Hard-hitting Joseph Klein Op-Ed in the D&C
Joe Klein is the president of Klein Steel Services in Rochester (where retired General John Batiste now works). He had a piece in the D&C a few days ago about how the state could help Rochester get back on its feed economically. He’s described himself as a 60s liberal, but has also been sharply critical of what he feels is a hostile climate for business in New York State. The piece is pretty detailed in what he’d like to see changed; it includes things like adopting the Brennan reforms recommended for the NYS legislature as well as other things I’m not very familiar with. It’s worth a read in any case.
Ya gotta admit: he’s not pulling any punches. Still, I’m not sure I agree with all of it. For example, I’m not even sure what he thinks repealing the Triborough Amendment of the Taylor Law will accomplish, but it sounds like an attack on an ever-decreasing number of Union men and women from a guy who runs a non-union shop. The Scaffold Law might perhaps be rewritten, but you cannot but compel business owners to cover their injured workers, however unpleasant it may be for the captains of industry.
There’s lots of stuff I agree on, though.
I love it.
Let me single out two things:
1.f. Clinics in drugstores staffed by nurse practitioners. Emphatically yes. The use of the Emergency Department as a primary care facility is a huge driver of healthcare costs.
8. Fair, ungerrymandered districts are the heart of reform.
DFE - I’m no expert on union work rules, but the beginning of true reform is to put everything on the table. Klein’s proposal does that.
Well, I don’t disagree. I’m just not certain what it does to really reform much of anything. The only thing Taylor Law does (at least with this one amendment) is make sure that everything doesn’t come to a grinding halt simply because the deal hasn’t gone through just yet. The Triborough law probably prevents more strikes and therefore more loss for all concerned than it does anything.
In fact, of the portions of Taylor Law that I am familiar with, I would have thought this is probably the least objectionable. Perhaps that is because there are factors I don’t know about. But then again, after reading the article, I still don’t know about them.
No offense to Mr. Klein, but he’s always tantilizing us with all this interesting stuff, but never giving us the full details. Does anyone else think perhaps he’s planning on doing that in some upcoming election?