden Hedahl, Jean Loudon, and Jane Harred.  

Bake Sale Time Is Approaching

Our annual scholarship bake sale will be held on April 2nd from 9:00-1:00 at

First National Bank in River Falls. Bake goods (no pies) can be brought tothe April 1st RFArea REA meeting or can be dropped off at the bank on the day of the bake sale. Monetary donations can be sent to Laura Zlogar.

Royal Neighbors of America will match up to $500 in proceeds anddonations. If you have any questions, call Bernie Brohaugh at 715-425-7145 or Marylin Plansky at 715-426-9016.  Monetary donations can be brought to the April 1st meeting, to the bank on the 2nd, or can be sent to Laura Zlogar at 729 River Ridge Ct., River Falls, WI 54022. The bake sale is the primary fundraiser of the year to support the scholarships we award each spring to two graduating high school seniors from districts within our area.