Office of Chairman TNF: Red Army takes NM, UT, ID, AZ

[TNF]

STATEMENT ON THE PASSAGE OF THE PAID LEAVE ACT AND THE RECOGNITION OF LABOR ACT

Butte, Wonderment - I apologize for not having addressed the passage of legislation that I wrote and the Labor Party pushed to passage yet, but I have been rather swamped with real life concerns. No matter, I would like to now congratulate and thank my fellow Laborites and our good friends in the National Movement, specifically, Comrade Xahar, for his aid in passing the Paid Leave Act of 2013. I wish to thank the President and the Vice President for guiding this process, casing necessary tiebreaker votes and of course, signing the final version of the bill into law.

The Paid Leave Act of 2013 is in some aspects, the most revolutionary of all paid leave laws on the face of the planet. Effective now, not tomorrow, not in three weeks, not in two months -- but now, all employers in Atlasia must offer workers 30 paid vacation days, in addition to offering employees the chance to take off federal holidays. Workers who opt not to take these days can roll them over into the next calendar year.

Workers may also now earn paid sick leave. For every ten hours worked, he or she shall be allotted one hour of paid sick leave. This is not as progressive as I'd have liked, but this compromise was necessary for the final passage of the legislation; I will not, however, shirk away from amending this to make it more progressive and allow for workers to more easily utilize paid sick leave. Nevertheless, at present, the law is a massive improvement over what existed before - which was, of course, nothing. This is a humane and progressive alternative to a system which does not workers to take days off when they get sick.

Paid parental leave, with specifically allocated days to fathers and flexibility in taking said leave, is now the law of the land. This is a remarkable achievement and I am glad to say that I had a hand in making it a reality.

I am disappointed that the final version of the bill requires paid educational leave to go towards a worker's current line of work, but the fact that paid educational leave, even in this form, exists, is a great step forward toward improving the education and technical skills of our workforce. You can be sure that in the future I shall offer an amendment to allow for workers to seek education outside of their current field of employment, paid at the expense of said employer.

Finally, the recognition of paid long service leave, which will allow workers who have committed much time and energy to a specific employer to have a longer break, is another progressive change and really a revolutionary one in our social relations between employee and employer. I would like to see this expanded further -- perhaps to ninety days or even further, to allow elder employees to earn full wages while working far less, owing to their devotion to their companies/firms.

I would also like to address the passage of the Recognition of Labor Act. First, I'd like to thank the Federalists who moved to support this legislation, which has established International Workers' Day (May Day), Workers' Memorial Day, and Easter Monday all as federal holidays. The Act has also placed a great emphasis on teaching the oft-neglected subject of labor history, and has declared the month of May to be Labor History Month. Both progressive changes in recognizing the role of working people in the development of our fair republic.

Finally, let me address my upcoming Senate race, as it is apparent that I now have an opponent.

The difference between myself and Mr. Rooney could not be more stark. In his campaign announcement, Rooney said the following:

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Emphasis mine.

Comrades, this Senate race is not simply a battle of Federalist versus Labor, it is a battle of capital versus labor. My opponent stands firmly in the camp of the employers, that is, he stands firmly with the exploiters and users of labor, against those who would seek to improve the position of the worker, like myself. His worldview is one of hostility to the working people of our fair region and our fair Republic -- mine is not. I have consistently supported the Atlasian workingman and the Atlasian workingwoman; my opponent is the candidate of the bosses, the bankers, and those who seek to enslave the workingman and the workingwoman.

I ask that you consider the facts and the positions that we have both staked out before casting your vote at the end of this month. I ask for the support of all progressives; I understand that we have not all always seen eye-to-eye, but a vote for me is a vote against a reactionary right-wing agenda that will move the clock back on workers' rights.

Thank you. I am still open for questions, if anyone has any, and you can bet your bottom dollar that I'll be showing up to debate my opponent when Maxwell opens up the debate thread.



In solidarity,

Senator TNF

[Flake]

TNF,
During the last month or so you have become much less partisan, and you are one of the most active members of the Senate. So today, I would like to formally endorse you for Senate as you are a wonderful senator, and even though we had disagreements in the past, you are a very strong voice for the people of the midwest. I wish you well in your campaign.

[TNF]

TNF,
During the last month or so you have become much less partisan, and you are one of the most active members of the Senate. So today, I would like to formally endorse you for Senate as you are a wonderful senator, and even though we had disagreements in the past, you are a very strong voice for the people of the midwest. I wish you well in your campaign.

Thank you for your support, Tiver. It is much appreciated!

[Flake]

TNF,
During the last month or so you have become much less partisan, and you are one of the most active members of the Senate. So today, I would like to formally endorse you for Senate as you are a wonderful senator, and even though we had disagreements in the past, you are a very strong voice for the people of the midwest. I wish you well in your campaign.

Thank you for your support, Tiver. It is much appreciated!

[Mechaman]

Considering that the opponent has openly declared war on socialism: ENDORSED

[GAworth]

I would have to say Senator, of the two of you running, I will most likely support you. No endorsement yet, I still have to see what the other candidate is offering.

[SUSAN CRUSHBONE]

Well, now that this is a race, ... endorsed! I can't stand a lot of your posturing but your policies are good.

[TNF]

Considering that the opponent has openly declared war on socialism: ENDORSED

Well, now that this is a race, ... endorsed! I can't stand a lot of your posturing but your policies are good.

Thank you both for your support! I'm glad to have it.

I would have to say Senator, of the two of you running, I will most likely support you. No endorsement yet, I still have to see what the other candidate is offering.

Thank you


I will be addressing Rooney's campaign platform specifically in a large post later today, so stay tuned. This Senate race, perhaps more than any other, will be a clash of ideas. As my opponent has drawn the line against socialism, I will make it known that I will defend socialism and fight to expand and establish socialism. I am a proud socialist, and will not allow my opponent or his party to drag that label into the dirt.

[TNF]

Butte, Wonderment - Comrades, today I would like to address my opponent directly, that is, I would specifically like to address the proposals of his "Freedom Agenda" that are anything but and will lead to the exact opposite of freedom, that is, tyranny of, by, and for the bosses. Let's take a look at Mr. Rooney's "Freedom Agenda" in depth.

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First and foremost, the idea that starting a small business is the greatest thing a person can do is at once offensive and short-sighted. Those who toil for long hours taking care of our children, helping the sick and the needy, putting out fires, or making the cars you and I drive -- those people are less worthy of support and admiration than those who start small businesses? My opponent believes that the greatest gift a person can give the world is production; I disagree. The greatest gifts that man can give his fellow man or woman her fellow woman cannot be monetized, nor should they be. This idea that mankind's existence should be boiled down to a business transaction is crass and offensive. Mankind is worth more than that; he is capable of more. We, as legislators, should seek to lift the burden of work from man insofar as possible with the use of labor-saving devices, reduction in working time, and collaboration, rather than ruinous competition, which hurts us all in the long run.

I am not opposed t what Mr. Rooney is suggesting as far as loans to small business are concerned, but I would rather loans go to co-operative establishments as opposed to those with a single owner. We must invest in new business models that promote co-equal development and solidarity among men, rather than a winner-takes-all, race to the bottom business model that predominates under capitalism. Beyond that, I will introduce legislation that actually goes after the banks, rather than simply makes them give loans to small business at a faster pace. My opponent will not challenge the predominance of private financial capital in the economy -- I will. I STRONGLY support the establishment of a public banking system. I support capping interest rates on credit cards, ending pay-day lending, and guaranteeing every Atlasian the right to a checking account free of bank fees, in the public and private banking sectors.

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The idea that any of the businesses that Mr. Rooney mentions here "got there on their own" without the support of the state is ridiculous. Mr. Rooney should first remember that the whole of domestic industry at the time the automobile and the railroads sprang into being were protected by tariffs, which made foreign entryism into the American economy expensive and almost impossible. Secondly, Mr. Ford would never have climbed to the top of the ladder without a hefty amount of help from the state. The fact that his business relied upon state protection and later, state subsidization (when roads were built for cars to be driven upon) seems to be ignored by Mr. Rooney here in his tirade against "crony capitalism."

Believe it or not, all modern capitalism is crony capitalism. The stage of development in which capitalism moved freely, as a progressive force, is done. It cannot come back, nor would we want to bring it back if we could. Capital will not naturally invest in things for the public good; it seeks only private profit and will continue to do so, which will benefit not you or I, but the few, Mr. Rooney's supporters and patrons. The solution is thus not to "end crony capitalism" and let the "free market" sort it out, but rather to progressively co-ordinate economic activity to social needs. That means nationalizing industry, it means worker ownership and co-determination of economic decisionmaking, it means strong unions and it means national economic planning. Let the record show that I am in favor of all those things. I will not shirk away from it, either. Crony capitalism is capitalism; Mr. Rooney offers nothing but a step into the past, a step away from reality. My platform offers a step into the future, a step away from capitalism and towards socialism.

Continued in the next post.

[TNF]

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Unlike Mr. Rooney, I can say that I have done quite a bit to help the young people of Atlasia as far as student loans and student debt is concerned. And also unlike Mr. Rooney, I will not discriminate in terms of debt forgiveness, as he would. His plan explicitly calls for debt relief only to the "makers" (his words, not mine), those who would start a small business. My plan for student loans is one of no student loans. What do I mean by that? I plan on introducing a bill establishing higher education as a right of ALL Atlasians, not just those who would start a small business. That means that everyone would have the right to go to college if they so choose, free of charge. That means that those who wish to learn a trade or vocation would have the right to do so, free of charge. That means college textbooks, free of charge and an end to the parasitic middleman that is the textbook industry. That means a stipend for students sixteen years and older, to shield them from having to work and allow them to focus on their studies. This is a serious proposal for addressing higher education in Atlasia. Mr. Rooney's selective student loan debt forgiveness program will not aid the vast majority of folks, who do not seek higher education for the purposes of starting a small business. My plan will help all members of the Atlasian public, from those who wish to start a small business to those who wish to be a teacher, a doctor, or a plumber. Furthermore, I call on the President and the SoIA to forgive all existing student loan debt. If no action is taken on that front by the end of the President's term, I will introduce a bill forgiving all student loan debt as it currently exists in conjunction with the aforementioned universal higher education bill I plan on introducing.

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If there were any doubt left as to the side that Mr. Rooney is on, this delightful string of inaccuracies makes it known. Mr. Rooney is wrong about the effect of right-to-freeload laws on wages. Wages, health insurance coverage, and the like are far less prevalent in right-to-freeload states than they are in the free states. Of course, Mr. Rooney also neglects that there is no such thing as a right to freeload state in Atlasia, nor can there be, under the provisions of the Labor Rights Act of 2012. The Midwest seems poised to outlaw the very prospect of a right-to-work law with a constitutional amendment; only Senator Maxwell has voted 'Nay' on that amendment -- Mr. Rooney has not even bothered to cast a vote on this issue, which he professes to care so much about.

I stand with Atlasian workers and will oppose any and all attempts to introduce the right-to-freeload anywhere, for any reason, at any time. I have introduced law that will give workers a greater say in the day-to-day operations of where they work. I stand by that legislation, and I will fight for it until the day I am voted out of office, resign, or retire. You can bet on it. I will not rest until true worker ownership and management of industry is a reality in the Republic of Atlasia.

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I am actually in agreement with my opponent on ending our Republic's membership in NAFTA, the WTO, and CAFTA as they currently exist. Unlike, my opponent, however, I would first seek to reform those institutions so as to promote high wages and development among member-states before removing ourselves from them entirely. I believe in fair trade; that is, I believe that workers should be treated well and that we should trade freely with nations with identical labor and environmental standards as we have. That's why I supported the Atlasia-Canada Common Market Agreement. That's why I support the extension of the Common Market to Mexico and the establishment of free movement of people, goods, and common regulatory, labor, and environmental standards for all those on the North American continent. My opponent does not and would not support the end of bringing together the people of North America under a high-wage, high-labor standards regime. I do. I will fight for it. My opponent will not.

Continued in next post.

[TNF]

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As is to be expected from a self-described libertarian, my opponent's entire platform as far as taxation is concerned focuses on eliminating the "burden" for high earners and business owners. His association with and support of the owner class is beyond the pale, comrades, and there could not be a starker difference between he and myself as far as taxation is concerned. My opponent notes that he would like to simplify taxation of those at the lower end of the income bracket -- I would like to eliminate it entirely. When the income tax was first introduced a century ago, it was confined to those at the top, the richest of the rich. I believe that we should fundamentally move back to the way the income tax used to be done. While this may not at present be feasible, I support the introduction of a Land Value Tax (LVT) to recoup some of the possible income losses that shift would entail and further support the use of progressivity in taxation wherever possible. My opponent would have you believe that the rich are too highly taxed -- so long as there are those who earn millions of dollars and produce nothing of value, there cannot be high enough tax rates. I stand by my commitment to the highest possible income tax rates on high earners and the redistribution of that wealth to those who created it, that is, the Atlasian workingman and the Atlasian workingwoman.


The facts of this race could not be more stark -- it is a battle between those who own and those who work. It is a battle between the people and the powerful. My opponent casts his lot with big business, with the "free market," with the exploiters of labor. I do not. I cast my lot with the great mass, the working people of this fine country. I cast my ballot for reform, for revolution, for socialism, and for the working people. I make no bones about it.

In solidarity,

Senator TNF

[Mechaman]

THese responses have made me go gay for TNF.

[TNF]

SEN. TNF GIVES VICTORY SPEECH IN MINNEAPOLIS

Minneapolis, Joy - Comrades, I am delighted to announce to you tonight firsthand that I have been projected the winner in the Midwest Senate race. My opponent, Rooney, has PMed me to congratulate me on my winning and has officially conceded. Rooney is a decent and hardworking man who made this race the most intellectual and exciting in all Atlasia. I wish him luck in all his future endeavors.

I want to thank all the people of the Midwest for giving me their support in the hours I needed it most. Your support was what put us over the top. We have achieved much in the past Senate session and we shall achieve even more in the next Senate session.

Thank you all!

[Flake]

Congratulations, TNF!

[Fritz]

T-N-F! T-N-F!

[tmthforu94]

Congratulations!

[Gass3268]

Congrats comrade!

[Maxwell]

I'll be happy to accomplish more with you in the next four months!

[Dr. Cynic]

Congrats my friend!

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Congrats. I look forward to our next 4 months together!

[Arturo Belano]

Congrats, comrade!

[President Tyrion]

Congratulations, Senator!

[Adam Griffin]

They'll never dethrone you. Congratulations!

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Congratulations, tovarisch!

[windjammer]

Congrats, comrade!