McDonald’s Opposes “Employee Free Choice Act” supported by Obama

Posted on December 9, 2008 by rbirkey

McDonald's USA President, Don Thompson

I read an interesting article in Crain’s Chicago Business yesterday that talked about how McDonald’s USA is urging their franchise owner-operators to call their representatives to oppose the so called “Employee Free Choice Act” currently being considered in Congress.

McDonald’s USA President Don Thompson (photo left) warns the owner-operators of the “gravity of the issue” and how this legislation would negatively impact their industry.

So, what’s this all about anyway? It sounds like McDonald’s is fighting against a good thing – right? I mean, even president-elect Obama supports this bill. Hold on… not so fast!

Under current law, even McDonald’s employees have the right to organize unions. There is nothing stopping them from doing so. What this law changes is the way the vote is taken. Currently it must be a secret ballot. Under the new law it would be a “card-check” system where each person voting would have to sign their name along with their vote. This of course opens the employee up to fear of pressure and consequences for their vote. McDonald’s employs many younger people who would be especially susceptible to big union coercion.

The United States has long viewed voting as a private matter, and a history of using the relative safety and security of the secret ballot. This new law seeks to circumvent this foundational principle and historical practice.

I agree with McDonald’s USA on this one… we must protect and keep the principle and practice of the secret ballot alive and well in the USA.

How Obama Got Elected?

Posted on November 25, 2008 by rbirkey

I read an email early this morning that mentioned this website in it.

HowObamaGotElected.com

You might want to check it out at HowObamaGotElected.com. There is a video there that has been viewed over 1.4 M times on YouTube to watch, then links to all the data and backup on the video including:

A video of John Ziegler (the filmmaker) interviewed on Fox News
Data on a research poll/survey by John Zogby
Links to all the attacks being made against this video and data

It’s all very interesting.

My Voting Experience

Posted on November 7, 2006 by rbirkey

Well, the big day has finally arrived. It’s going to be an interesting day as we watch the polls.

I went to my local Precinct 64 polling place to vote this morning. The lady asked for my last name, which I gave her. She flipped through the sheets, stopped at one and asked me, “Taylor?” “No,” I said, “it’s Randal.” She flipped over and tore out my sheet, I signed it, and then I voted on the new computer-based voting machine. No problems.

Then I called my oldest son Taylor, and asked if he was voting today. He said he was just on his way out to do that before work. I asked if he knew where to go, assuming he still had to come into Oak Park to vote. He said yes, they had given him a card and all the instructions for when he registered out in DuPage County! I then realized, that he could actually vote twice, since they had not removed him from the Cook County voter list, and they did not check for valid ID… just signatures.

The inefficiency and out-of-date procedures that are still in effect in government just amaze me. It disturbs me that there are so many ways like this that people actually use to cheat. There will be thousands of votes cast in Cook County by people who are dead, have moved away, or are not even legal citizens.

Sad. Unbelievable.