US Court of Appeals Bats’em Down Pay attention to the history because getting there is half the fun. Cranston, Rhode Island (RI), firefighters have been covered by some type of municipal pension system since 1936. In the 90’s it was determined that the city could no longer afford the benefit, indeed it was a fiscally […]

White House Skewers Republican Graham   There is a lot not to like about Republican senator Lindsay Graham but he has sometimes emerged as a voice of reason and this is one of those times.   Yesterday Graham described the current shutdown as complicated by the White House staff having an agenda different from the […]

It Was Only a Matter of Time Cameras in vehicles are now so prevalent they shouldn’t attract notice much less interest. The combination of digital technology and portability now means that any activity can be recorded, including fire rig operations. Firefighters in Baltimore aren’t happy about that. Several years ago the department installed cameras in […]

Death of a Union The chief and crucial reason for labor unions is to fight or advocate on behalf of their members. It’s very simple, really. To employ collective strength to ensure that we have acceptable wages, benefits, hours and safe working conditions. Real unions remain vigilant, focused, unconflicted and unrelenting in that mission. The […]

Cotton, Perdue, etc.   Let’s start by recalling that Donald Trump has made a career out of saying outrageous things from “grab’em by the pussy” to saying he would date his own daughter because she’s hot.   So, Dick Durbin’s revelation that Trump referred to African countries as shitholes is hardly extraordinary or out of […]

Cohn was a lawyer and friend of Trump’s when he was younger. Cohn was a pure maggot, serving as Joe McCarthy’s chief counsel during the infamous Army-McCarthy hearings. He was also a big pal of Roger Stone, another Trump apologist. Stone says of Cohn, “He was interested in power and access.” Stephen Miller, Trump’s bizarre […]

Brunacini in a Lab Coat The diesel extraction systems protecting you from particulates? Thank Dr. Melius for that. Better and more targeted medical exams for firefighters? Thank him for that, too. Workers compensation coverage for occupational cancers? Yep. The Zadroga 9/11 Program? Ditto. And the list goes on and on. Jim died on New Year’s […]

In Like a Lion But Out Like a Lamb Over a year ago, in the Fall of 2016, former New York Local 854 president and IAFF chief of staff Pete Gorman filed a lawsuit in DC court alleging that he had been wrongly terminated after raising concerns about unethical hiring practices at the IAFF. Gorman […]