rodsullivan.org
SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
December 28, 2017
Sullivan’s
Salvos 1/2/18
In this edition:
*Welcome 2018!
*Average Billionaires?
*Soft Skills
*Minimum Wage Report
*Did You Know?
*Welcome 2018!
I
am excited for 2018! Like most of the people I know, 2017 will go down in my
memory mostly for bad things. (Of course, I don’t know many billionaires. I’m
sure most of them had a great year!)
Anyway,
here is to a fresh start in 2018! I hope things go well for you and yours!
*Average Billionaires?
Speaking
of billionaires… I am a social worker, not a math teacher. But in light of the
dreadful Tax Bill recently passed by the Republicans in Congress, we need a
primer on the concept of averages.
An average is: “the result obtained by adding
together several quantities and then dividing this total by the number of
quantities.” So if you add 10, 20, and 30, you get 60. Divided by three numbers
in the set, you get 20. 20 is the average. Averages are great unless you have
extremes in the set.
For example: Bill
Gates and I have an average wealth of $40 billion. Hank Aaron and I hit an
average of 378 Major League homeruns. The Beatles and I have an average of 9 #1
hits. In these examples, the AVERAGE does not provide us relevant information.
I am seeing the same
thing with the tax bill. Some Republican Members of Congress are claiming that
the average household would get a tax cut of $1,610 in 2018. But extremes are
included in averages. A household earning $1 million or more would get an
average tax cut of $69,660. Compare that with the tax cut of $870 for an
average household earning $50,000 to $75,000.
A much better
measure in this case would be MEDIAN. In other words, the point in the set
where 50% of the numbers are higher, and 50% of the numbers are lower. That
gives us a much better lens through which we can view the tax cut.
Is
this tax cut good for the AVERAGE person? No. Not at all. It isn’t good for the
median, either!
*Soft Skills
I speak to lots of people who are involved in
workforce development issues. A topic that keeps coming up is the idea of “soft
skills” – in other words, customer service skills. They always bring this up. I
think it is worth noting that “workforce development” didn’t even exist until
the 70s. Why is that? I would argue it is because big employers used to spend
the time and money necessary to train their employees. Now they expect the
government to do it for them.
Don’t kid yourself – these issues are related!
Young workers do not learn soft skills because their parents have been
underemployed for decades. Our current state of affairs is a side effect of
businesses that not only no longer care for employees, but now actively try to
hurt them.
If you pay less than $15/hour, you cannot complain
about employees lacking “soft skills”. Soft skills are gained when parents have
time to spend with their kids rather than working two jobs. Soft skills are
gained when parents can afford books for their children. Soft skills are gained
when parents can afford fruits and vegetables for their kids, along with the
time to cook them. Soft skills are gained
when parents can afford health insurance and are less sick. Soft skills are
gained when parents can afford quality childcare. Soft skills are gained
when parents send their kids to good schools. Soft skills are gained when
parents have access to necessary social services.
Do
employees lack soft skills now as compared to the 50s and 60s? Probably so. But
let’s be very clear as to the reason!
*Minimum Wage Report Available
The
Minimum Wage Advisory Committee presented the findings of the report, “Jobs and
wages in Johnson County before and after the minimum wage increase,” on
Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017 at the Johnson County Board of Supervisors’ Informal
Meeting.
Committee
members Peter Fisher, an economist with the Iowa Policy Project, and John Solow
a University of Iowa economics professor, presented the report. The Committee
found that the minimum wage increase did not appear to hurt businesses, which
was a suggested possible negative consequence. Additionally, the wage increase
benefited low-wage workers, who saw a larger increase in their average weekly
earnings.
“Increasing
the minimum wage to $10.10 had a positive impact on more than 10,000 workers
without negatively affecting businesses,” Rod Sullivan, Supervisor and liaison
to the committee, said. “We hope the Iowa Legislature will see these results
and act to give Iowans a long overdue raise.”
The
State of Iowa’s minimum wage was increased to $7.25 per hour in 2008, ahead of
the Federal increase to $7.25 in 2009, but has remained at $7.25 and is not
indexed for inflation. On Sept. 10, 2015, the Johnson County Board of
Supervisors passed an ordinance establishing a Johnson County minimum wage.
According to that ordinance, the minimum wage in Johnson County was raised in
three steps – to $8.20 per hour on Nov. 1, 2015, to $9.15 per hour on May 1,
2016, and to $10.10 per hour on Jan. 1, 2017.
After
June 30, 2018, the Johnson County minimum wage was to be indexed for inflation
based on changes in the Consumer Price Index. On March 30, 2017, Governor Terry
Branstad signed legislation eliminating the ability of jurisdictions within the
State of Iowa to set a minimum wage above the State minimum wage. Johnson
County had a higher minimum wage than the State for 17 months, incuding three
months when it was $10.10 per hour.
The
Board of Supervisors will consult the Consumer Price Index and make a
recommendation, based on inflation, on a raise to the $10.10 minimum wage in February
or March.
The
Committee was composed of members of the public and residents of Johnson
County, including representatives from the Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce
and Iowa City Area Development Group, local non-profits, small business owners,
low-wage workers and union workers. Current members of the committee are Jesse
Case (chair), Dromi Etsey, Fisher, Ryan Sempf, Solow (vice-chair), Rod Sullivan
(ex officio), Becci Reedus, and DaLayne Williamson. Former members of the
commission are David Dickey, Rebecca Neades, Carlos Walker and Katie Wilson.
The
full report and more information about the minimum wage in Johnson County are
available at http://www.johnson-county.com/dept_supervisors.aspx?id=18549.
*DID YOU KNOW?
The three most common surnames in Iowa are Smith, Williams, and
Anderson.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
December 21, 2017
Sullivan’s
Salvos 12/26/17
In this edition:
*Happy New Year!
*Salvos Salutes!
*Did You Know?
*Happy New Year!
Happy
New Year to all Salvos readers! I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a
wonderful 2018!
*Salvos Salutes!
2017 is coming to a close, and it is time for honoring a few
select Johnson County residents with that most treasured of honors, the Salvos
Salute. A few observations:
* This is the eleventh annual set of awards, and there are always
more people who deserve awards than there are awards to give. We live in a
great County!
* The focus is on Johnson County. It is certainly worth noting the
daily heroism of someone like our firefighters, police,
and paramedics. There are
also examples that garner international attention. But we have everyday heroes
right here in Johnson County that deserve a shout out.
* There are some people out there that could win every year. I am
trying to honor different folks, but repeat winners are not out of the
question.
* Salvos Salutes do not have specific criteria, but you can bet
that in general, most of the winners are courageous, advocate for peace and
justice, have good ideas, speak truth to power, avoid hypocrisy, and look out
for the less fortunate.
Without
further adieu, your 2017 Salvos Salutes go to:
Mazahir Salih: Iowa City’s first black female Councilor. Iowa City’s first Muslim
Councilor. The first Sudanese American elected to office in the WHOLE USA!
Mazahir is not just a trailblazer, but a smart, kind, caring individual who
will serve Iowa City very well.
Ryan Hall: While UI student Ryan Hall was not elected to the Council, he ran a
58-42 race against a longtime incumbent. Ryan proved bright, articulate, and
passionate, and acquitted himself well. More importantly, he reminded many in
Iowa City that students ARE members of this community, and SHOULD have a voice.
Meghann Foster: Coralville’s Old Guard and progressives do not agree on much. They DID
all agree that Meghann Foster was the best candidate for the Coralville
Council. Now the real challenge – can Meghann translate this popularity into
coalitions that make progressive changes? I’m betting she can!
Karen Nichols: An activist extraordinaire, Karen has become the Queen of politics and
social media. Check out Iowans for Public Education to get a taste! I am so
glad we have activists like Karen in our midst! And I hope she has some success
during the upcoming Legislative session; Iowa’s kids need it!
Kate Revaux: Kate burst onto the Johnson County political scene as a staff person
for Bernie Sanders. Her passion for making the world a better place was clear
from the beginning; now folks have had an opportunity to witness the fact that
Kate is not going to stop until things actually get done! Get on board or get
out of Kate’s way!
Steve Cook: If you have ever attended any kind of fundraiser in Johnson County,
you’ve probably seen Steve in action. An expert sound man, Steve volunteers his
talent and equipment for countless events. Without his contributions, the show
would not go on! In addition to donating thousands of dollars worth of services
to the community every year, Steve is a union and political activist, and a
darn good guy!
Mark Patton: The Johnson County community has made great strides when it comes to
affordable housing. It was just a couple years ago that most local elected
officials refused to even discuss the topic. How has this change happened?
Through the hard work of a small group of committed individuals – led by Mark
Patton. Mark is retiring this year after leading Iowa Valley Habitat for
Humanity from a small, obscure organization to a real powerhouse. His impact on
affordable housing has even bigger than that. Congratulations, Mark!
Tim Carty: I had never met Tim until we worked together on the One Community One
Bond campaign. I found Tim to be smart, kind, hard working, and a genuinely
great guy. I also found him to be a person that deeply cares – for his wife,
kids, schools, community, sports teams – whatever the case, he really cares!
Tim serves as the Director of Member Services at the Iowa City Area Chamber of
Commerce, and I imagine he is excellent in that role, too!
Greg Hearns: The President of the Iowa City Federation of Labor, Greg led the
organization through a challenging year of merger and reorganization. No one
worked harder on labor issues, and this bore fruit when Greg’s union (Teamsters
238) won an overwhelming number of their recertification elections. He also
managed to find the time to mobilize union members to work on local elections. Through
it all, Greg has kept his focus squarely on the needs of working people.
Forest View Residents: Groundbreaking. That is the only way to describe
the agreement developers reached with the residents of Forest View Mobile Home
Court. Developers will be building what they want, and will undoubtedly earn a
nice profit. In addition, Forest View residents will get their own small,
clean, safe, efficient, affordable homes! There has never been a redevelopment
like this before. Never. All credit goes to the amazing residents at Forest
View!
Darius Moore: Like many African Americans, this young man has had enough of the
disparities that exist in our society. So like other African American athletes,
this Clear Creek Amana Senior took a knee during the National Anthem. Darius
knew this was going to bring some venom his way, and it did. But he handled the
whole episode with a determination, maturity, and grace that was very
impressive.
Joe Marron: A longtime Labor activist, Joe is one of the hardest-working union
volunteers I have ever been around. He is also a really good human being. I
have known Joe for well over 20 years, and I have never heard him take personal
credit for anything. And now, Joe is a retiree! Thanks, Joe, for all you do!
Larry Baker: The prolific Iowa City Author has served as a City Councilor,
Commission Member, teacher, and man about town. Now, in the wake of his latest
book (From a Distance), Baker has made his final public appearance. His spot on
Iowa City’s Literary Walk of Fame does not do justice to Baker’s impact on our
community. You can’t be a City of Literature without authors. I hope he keeps
writing, because I love his books. I hope he keeps raising Hell, because I love
his passion. Thanks for everything, Larry!
The Encounter Café: Sharon Bethel Mennonite Church opened
a café in downtown Iowa City. In addition to providing a welcoming space for
everyone, all proceeds go to local charities. How simply beautiful!
*DID YOU KNOW?
159 individuals/groups have received a Salvos Salute since they were
started in 2006.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
December 14, 2017
Sullivan’s
Salvos 12/19/17
In this edition:
*Happy Hanukah!
*Merry Christmas!
*Salvos Salutes Next Week!
*Solidarity
*Mental Health
*Did You Know?
*Happy Hanukah!
Happy Hanukah to all my Jewish friends!
I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday!
*Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas to those of you who
celebrate it. I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday!
*Salvos Salutes Next Week!
We live in a GREAT county! Why? Because of the great people that
live here! Unfortunately, we rarely do enough to acknowledge these wonderful
people and the wonderful things they do.
That
is why I really look forward to Salvos Salutes. It provides an opportunity to
mention just a few of these cool people and the good things they do. I hope you
look forward to it as well!
*Solidarity
I grew up in a union household. So I learned very early about the concept of solidarity. We
sang “Solidarity Forever” and heard the word used a lot.
Solidarity means, “Mutual support within a group.” In other
words, I do for you, and you do for me. It is really a simple and timeless
idea. We are stronger together. Unfortunately, far too many people in the
Democratic Party do not seem to grasp the concept.
I think solidarity is THE single biggest issue for Democrats
right now! BY FAR! Democrats are viewing the world and their pet issues through
selfish lenses, and that makes it very difficult to maintain solidarity.
Here are the things I am seeing and hearing: I’m not poor, so
Medicaid and Food Stamps are no big deal. I'm not black, so police shootings
are no big deal. I'm not a woman, so sexual harassment is no big deal. I can’t
get pregnant, so choice is no big deal. I'm not in a union, so labor issues are
no big deal. I don't have kids in school, so education is no big deal. I'm not
a person with mental health needs, so mental health is no big deal. I’m not a
member of the transgender community, so I don’t care about “bathroom bills.” It
goes on, and on, and on.
So what happens when you dismiss something that is critical to
someone else? She/he dismisses the issue that is critical to you. And now you
both lose. There are only so many possible outcomes. The best outcome is that
you support each other, and both get what you want.
And that is the point of solidarity. It is the only weapon
Democrats have against a much better funded opponent. We must hang together, or
we will surely hang separately! Solidarity forever!
*Mental Health
As
of the December meeting, I am no longer a member of the East Central Mental
Health Regional Governing Board. Leaving this group is bittersweet. I was
present at the very first meeting to discuss MH/DS Regions, and good or bad,
played a role in all the decisions we have made up to this point. I am very
proud of the work we have done over those 5+ years.
Mental
Health and Disability Services (MH/DS) has been a big part of my career. I am a
social worker by trade, and worked with a number of people as a direct care
provider. I later went to work for the Iowa Medicaid program when Medicaid
Waivers were first introduced. From there, I became the Executive Director of
the Arc of Johnson County (now The Arc of SE Iowa). Finally, I was elected to
the Johnson County Board of Supervisors in 2004. One of the biggest
responsibilities County Supervisors have is the provision of services for
people with disabilities.
I
suppose in part because of my background, I was asked to share a few thoughts
as I step down. Below is my best effort:
1. Like it or
not, MH/DS services are political. If this issue matters to you, you need to
vote. And you need to vote for people at the Federal, State, and County level
that care about this issue. I know that politics is often viewed as ugly and
unhelpful. But politics is the ONLY way we are going to improve the MH/DS
system!
2. On one
hand, we need the Federal government. The needs of people with disabilities far
outstrip anything State or County governments can provide. So you MUST lobby
our Federal Elected Officials. But I look to County-level government for
inspiration. Our Regional Governing Board consists of a few Supervisors who are
very conservative, a couple Supervisors who are pretty progressive, and a few
Supervisors who are moderates. Between the 9 of us, we have managed to work
together to achieve some pretty good results. We follow practices of good
government. We debate and discuss. There have been numerous compromises; it is
rare to get everything you want. But the results are solid. I think the RGB
could serve as a model for other levels of government!
3. The
county-based Mental Health Regions are only a piece of the puzzle. Medicaid and
Medicaid-funded services are even more critical to the people we serve.
Lobbying for proper Medicaid services is every bit as important as providing
the services we do. If we truly care about the people we serve, we simply MUST
have a robust Medicaid program!
4. Another
piece of the puzzle, even more important than Medicaid, is the families who
care for the people we serve. This care is rarely compensated and always
difficult. These caregivers are heroes, and deserve so much better from our
systems of care. We cannot ignore their needs and provide adequate services!
5. The final
and most important piece of the puzzle is the people who receive those
services. I HATE the phrase “consumers”; it sounds as though they are simply
sucking up resources. People with disabilities are just that – people. Let’s
behave accordingly!
Thanks so much for the opportunity to serve the East Central
Region! It has been a pleasure and a privilege!
*DID YOU KNOW?
The East Central Iowa Mental Health Region budgets almost $20 million
annually to serve the 600,000+ people in the Region.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
December 7, 2017
Sullivan’s
Salvos 12/12/17
In this edition:
*RIP Peter Feldstein
*Grassley’s World
*Evil and Medicaid?
*Evil and the Tax Bill?
*What Now?
*Holiday Shopping and Events?
*Did You Know?
*RIP Peter Feldstein
I
was sorry to hear of the passing of Peter Feldstein, UI Art instructor and
author of The Oxford Project. (If you have never seen it, check it out!) Peter
was a great guy, who always seemed to have a smile on his face. I will miss
him.
*Grassley’s World
Like
most Americans (according to Chuck Grassley), I am going to spend my money on
booze, women, and movies. Who’s with me?
*Evil and Medicaid?
Evil.
What does it really mean? The dictionary definition is, “Profoundly immoral and
malevolent.” There are three parts there:
Profound:
It has to be intense. This cannot be something small. It has to have serious
consequences.
Immoral:
Not conforming to standards of decency. This has to be something no reasonable,
decent person would do.
Malevolent:
Desiring to do evil to others. This means you have to intend to do evil. You
need to know that what you are doing is wrong.
I happen to believe
that “profoundly immoral and malevolent” is a very fitting description of
Iowa’s failed Medicaid privatization scheme. It touches all the bases!
Is
it profound? Medicaid serves the most vulnerable members of our society. First,
you must be incredibly poor. Then you need to fit a second category of need.
For example, most Medicaid recipients are children. The next biggest group is
people living in nursing homes. The third largest group is people with
significant disabilities. These are people whose health can easily be
negatively affected.
I
would argue that the impact has been profound. In addition to targeting the
most vulnerable Iowans, Medicaid serves 1 in 6 Iowans. So the scale is
profound, too. It is a very big deal!
Is
it immoral? Who amongst us would take medicine from a child? Who amongst us
would throw a senior citizen out of a nursing home? Who amongst us would throw
a person with disabilities out of her group home? Aren’t those acts immoral?
This
is EXACTLY what the privatization of Medicaid has done! So, it follows that the
privatization of Medicaid has been immoral.
Is
it malevolent? This is the toughest piece. That it is profoundly immoral is not
in question. Now we must determine if a person KNOWS it is profoundly immoral.
There
are two options here in the case of Governor Reynolds. If she understands that
her decisions have been profoundly immoral, she has committed a truly evil act.
If she does not understand, then she is too ignorant to serve as Governor.
It
is really quite simple. Medicaid privatization was an evil act. Evil is in our
midst. There is no point calling it anything else. Disagree? Please explain
your reasoning. I would like to be convinced there is more to this; I really
would.
So I ask you – faced with this evil, what are we going to do?
*Evil and the Tax Bill?
On
a State level, it is Medicaid privatization. On a federal level, it is the tax
bill. Same thing - profoundly immoral
and malevolent.
Again – if you disagree, please explain your reasoning. I would like to be
convinced there is more to this; I really would.
And
once again, I ask you - faced with this evil, what are we going to do?
*What Now?
So.
We have Privatized Medicaid malevolently injuring the poor. We have a GOP tax
bill malevolently injuring the poor. What are we going to do about it?
For
one, I would like to see the media wake up. There are tactics being used NEVER
BEFORE used in the history of the US Senate. Why aren’t we hearing this? The
media treats both of these topics as having two potentially correct sides. It
does NOT have two correct sides. There IS a set of facts out there, and they
should be reported as such.
But
that is the media. What about those of us that are just regular folks? What can
we do?
Unfortunately,
we are limited. I think it comes down to electoral politics. The 99% have been
ignored, and will continue to be ignored until we have an electoral revolution!
*Holiday Shopping and Events?
Planning
your Holiday events? Starting your Holiday shopping? If so, please remember to
look for the little blue sign that says, “We support the Johnson County Minimum
Wage - $10.10.”
Obviously,
Republicans in the Iowa Legislature took away Johnson County’s ability to set a
minimum wage. But a coalition of local individuals, led by the Center for
Worker Justice, have gone door-to-door to local businesses, asking them to
pledge to pay at least $10.10.
And
the campaign has been very successful! Already over 150 local businesses have
made the pledge, with more businesses pledging every day.
I
am going to spend my dollars in a way that does some social good. I am going to
spend my dollars in a way that reflects the teachings of the season. I am going
to support businesses that pay $10.10 this Holiday season. I hope you will do
the same!
*DID YOU KNOW?
A common argument you hear from the GOP is “many low income people don’t
even pay taxes.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Lower income people
may not pay income taxes. But they are paying payroll, sales, and other taxes.
As a matter of fact, lower income individuals pay a far higher percentage in
taxes than do wealthier people.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
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