resident Obama’s proposal to tackle climate change by cutting carbon emissions from power plants by a total of 30 percent by 2030 is already unleashing a torrent of de- bate that will not subside anytime soon. And that’s a good thing. That’s because, if nothing else, it forces us — as individuals, not just as a nation — to confront the issue of climate change on moral terms. Monday’s proposal is probably the boldest gesture this admin- istration has made on the climate change issue. It sets national limits on the man-made generation of carbon dioxide, one of the largest sources of greenhouse gases that are a chief culprit in cli- mate change. It’s also designed to prod other nations into doing more with this pressing global issue. And on Tuesday, The Associ- ated Press reported that China may follow suit in accepting “bind- ing goals to cut greenhouse gases.” The move would also allow the U.S. to catch up with the European Union’s efforts to combat climate change. Obama’s plan proposes a 30 percent cut from the 2005 levels, which is an important threshold to bear in mind. Efforts to clean up emissions have been under way since then, and carbon dioxide emissions have already been cut by nearly 13 percent the last nine years. But, like losing weight on a diet, the closer one gets to the goal, the harder the process becomes. And finding the next 17 per- cent is not going to be easy or painless. The backlash to the proposal actually started before it was even made. Last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce predicted the new rules — whatever they were to be, since the details had yet to be announced — would prevent the creation of 200,000 jobs for the economy. And to be sure, the cost of electricity that is gen- erated by coal-burning plants — which currently includes a lot of us — may climb, perhaps significantly, as a result. On the other hand, The Associated Press noted that states like Colorado and California, which tap into a lot of alternative energy sources such as solar and wind, will be the least impacted by the proposal — and, thus, probably in a better position to capitalize on the matter. We don’t know how this will play out, other than it won’t get to wherever it’s going quickly or easily. There will be a lot of grand- standing on both sides — there has been for a long time — and this step will certainly attract more of that commotion. But if we oppose this measure to combat climate change on the grounds that it would cost too much or it would change our lifestyle — which are comments being encountered already — it’s fair to ask what the alternative is. That question needs to be asked by each of us. If there are bet- ter, more reasonable alternatives — not counting the prospect of merely dismissing the facts of our changing climate with the as- sumption or hope that the matter isn’t real — we need to find them and understand them. We need to start moving toward a so- lution yesterday; we need to catch up now. kmh T HE P RESS D AKOTAN THE DAKOTAS’ OLDEST NEWSPAPER | FOUNDED 1861 Yankton Media, Inc., 319 Walnut St., Yankton, SD 57078 Wednesday, 6.4.14 ON THE WEB: www.yankton.net VIEWS PAGE: [email protected] PRESS DAKOTAN PAGE 4 views OPINION Carbon Plan: A Time To Decide I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps. Jeremiah 10:23. Portals of Prayer, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis FROM THE BIBLE By The Associated Press Today is Wednesday, June 4, the 155th day of 2014. There are 210 days left in the year. Today’s Highlights in History: On June 4, 1944, during World War II, U- 505, a German submarine, was cap- tured by a U.S. Navy task group in the south Atlantic; it was the first such capture of an enemy vessel at sea by the U.S. Navy since the War of 1812. The U.S. Fifth Army began liberating Rome. On this date: In 1783, the Mont- golfier brothers first publicly demon- strated their hot-air balloon, which did not carry any passengers, over An- nonay, France. In 1784, opera singer Elisabeth Thible became the first woman to make a nontethered flight aboard a Montgolfier hot-air balloon, over Lyon, France. In 1892, the Sierra Club was in- corporated in San Francisco. In 1919, Congress approved the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitu- tion, guaranteeing citizens the right to vote regardless of their gender and sent it to the states for ratification. In 1939, the German ocean liner MS St. Louis, carrying more than 900 Jewish refugees from Germany, was turned away from the Florida coast by U.S. officials. In 1940, during World War II, the Allied military evacuation of more than 338,000 troops from Dunkirk, France, ended. In 1942, the World War II Battle of Midway began, resulting in a decisive American victory against Japan and marking the turning point of the war in the Pacific. In 1954, French Premier Joseph Laniel and Vietnamese Premier Buu Loc signed treaties in Paris according “complete independence” to Vietnam. In 1972, a jury in San Jose, Cali- fornia, acquitted radical activist An- gela Davis of murder and kidnapping for her alleged connection to a deadly courthouse shootout in Marin County in 1970. In 1986, Jonathan Jay Pollard, a former Navy intelligence analyst, pleaded guilty in Washington to con- spiring to deliver information related to the national defense to a foreign gov- ernment, specifically Israel. (He is serving a life prison term.) In 1989, a gas explosion in the So- viet Union engulfed two passing trains, killing 575. In 1998, a federal judge sen- tenced Terry Nichols to life in prison for his role in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Ten years ago: A powerful bomb blast ripped through a crowded out- door market in central Russia, killing at least 11 people. President George W. Bush nominated former Missouri Sen. John Danforth to be America’s ambassador to the United Nations. Muffler shop owner Marvin Heemeyer, angry after losing a zoning dispute, went on a rampage in Granby, Col- orado, using a customized armor- plated bulldozer to knock down or damage nine buildings before shoot- ing himself to death. Five years ago: Speaking at Cairo University, President Barack Obama called for a “new beginning between the United States and Mus- lims” and said together, they could confront violent extremism across the globe. Actor David Carradine, 72, was found dead in a Bangkok, Thailand, hotel room. One year ago: Already heavily criticized for targeting conservative groups, the Internal Revenue Service suffered another blow as new details emerged in a report about senior offi- cials enjoying luxury hotel rooms, free drinks and food at a $4.1 million train- ing conference. Ohio State University President Gordon Gee announced his retirement after he came under fire for joking about “those damn Catholics” at Notre Dame and poking fun at the academic quality of other schools. France said it had confirmed that nerve gas was used “multiple times in a localized way” in Syria. Joey Coving- ton, 67, a former Jefferson Airplane drummer who co-wrote several of the group’s songs, died in a car crash in Palm Springs, California. Today’s Birthdays: Sex therapist and media personality Dr. Ruth West- heimer is 86. Actor Bruce Dern is 78. Musician Roger Ball is 70. Actress- singer Michelle Phillips is 70. Jazz mu- sician Anthony Braxton is 69. Rock musician Danny Brown (The Fixx) is 63. Actor Parker Stevenson is 62. Actor Keith David is 58. Blues singer- musician Tinsley Ellis is 57. Actress Julie Gholson is 56. Actor Eddie Velez is 56. Singer-musician El DeBarge is 53. Actress Julie White is 53. Actress Lindsay Frost is 52. Tennis player An- drea Jaeger is 49. Opera singer Ce- cilia Bartoli is 48. Rhythm-and-blues singer Al B. Sure! is 46. Actor Scott Wolf is 46. Actor-comedian Rob Huebel is 45. Comedian Horatio Sanz is 45. Actor Noah Wyle is 43. Rock musician Stefan Lessard (The Dave Matthews Band) is 40. Actor-come- dian Russell Brand is 39. Actress An- gelina Jolie is 39. Actor Theo Rossi is 39. Alt-country singer Kasey Cham- bers is 38. Rock musician JoJo Garza (Los Lonely Boys) is 34. Country mu- sician Dean Berner (Edens Edge) is 33. Model Bar Refaeli is 29. Olympic gold medal figure skater Evan Lysacek is 29. Rock musician Zac Farro is 24. Thought for Today: “As people used to be wrong about the motion of the sun, so they are still wrong about the motion of the future. The future stands still; it is we who move in infi- nite space.” — Rainer Maria Rilke, German poet (1875-1926). ON THIS DATE MANAGERS Gary L. Wood Publisher Michele Schievelbein Advertising Director Tonya Schild Business Manager Michael Hrycko Circulation Director Tera Schmidt Classified Manager Kelly Hertz Editor James D. Cimburek Sports Editor Beth Rye New Media Director Kathy Larson Composing Manager Israel Montalvo District Manager Published Daily Monday-Saturday Periodicals postage paid at Yankton, South Dakota, under the act of March 3, 1979. Weekly Dakotian established June 6, 1861. Yankton Daily Press and Dakotian established April 26, 1875. 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REICH Tribune Content Agency I spent several days in New York last week with students from around the country who were preparing to head into the heartland to help organize Walmart workers for better jobs and wages. (Full familial disclosure: My son Adam is one of the leaders.) Almost exactly 50 years ago, a similar group headed to Mississippi to register African-Americans to vote, in what came to be known as Freedom Summer. Call this Freedom Summer II. The current struggle of low-wage workers across America echoes the civil rights struggle of the 1960s. Today, as then, a group of Ameri- cans is denied the dignity of decent wages and working conditions. Today, just as then, powerful forces are threat- ening and intimidating vulnerable people for exercising their legal rights. Today, just like 50 years ago, people who have been treated as voiceless and disposable are standing up and demanding change. Although Walmart is no Bull Connor, it’s the poster child for keeping low-wage workers down. America’s largest employer, with about 1.4 million workers, refuses to provide most of them with an income they can live on. The vast majority earns under $25,000 a year, with an average hourly wage of about $8.80. You and I and other taxpayers shell out for these workers’ Medicaid and food stamps be- cause they and their families can’t stay afloat on what Walmart pays. (I’ve often thought Wal- mart and other big employers should have to pay a tax equal to the public assistance their workers receive because the companies don’t pay them enough to stay out of poverty.) Walmart won’t even allow workers to or- ganize for better jobs and wages. In January, the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint accusing it of unlawfully threaten- ing or retaliating against workers who have taken part in strikes and protests. The firm says it can’t afford to give its work- ers a raise or better hours and working condi- tions. Baloney. Walmart is America’s biggest retailer. Its policies are pulling every other major retailer into the same race to the bottom. If Walmart halted the race, the race would stop. Don’t worry about its investors. Its largest is the Walton family, whose combined wealth is greater than the combined wealth of the bot- tom 42 percent of the entire American popula- tion. This week, Walmart employees will go on strike in dozens of cities. A group of “Walmart Moms” is also marching for better hours and better treatment of pregnant employees. And an employee group has sent a letter and vot- ing guide to shareholders asking that they vote against Rob Walton’s re-election as chair. Walmart isn’t the only place where low-wage workers are on the move. Two weeks ago, 2,000 protesters gath- ered at McDonald’s corporate head- quarters in suburban Chicago to demand a hike in the minimum wage and the right to form a union without retaliation. More than 100 were ar- rested. Giant fast-food companies have the largest gap between the pay of CEOs and workers of any industry, with a CEO-to-worker compensation ratio of more than 1,000-to-one. Meanwhile, across America, low-wage workers are demanding -- and in many cases getting -- increases in the minimum wage. De- spite Washington’s gridlock, seven states have raised their own minimums so far this year. A number of cities have also voted in minimum- wage increases. On Monday, Seattle’s city council approved a minimum wage hike to $15 an hour, the highest in the nation, to take ef- fect over the next few years. The movement of low-wage workers for de- cent pay and working conditions is partly a re- flection of America’s emerging low-wage economy. While low-wage industries such as retail and restaurant accounted for 22 percent of the jobs lost in the Great Recession, they’ve generated 44 percent of the jobs added since then, according to a recent report from the Na- tional Employment Law Project. But the movement is also a moral struggle for decency and respect, and full participation in our economy and society. In these ways, it’s the civil rights struggle of our time. It took guts to take on the power structure of Mississippi a half-century ago. It takes guts to take on the power structure of giant compa- nies like Walmart and McDonalds now. But confronting such powerful bastions is a vital step toward fundamental social change. Freedom Summer II is just the start. Robert Reich is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley and Senior Fellow at the Blum Center for Developing Economies. His new film, “In- equality for All,” is now out on iTunes, DVD and On Demand. Freedom Summer II Robert REICH EMS Gratitude Daniel Prendable, Yankton EMT Basic, Yankton County EMS Each year, EMTs across the United States use EMS Week to sponsor awareness events to keep communities safe and healthy. EMS Week this year was May 18-24. Yankton County EMS held its second annual Water Safety Day event to celebrate Emergency Medical Services for Children Day on Wednesday, May 21. The purpose of this event was to educate youth and families on the importance of water safety and provide free life jackets to youth age 0-17. We’re proud to say the event was a success! Yankton County EMS gave out 177 life jackets, which is a huge leap from the 61 life jackets given away last year. We certainly can’t take all the credit, so we’d like to say “thank you” to those who helped us. Thank You to the National Park Service- MNRR, U.S. Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engi- neers, S.D. Canoe and Kayak Association and Yankton County Search & Rescue for having ed- ucational booths so young people could learn about water safety and play some fun games. Thank You also to the National Park Service- MNRR, Yankton County, Lesterville Fire Depart- ment, Yankton Area EMS Association and Yankton County Search & Rescue for donating money and life jackets to support this cause. Finally, thank you to the families and young people who attended our event. We appreciate your enthusiasm and willingness to learn about water safety, and we hope you put that information to good use this summer. Yankton County EMS is a committed team of Paramedics and EMTs who proudly serve the residents and visitors of Yankton County. Anyone with questions about this event or any other public service we offer, please call our office at 605-668-9033. Thank you, Yankton, and have a safe summer! Plaza Proposal Randy Gleich, Yankton Concerning my letter “Count on It” (Press & Dakotan, May 5) — hypothetically it is im- possible to estimate traffic counts (for the bridge or plaza) like the roads where they have that rubber counter hose over the road. But I will give you a successful working exam- ple where modifying the existing plaza plan: It’s called “Alive after Five” in Boise, Idaho, where thousands congregate and listen to live music and enjoy cool beverages, vendor booths and delicious food each week. This ex- ample could easily be duplicated on the plaza. Of course we are not as big as Boise, but it is a successful working model that could be replicated right here in Yankton. SOUTH DAKOTA SEN. TIM JOHNSON: 136 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone: (202) 224-5842; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 332- 8896; email: http://johnson.senate.gov/emailform.html SEN. JOHN THUNE: United States Senate SR- 493, Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone: (866) 850-3855; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 334-9596; Fax: (202) 228-3855; Web: thune.senate.gov. REP. KRISTI NOEM: 226 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515; Washington Phone: (202) 225-2801; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 367-8371; Fax: (202) 225-5823; email: visit https://noem.house.gov NEBRASKA SEN. DEB FISCHER: 825 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone: (202) 224-6551; email: N/A SEN. MIKE JOHANNS: 1 Russell Courtyard, Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone: (202) 224-4224; email: log on at http://johanns.senate.gov/public/?p=EmailSenatorJo- hanns REP. JEFF FORTENBERRY: 1517 Longworth House, Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515; Washington Phone: (202) 225-4806; District Phone: (402) 438-1598; email: log on at www.house.gov/writerep/ REP. ADRIAN SMITH: 503 Cannon House Of- fice Building, Washington, D.C. 20515-2703; Wash- ington Phone: (202) 225-6435; Fax: (202) 225-0207; District Phone: (308) 633-6333; email: log on at www.house.gov/writerep/ YOUR D.C. LAWMAKERS n Share your thoughts with us. Write to the PRESS & DAKOTAN on a topic of the day or in response to an editorial or story. Write us at: Let- ters, 319 Walnut, Yankton, SD 57078, drop off at 319 Walnut in Yank- ton, fax to 665-1721 or email to [email protected]. SPEAK UP!
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resident Obama’s proposal to tackle climate change bycutting carbon emissions from power plants by a total of30 percent by 2030 is already unleashing a torrent of de-bate that will not subside anytime soon. And that’s agood thing.
That’s because, if nothing else, it forces us — as individuals,not just as a nation — to confront the issue of climate change onmoral terms.
Monday’s proposal is probably the boldest gesture this admin-istration has made on the climate change issue. It sets nationallimits on the man-made generation of carbon dioxide, one of thelargest sources of greenhouse gases that are a chief culprit in cli-mate change. It’s also designed to prod other nations into doingmore with this pressing global issue. And on Tuesday, The Associ-ated Press reported that China may follow suit in accepting “bind-ing goals to cut greenhouse gases.” The move would also allowthe U.S. to catch up with the European Union’s efforts to combatclimate change.
Obama’s plan proposes a 30 percent cut from the 2005 levels,which is an important threshold to bear in mind. Efforts to cleanup emissions have been under way since then, and carbon dioxideemissions have already been cut by nearly 13 percent the last nineyears. But, like losing weight on a diet, the closer one gets to thegoal, the harder the process becomes. And finding the next 17 per-cent is not going to be easy or painless.
The backlash to the proposal actually started before it waseven made. Last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce predictedthe new rules — whatever they were to be, since the details hadyet to be announced — would prevent the creation of 200,000 jobsfor the economy. And to be sure, the cost of electricity that is gen-erated by coal-burning plants — which currently includes a lot ofus — may climb, perhaps significantly, as a result.
On the other hand, The Associated Press noted that states likeColorado and California, which tap into a lot of alternative energysources such as solar and wind, will be the least impacted by theproposal — and, thus, probably in a better position to capitalizeon the matter.
We don’t know how this will play out, other than it won’t get towherever it’s going quickly or easily. There will be a lot of grand-standing on both sides — there has been for a long time — andthis step will certainly attract more of that commotion.
But if we oppose this measure to combat climate change onthe grounds that it would cost too much or it would change ourlifestyle — which are comments being encountered already — it’sfair to ask what the alternative is.
That question needs to be asked by each of us. If there are bet-ter, more reasonable alternatives — not counting the prospect ofmerely dismissing the facts of our changing climate with the as-sumption or hope that the matter isn’t real — we need to findthem and understand them. We need to start moving toward a so-lution yesterday; we need to catch up now.
kmh
THE PRESS DAKOTANTHE DAKOTAS’ OLDEST NEWSPAPER | FOUNDED 1861
Yankton Media, Inc., 319 Walnut St., Yankton, SD 57078
Wednesday, 6.4.14ON THE WEB: www.yankton.net
VIEWS PAGE: [email protected] DAKOTANP A G E 4
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OPINION
Carbon Plan: ATime To Decide
I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it isnot in man who walks to direct his steps. Jeremiah 10:23. Portals ofPrayer, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis
F RO M T H E B I B L E
By The Associated PressToday is Wednesday, June 4, the
155th day of 2014. There are 210 daysleft in the year.
Today’s Highlights in History: OnJune 4, 1944, during World War II, U-505, a German submarine, was cap-tured by a U.S. Navy task group in thesouth Atlantic; it was the first suchcapture of an enemy vessel at sea bythe U.S. Navy since the War of 1812.The U.S. Fifth Army began liberatingRome.
On this date: In 1783, the Mont-golfier brothers first publicly demon-strated their hot-air balloon, which didnot carry any passengers, over An-nonay, France.
In 1784, opera singer ElisabethThible became the first woman tomake a nontethered flight aboard aMontgolfier hot-air balloon, over Lyon,France.
In 1892, the Sierra Club was in-corporated in San Francisco.
In 1919, Congress approved the19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitu-tion, guaranteeing citizens the right tovote regardless of their gender andsent it to the states for ratification.
In 1939, the German ocean linerMS St. Louis, carrying more than 900Jewish refugees from Germany, wasturned away from the Florida coast byU.S. officials.
In 1940, during World War II, theAllied military evacuation of more than338,000 troops from Dunkirk, France,ended.
In 1942, the World War II Battle ofMidway began, resulting in a decisiveAmerican victory against Japan andmarking the turning point of the war inthe Pacific.
In 1954, French Premier JosephLaniel and Vietnamese Premier BuuLoc signed treaties in Paris according“complete independence” to Vietnam.
In 1972, a jury in San Jose, Cali-fornia, acquitted radical activist An-gela Davis of murder and kidnappingfor her alleged connection to a deadlycourthouse shootout in Marin Countyin 1970.
In 1986, Jonathan Jay Pollard, aformer Navy intelligence analyst,pleaded guilty in Washington to con-spiring to deliver information related tothe national defense to a foreign gov-ernment, specifically Israel. (He isserving a life prison term.)
In 1989, a gas explosion in the So-viet Union engulfed two passingtrains, killing 575.
In 1998, a federal judge sen-tenced Terry Nichols to life in prisonfor his role in the 1995 bombing of theAlfred P. Murrah Federal Building inOklahoma City.
Ten years ago: A powerful bombblast ripped through a crowded out-door market in central Russia, killingat least 11 people. President GeorgeW. Bush nominated former MissouriSen. John Danforth to be America’sambassador to the United Nations.
Muffler shop owner Marvin Heemeyer,angry after losing a zoning dispute,went on a rampage in Granby, Col-orado, using a customized armor-plated bulldozer to knock down ordamage nine buildings before shoot-ing himself to death.
Five years ago: Speaking atCairo University, President BarackObama called for a “new beginningbetween the United States and Mus-lims” and said together, they couldconfront violent extremism across theglobe. Actor David Carradine, 72, wasfound dead in a Bangkok, Thailand,hotel room.
One year ago: Already heavilycriticized for targeting conservativegroups, the Internal Revenue Servicesuffered another blow as new detailsemerged in a report about senior offi-cials enjoying luxury hotel rooms, freedrinks and food at a $4.1 million train-ing conference. Ohio State UniversityPresident Gordon Gee announced hisretirement after he came under fire forjoking about “those damn Catholics”at Notre Dame and poking fun at theacademic quality of other schools.France said it had confirmed thatnerve gas was used “multiple times ina localized way” in Syria. Joey Coving-ton, 67, a former Jefferson Airplanedrummer who co-wrote several of thegroup’s songs, died in a car crash inPalm Springs, California.
Today’s Birthdays: Sex therapistand media personality Dr. Ruth West-heimer is 86. Actor Bruce Dern is 78.Musician Roger Ball is 70. Actress-singer Michelle Phillips is 70. Jazz mu-sician Anthony Braxton is 69. Rockmusician Danny Brown (The Fixx) is63. Actor Parker Stevenson is 62.Actor Keith David is 58. Blues singer-musician Tinsley Ellis is 57. ActressJulie Gholson is 56. Actor Eddie Velezis 56. Singer-musician El DeBarge is53. Actress Julie White is 53. ActressLindsay Frost is 52. Tennis player An-drea Jaeger is 49. Opera singer Ce-cilia Bartoli is 48. Rhythm-and-bluessinger Al B. Sure! is 46. Actor ScottWolf is 46. Actor-comedian RobHuebel is 45. Comedian Horatio Sanzis 45. Actor Noah Wyle is 43. Rockmusician Stefan Lessard (The DaveMatthews Band) is 40. Actor-come-dian Russell Brand is 39. Actress An-gelina Jolie is 39. Actor Theo Rossi is39. Alt-country singer Kasey Cham-bers is 38. Rock musician JoJo Garza(Los Lonely Boys) is 34. Country mu-sician Dean Berner (Edens Edge) is33. Model Bar Refaeli is 29. Olympicgold medal figure skater EvanLysacek is 29. Rock musician ZacFarro is 24.
Thought for Today: “As peopleused to be wrong about the motion ofthe sun, so they are still wrong aboutthe motion of the future. The futurestands still; it is we who move in infi-nite space.” — Rainer Maria Rilke,German poet (1875-1926).
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Tera SchmidtClassified Manager
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Kathy LarsonComposing Manager
Israel MontalvoDistrict Manager
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YO U R L E T T E R S
BY ROBERT B. REICHTribune Content Agency
I spent several days in New York last weekwith students from around the country whowere preparing to head into the heartland tohelp organize Walmart workers forbetter jobs and wages. (Full familialdisclosure: My son Adam is one ofthe leaders.)
Almost exactly 50 years ago, asimilar group headed to Mississippito register African-Americans tovote, in what came to be known asFreedom Summer.
Call this Freedom Summer II. The current struggle of low-wage
workers across America echoes thecivil rights struggle of the 1960s.
Today, as then, a group of Ameri-cans is denied the dignity of decentwages and working conditions.Today, just as then, powerful forces are threat-ening and intimidating vulnerable people forexercising their legal rights. Today, just like 50years ago, people who have been treated asvoiceless and disposable are standing up anddemanding change.
Although Walmart is no Bull Connor, it’sthe poster child for keeping low-wage workersdown. America’s largest employer, with about1.4 million workers, refuses to provide most ofthem with an income they can live on. Thevast majority earns under $25,000 a year, withan average hourly wage of about $8.80.
You and I and other taxpayers shell out forthese workers’ Medicaid and food stamps be-cause they and their families can’t stay afloaton what Walmart pays. (I’ve often thought Wal-mart and other big employers should have topay a tax equal to the public assistance theirworkers receive because the companies don’tpay them enough to stay out of poverty.)
Walmart won’t even allow workers to or-ganize for better jobs and wages. In January,the National Labor Relations Board issued acomplaint accusing it of unlawfully threaten-ing or retaliating against workers who havetaken part in strikes and protests.
The firm says it can’t afford to give its work-ers a raise or better hours and working condi-tions. Baloney. Walmart is America’s biggestretailer. Its policies are pulling every othermajor retailer into the same race to the bottom.If Walmart halted the race, the race would stop.
Don’t worry about its investors. Its largest isthe Walton family, whose combined wealth isgreater than the combined wealth of the bot-tom 42 percent of the entire American popula-tion.
This week, Walmart employees will go onstrike in dozens of cities. A group of “WalmartMoms” is also marching for better hours andbetter treatment of pregnant employees. Andan employee group has sent a letter and vot-ing guide to shareholders asking that they
vote against Rob Walton’s re-electionas chair.
Walmart isn’t the only place wherelow-wage workers are on the move.Two weeks ago, 2,000 protesters gath-ered at McDonald’s corporate head-quarters in suburban Chicago todemand a hike in the minimum wageand the right to form a union withoutretaliation. More than 100 were ar-rested.
Giant fast-food companies havethe largest gap between the pay ofCEOs and workers of any industry,with a CEO-to-worker compensationratio of more than 1,000-to-one.
Meanwhile, across America, low-wageworkers are demanding -- and in many casesgetting -- increases in the minimum wage. De-spite Washington’s gridlock, seven states haveraised their own minimums so far this year. Anumber of cities have also voted in minimum-wage increases. On Monday, Seattle’s citycouncil approved a minimum wage hike to $15an hour, the highest in the nation, to take ef-fect over the next few years.
The movement of low-wage workers for de-cent pay and working conditions is partly a re-flection of America’s emerging low-wageeconomy. While low-wage industries such asretail and restaurant accounted for 22 percentof the jobs lost in the Great Recession, they’vegenerated 44 percent of the jobs added sincethen, according to a recent report from the Na-tional Employment Law Project.
But the movement is also a moral strugglefor decency and respect, and full participationin our economy and society. In these ways, it’sthe civil rights struggle of our time.
It took guts to take on the power structureof Mississippi a half-century ago. It takes gutsto take on the power structure of giant compa-nies like Walmart and McDonalds now.
But confronting such powerful bastions is avital step toward fundamental social change.Freedom Summer II is just the start.
Robert Reich is Chancellor’s Professor ofPublic Policy at the University of California atBerkeley and Senior Fellow at the Blum Centerfor Developing Economies. His new film, “In-equality for All,” is now out on iTunes, DVDand On Demand.
Freedom Summer II
Robert
REICH
EMS GratitudeDaniel Prendable, YanktonEMT Basic, Yankton County EMS
Each year, EMTs across the United Statesuse EMS Week to sponsor awareness events tokeep communities safe and healthy. EMS Weekthis year was May 18-24. Yankton County EMSheld its second annual Water Safety Day eventto celebrate Emergency Medical Services forChildren Day on Wednesday, May 21.
The purpose of this event was to educateyouth and families on the importance of watersafety and provide free life jackets to youthage 0-17. We’re proud to say the event was asuccess! Yankton County EMS gave out 177 lifejackets, which is a huge leap from the 61 lifejackets given away last year. We certainly can’ttake all the credit, so we’d like to say “thankyou” to those who helped us.
Thank You to the National Park Service-MNRR, U.S. Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engi-neers, S.D. Canoe and Kayak Association andYankton County Search & Rescue for having ed-ucational booths so young people could learnabout water safety and play some fun games.Thank You also to the National Park Service-MNRR, Yankton County, Lesterville Fire Depart-ment, Yankton Area EMS Association andYankton County Search & Rescue for donatingmoney and life jackets to support this cause.
Finally, thank you to the families and youngpeople who attended our event. We appreciateyour enthusiasm and willingness to learnabout water safety, and we hope you put thatinformation to good use this summer.
Yankton County EMS is a committed teamof Paramedics and EMTs who proudly servethe residents and visitors of Yankton County.Anyone with questions about this event or anyother public service we offer, please call ouroffice at 605-668-9033. Thank you, Yankton,and have a safe summer!
Plaza ProposalRandy Gleich, Yankton
Concerning my letter “Count on It” (Press& Dakotan, May 5) — hypothetically it is im-possible to estimate traffic counts (for thebridge or plaza) like the roads where theyhave that rubber counter hose over the road.But I will give you a successful working exam-ple where modifying the existing plaza plan:It’s called “Alive after Five” in Boise, Idaho,where thousands congregate and listen to livemusic and enjoy cool beverages, vendorbooths and delicious food each week. This ex-ample could easily be duplicated on the plaza.
Of course we are not as big as Boise, but itis a successful working model that could bereplicated right here in Yankton.
SOUTH DAKOTASEN. TIM JOHNSON: 136 Hart Senate Office
Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; WashingtonPhone: (202) 224-5842; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 332-8896; email: http://johnson.senate.gov/emailform.html
SEN. JOHN THUNE: United States Senate SR-493, Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone:(866) 850-3855; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 334-9596;Fax: (202) 228-3855; Web: thune.senate.gov.
REP. KRISTI NOEM: 226 Cannon House OfficeBuilding, Washington, D.C. 20515; Washington Phone:(202) 225-2801; Sioux Falls Phone: (605) 367-8371;Fax: (202) 225-5823; email: visithttps://noem.house.gov
NEBRASKASEN. DEB FISCHER: 825 Hart Senate Office
Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; WashingtonPhone: (202) 224-6551; email: N/A
SEN. MIKE JOHANNS: 1 Russell Courtyard,Washington, D.C. 20510; Washington Phone: (202)224-4224; email: log on athttp://johanns.senate.gov/public/?p=EmailSenatorJo-hanns
REP. JEFF FORTENBERRY: 1517 LongworthHouse, Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515;Washington Phone: (202) 225-4806; District Phone:(402) 438-1598; email: log on atwww.house.gov/writerep/
REP. ADRIAN SMITH: 503 Cannon House Of-fice Building, Washington, D.C. 20515-2703; Wash-ington Phone: (202) 225-6435; Fax: (202) 225-0207;District Phone: (308) 633-6333; email: log on atwww.house.gov/writerep/
YO U R D. C . L AW M A K E R S
n Share your thoughts with us. Write to the PRESS & DAKOTAN on atopic of the day or in response to an editorial or story. Write us at: Let-ters, 319 Walnut, Yankton, SD 57078, drop off at 319 Walnut in Yank-ton, fax to 665-1721 or email to [email protected].
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