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It’sthelastthingaretireeliv-ing on Social Security shouldhave to worry about, but anincreasing number of themare facing financial hardshipsstemming from, of all things,studentloans. More and more retirees arelearningthehardwaythatfed-eralstudentloanagencieshavethe power to attach, or gar-nish,SocialSecuritychecksforthosewhoare lateon studentloan payments.That includesseniorswhoseloansneverwentawayaswellasotherswhoco-signedonaloanfortheirchil-dren.

Inthefirstsixmonthsofthisyear, an estimated 115,000retirees saw their Social Secu-rity checksgarnished to coverpastduepaymentsonstudentloans, double the comparablerate in 2011, according to arecent report in SmartMoney.com.Justfiveyearsago,therewere only 60,000 such cases.In 2000, there were six, ac-cordingtothereport. “The system is broken formanyborrowersunderthefed-eral loanprograms.Toooftenborrowers cannot locate alloftheirloans,havemultipleloanservicersforeachloanandare

dependent upon the goodwillof the customer service repre-sentativetheyspeakwith,”saidShelleyHoneycutt,afoundingmemberof theCollegePREPCollaborative, which helpsmany borrowers steer theirway through the labyrinthinefederalcollectionprocess.

‘The government could come after you forever’ A number of factors aredrivingthetrend,accordingtoHoneycutt and other experts.Theaverageageofcollegepar-ents ison the riseandcollege LOANS cont. on page 9

Student loans could cut into Social Security checksBy Common Ground staff

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Boston fire’s Ostiguy leaves legacy of recovery high schoolsBy Common Ground staff

Fi re f ight -ers are sup-posed to savelives—wheth-er its rushinginto a burn-ing building

or responding to the sceneofa deadly accident—but WillyOstiguyendedupsavinglivesin ways he never could haveimagined when he joined theforce in Boston four decadesago. Ostiguy got his start as afirefighter when he was as-signedtoEngineCompany18in1971,butitwasnotuntiladecadelaterthathestartedouton a path that would lead to

hislastinglegacy.In1983,Os-tiguy founded the EmployeeAssistance Program for Local718 of the International As-sociation of Fire Fighters inBoston. Atthetime,itwassupposedtobeatemporarygig. “HereIam28yearslater…retiring,”Ostiguy,nowalieu-tenant,said. The Employee AssistantProgramisaslightmisnomer,actually. Besides providing arangeof services to2,100 ac-tive employees, the programalso serves their children andfamiliesaswellasformerem-ployeeswhohaveretired. OSTIGUY cont. on page 4

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Senator JohnTassoni this yearismarkinganendtoalegislativeca-reerintheGener-al Assembly thatsaw the passage

of120billsheauthored,includinglaws that provided for the morehumane treatment of animals,curbedbullyinginschools,helpedteenagers dealing with drug andalcoholaddiction,andcreatedthefirst-everhomelessbillofrights. “Iwas alwaysof themindset—ifIcouldgetinandmakechangewhichwouldbeforthebettermentof the citizens of Rhode Island Iwould consider myself a successas a politician. I think I’ve donethat,” saidTassoni, D-Smithfield.“AllinallIthinkIdidagoodjob.” Tassonidecidedtorunforofficeafter raising money for a Smith-fieldwomanwhohadbeenfight-ingbreastcancer.Justdaysbeforeshepassedaway,sheurgedTassonitosteerhispassionforhelpingoth-ersintoarunforpublicoffice,Tas-sonirecalled. The story ended up setting thetoneforhisstateSenatecareer. While some in the mainstreammediatriedtopaintTassoniintoabox,labelinghimasthelaborguyintheGeneralAssembly,itwashiswork on behalf of average peoplethat will be his lasting achieve-ment, said John Houle, the headof the communications firm, JHCommunications. “They paint him as this unionstalwart—which he is,” Houlesaid.“Buthe’salsoastalwartforallRhodeIslandersandhelpingthemout.I’veneverseenanyoneinpub-licofficethat’stakenasmuchofaproactiveroleintryingtoimprovepeople’slivesasJohnTassoni.”

An end to gas chambers One of his earliest legisla-tive achievements was a bill that

banned the use of gas chambersto euthanize dogs. Tassoni saidhewas inspired toput in thebillafteranepisodeinhishometown,Smithfield, inwhichaleakinthegaschamberalmostkilledthepo-lice officer on duty. In the sameincident, two dogs that were dis-posedofwithothersthathadbeeninthechamberwerestillalive. “It’slikehavingamassacre,”Tas-soni said.“I thought itwas inhu-mane.” Tassonithoughtlethalinjectionswerethemorehumanewaytogo.Andhesuccessfullypushedhisleg-islationmandatingthattopassage—overtheobjectionsofcitiesandtownsforfinancialreasons.

Combating bullying in schools One of his other signature billswas sparked not by local events,but television news reports aboutbullyinginschools.“Ijustgottiredof seeing it on TV, where theseyoung people were killing them-selvesbecauseofit,”Tassonisaid. Tassoni spoke to his wife, whorunsadaycarecenter,abouttheis-sue.She toldhimthat sometimesthe children of divorced parentscamebacktoschoolswithbehav-ioral problems at the start of theschool week—after spending theweekend with the other parent,whomaynothaveofferedthedis-ciplinerequired.“Theycomebackinto school and they’re little hel-lions,”Tassonisaid. His concerns led to the SafeSchools Act in 2005, which re-quiredthatschoolsadoptrulesandregulationsregardingbullying. Tassoni returned to the issuein recent years after a new trendemerged: cyber-bullying throughtheuseofnewmediaandtechnol-ogies—text messages, Facebook,Twitter, and other outlets. “Itstartedtoprogressivelygetworse,”Tassoni said. “It was at a boilingpointwhereIhadtodosomething

personally.” Thatledtothestatecommissiononcyber-bullying lastyear,whichTassoni chaired.The commissionissuedafinal37-pagereportontheissueinMarch2011,makingfivesweeping recommendations onhowtheRhodeIslandDepartmentofEducation,schools,parents,andlocal law enforcement authoritiescouldtackletheproblem.Theef-fort culminated in the state’s firstlawoncyber-bullying.

‘Johnny on the spot’ Another landmark achievementwassparkedbyaphonecall. ItwasintheearlyyearsofCom-monGround, and thenewspaperhad just run an article about therecovery high schools establishedinMassachusetts, thanks, in largemeasuretotheeffortsofaBostonfirefighter,WillyOstiguy. Arecoveryhighschoolisspecial-lydesignedtohelpteenagersstrug-gling with drug and alcohol addi-tions to get through school. Onlyrecovering addicts and substanceabusersareletinandtheschoolhasspecialprogramstailor-madetotheneedsofthosestudents. A recovery high school, Tassonisaid, offers new hope to studentswhopreviouslywouldjustdropoutofhighschoolwhentheyhit16. “Obviouslytheycontinuedrink-ing and smoking and drugging,”Tassonisaid.“Theybecomeaciti-zenofthesystem.Thiswayhereifwecannipitatthebud,andspendsome money in the beginning togetthemsoberandclean,theycanbe productive citizens of RhodeIslandbyhavingajobandpayingtaxes,ratherthanbeingonthesys-tem,wherewehavetopaythem.” Tassoni recalls getting a phonecallfromadistressedRhodeIslandmother after the article ran. Shewanted to know when the highschoolwasopening.“Isaid,‘What TASSONI cont. on page 11

Tassoni leaves state Senate, but not public serviceBy Common Ground staff


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AvibrantanddiversecoalitioninsupportofthisNo-vember’s ballot Question 7, which will approve bondstodeveloplong-termaffordablehomesinRhodeIsland,kickedoffitscampaignmid-SeptemberattheBlackstoneValley Gateways, on the corner of Barton and DexterstreetsinPawtucket. Thiskickoffeventmarkedthebeginningofacampaigndedicatedtomakingmorehigh-quality,long-termafford-able homes available for Rhode Islanders struggling tomakeendsmeet. “TheBlackstoneValleyGatewaysdevelopment is justone great example of the kind of long term affordablehomesthatthepreviousbondhelpedmakehappen,”saidNancyWhit,executivedirectorofthePawtucketCitizensDevelopment Corporation (PCDC), a nonprofit orga-nization. “Approving Question 7 will help PCDC andothers continue this criticalwork thathelps restoreourneighborhoodsandstrengthenourcommunities.” The construction of affordable homes can help easeeconomic burdens on working families, create much-

neededjobsforRhodeIslanders,andstabilizecommuni-ties.Beginningwiththiskickoffevent,thiscampaignwillworkhardtomakesureRhodeIslandvotersunderstandthemanyeconomicbenefitsthattheconstructionofaf-fordablehomescanbringtoRhodeIsland. “Supportingtheaffordablehousingbondisaninvest-mentthatwillmoveourstateeconomyforwardbypro-vidingjobsandhomestohardworkingRhodeIslanders,”General Treasurer Gina Raimondo said. “The housingbondisagreatexampleofthestateraisingcapitaltoin-vestinitsfuture.” Additionally, two tenants of theproperties developedbyPCDCwerehighlightedtoshowcasethepositiveim-pact thata long-termaffordablehomehashadontheirlives. HelenaGodley, a singleworkingmother faced aday-to-dayfinancialstruggletopaytherentattheendofeverymonthbeforefindinganaffordablehomeshecancallherownatCallaghanGardens.MarcioTolentinohadtodealwitha leakyanddarkapartment foryearsuntilhewasabletomoveintotheGatewayswhereeverything

wasupdated and functioning. He isnowenjoying thecomfortsofhissafehomewithhisgrowingfamily. The significant turnout exemplified the support andenthusiasm for a statewide campaign to highlight thebenefits that thisbondmeasure canbring toRhode Is-land.All leftwithcampaignmaterials andwere able totakeawalkingtourofseveralBlackstoneValleyGatewaysapartmentbuildingsthatshowcasedthevarietyofhomesthebondwillbefinancing. The event featured special guest speakers, includingGeneral Treasurer Gina Raimondo. Also in attendancewasRichardGodfrey,ExecutiveDirectorofRhodeIslandHousing;AnthonyMaione,President&CEOofUnitedWay of Rhode Island; and Neil Steinberg, President &CEOoftheRhodeIslandFoundation.

Campaign launched to promote affordable housing ballot question By Common Ground staff


Over time, Ostiguy noticeda disturbing trend amongone group he was tasked withhelping—the high-school agechildren of his coworkers whohad been through treatmentfordrugandalcoholabuseandaddition. Within one week ofleaving treatment, 90 percentof the teenagers he was tryingtohelpwererelapsing.

‘A shot at life’ Ostiguywentonthehuntfora better way of helping themand came across somethingcalled a recovery high school,which was being pioneered inMinnesota.The theorybehindarecoveryhighschoolisafairlysimple one: most teenagerswho use drugs and drink willobtain those substances fromtheirpeersatschool.So,send-ingthembacktoaregularhighschool,thethinkinggoes,dras-tically decreases their chancesofstayingsober.“It’sliketakinganalcoholic…sittinghimonabarstoolandseeinghowlonghe

lasts,”Ostiguysaid. But a recovery high schoolonlyacceptsstudentswhohavestruggledwith substanceabuseof one kind or another. Theidea is that everyone is sup-posed to be sober when theyenter,andcommittedtostayingthatway.“It’sasafesetting.Thekidscanlettheirguarddown,”Ostiguysaid.“They’llgetwhatthey didn’t get before. They’llgetaneducation,ashotatlife.” The academic curriculum ofarecoveryhighschoolisgener-allythesameasanyother.Butinadditiontoallthetrappingsof a regular secondary institu-tion, the recovery high schoolhas drug testing, counseling,and other services and pro-grams aimed at keeping all ofitsstudentssober. Ostiguywentonamissiontolearnasmuchashecouldaboutrecoveryhighschools.Hecalledup a principal at one of theschoolsinMinnesotaandspokewithoneofherstudentsaboutherexperience.Hemetupwith

thechairmanoftheboardwhenhevisitedBostonwithhischildonacollegetour.AndOstiguypitchedtheideatoanyonewhowouldlisten—thecitycouncil,the school committee, legisla-torslikeformerstateSen.SteveTolman, and Lt. Gov. KerryHealey. Everybody, he says, thoughtitwasagoodidea.

‘A firefighter is supposed to make a difference’ Convincing local and stateofficials to buy into the ideawas theeasyparty.Butgettingfundingprovedmoreofanup-hillbattle.Itwouldtakeaboutayearandahalf,Ostiguyrecalls,to establish the first recoveryhighschoolsinMassachusetts. About six years ago, threerecovery high schools openedin the Bay State: one in Bos-ton,oneinBeverly,andoneinSpringfield. Soon,anotherstatisticcaughtOstiguy’s eye, and this time, itwasagoodone.Insteadofa90

percent relapse rate, the highschoolswereyieldinga90per-centgraduationrate.50percentof those graduates were goingontohighereducation. “I think a firefighter is sup-posed to make a difference,”Ostiguy said. “I think humanbeingsare supposed tomakeadifference.”Lasting legacy A fourth high school wouldlater open up in Massachu-setts and the idea spread fromthere, with one recently open-ingdoorstostudentsinRhodeIsland. In honor of the pivotal roleOstiguy played, the recoveryschool in Boston was namedOstiguy High. Ostiguy recallsbeing caught off guard by thenews.Hesaidthedecisionwasmade in a meeting to reviewbids from private contractorsinterested in operating theschool. At one point, Ostiguywas asked to leave the meet-ing, which including Tolman,Healey,andotherstateofficials.

Hewasabittakenaback,buteventuallymadehisexit. “I came back and they said,‘Bytheway,wejustnamedtheschool after you,’” Ostiguy re-called.“Itwashumbling.” Ostiguy marked his last dayas a Boston firefighter on Fri-day,September21. “Todaymarkstheendofonevery fulfilling chapter in mylife.ItismylastdayontheBos-tonFireDepartment,”Ostiguywrote in ane-mailmessage. “Ihave had a wonderful 41-yearcareer on the BFD and wouldlike to THANK everyone Ihave served with and was for-tunate enough to meet in mycareer.Godhas allowedme tohave a great career in the fireservice and hopefully I haveserved well. I am looking for-wardtothenextchapterinmylifewithfamilyandfriends.” And, thanks to his efforts,there are young people acrossMassachusetts who also canlook forward to bright newchaptersintheirlives.

OSTIGUY cont. from page 1


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As I visit businessesthroughout my district,there is one recurringthemethatdefiesconven-tionalwisdom.Evenwithhighunemployment,I’mconstantly told by own-ers, “We can hire andexpand, but we struggletofindworkerswith theabilitiestohelpus.” HaywardIndustries,inQuonset, manufacturescutting-edge electronicequipment. Its machin-

eryrequiresahighlytech-nicalskillsetthatdoesn’tfitwiththetrainingofitsapplicants. Meanwhile,in Warwick, a cyber-security firm owner hastold me that even whenhe finds workers withthe requisite computerknowledge, they oftenlack the interpersonalskills to effectively com-municate with co-work-ersandclients. Evidence of this skillsgap exists nationwide.Of2,000firmssurveyedbytheMcKinseyGlobalInstitute,40percenthadpositions open at leastsixmonthsbecausetheycouldn’t find suitablecandidates. Acknowl-edgingthispredicament,

PresidentObamarecent-ly proposed a Commu-nity College to CareerFund to train two mil-lion people with skillsthatleaddirectlytojobs.But the problem seemsespecially prevalent intheOceanState. Oneof themost trou-bling stories I have en-countered involved theaddition of 20 new em-ployees at a health-careinformation-technologycompany, which shouldbeacauseforcelebrationinthiseconomy.Howev-er,despitesignificantout-reacheffortsinourstate,only two hires hailedfromRhodeIsland. We must increasetraining opportunities

designed specifically tofit industry needs herein Rhode Island. It’s farfrom our only obstacleto rebuilding the econ-omy, but it would helpimmensely if we couldgive thousands of ourunemployed andunder-employedworkersquali-ficationsforjobsthatletthem support familieswithoutrelyingonagov-ernmentsafetynet. We have excellent in-stitutions in our statedesigned for this task,exemplifiedbytheCom-munityCollegeofRhodeIsland’s ability to cre-ateacertificateprogramwith National Grid toprepare a much-needednew generation of util-

ity workers. However,unlesswecultivatemoreof these relationshipsandensure resources forthem to create effectiveprograms, themismatchbetween workers andemployerswillpersist. In June, Iwaspleasedto help CCRI unveil aPathways to AdvanceCareer Education Pro-gram (PACE) that isbeingfundedbyagrantI supported from theDepartment of Labor.This effort will allowunemployed and un-deremployed workersto acquire career-spe-cific skills in a relativelyshort timeframe, andreceive an industry-recognized credential

in either health care orinformation technol-ogy. You can’t ask for amore efficient program,either for the studentswho can complete thetargeted training that ismost beneficial to themwithout going througha two- to four-year re-trainingprogram,or forthe companies in theseindustries that need tal-entedemployees. We must do more toidentify industries withthe most potential togrow and to build pro-grams to support them.Ourstate’sefforts incy-ber-securitycanserveasamodel. As more agen-cies, corporations andWORKFORCE cont. on page 6

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Aprimaryseasonthatwas highly contentiousbut ultimately incon-clusive in terms of anystatewidechange inonedirection or anotherseems to have accom-plished only one thing:it has left several keyDemocratic incumbentsbloodied and has weak-enedpartyunity. Acrossthestate,sever-alhigh-stakes,hotlycon-tested primary battlesplayedout.Mostpromi-nentwas the sometimesbizarre battle betweenincumbent Congress-manDavidCicillineandAnthonyGemma. It was a campaignthat was not short onattacks—but it wasn’tthe only slugfest. InLincoln, Greg Costan-tino toppled incumbentPeter Petrarca. In EastProvidence,Rep.Rober-toDaSilvanearlydidthesame to Senate FinanceChairman Daniel Da-Ponte.And,inWarwick,Michael McCaffrey, theSenate Judiciary Chair-man, faced an all-outfusillade of oppositionfrom the mayor to thegovernor in a race thatdrew national attentionasabellwetherbattleforthegaymarriageissue. As a whole, the pri-maries did not seem todeliver any overridingmessage. Union-backed candi-dates won and lost. In-cumbents were thrownout andothersheldon,despite the odds. Mod-erate and progressiveDemocrats both won

and lost. “The resultsweren’t awfully clear intermsofillustratingonething or another,” saidpolitical scientist andpollsterVictorProfughi. But if there’s onething that theprimariesdid make clear, it’s thatDemocratshavenocom-punction about wagingall-out war against eachother. The infighting wasnot all that unusual,Profughi said, but themuscleputbehindsomeoftheraceswas.Hesaiditwasthe“mostmuscle”inaprimarythathehadseensincethelastmajorchange in the state lawonvoterregistrationandprimaries, which wasbackinthelate1960s.

Cicilline vs. Gemma: Round 2 The primary race be-tween David Cicillineand Anthony Gemmastood out in more waysthan one. In the firstplace, it’s exceedinglyrare to have a seriouschallengeragainstanin-cumbent Congressmanwho is a Democrat inRhode Island, Profughisaid.Thenagain,it’sraretohaveanincumbent—anywhere, not just inRhode Island—whoseemed as vulnerable asCicilline. The combination ofthe Providence budgetcrisis,arock-bottomap-proval rating earlier inthe year, and the closerace in 2010 all madeCicilline a weak in-cumbent, according to

Profughi. “If ever there wasany Congressman whowould have to be ac-knowledged as a weakcandidategoingintotheprimary,itwouldhavetobe Cicilline,” Profughisaid. “He was ripe tobe picked off by someDemocrat.” But that Democratwasn’tGemma.Notonlydid Cicilline survive, hewon by a landslide. “It’sironicthathe’sinastron-ger position,” said onepolitical insider. “He’sgotmomentumnow.”

Social issues ignite Warwick race At the state level, ex-perts agree that two is-sues were behind all thebloodletting: gay mar-riage and pension re-form. The gaymarriage issuewas most prominent intheprimaryracebetweenSenator Michael McCaf-frey, who opposes gaymarriage, and challengerLaura Pisaturo. “I thinkthatbecamethesoleissuein the campaign, the gaymarriage issue,” McCaf-freysaidaftertheprimary. “In my race, in par-ticular,Iwouldsayitwasmore vicious,” McCaf-freysaid. Henoted that afloodof out-of-state moneyflowedintothecoffersofhis opponent, who wassupported by everyonefrom Marriage EqualityPRIMARY cont. on page 7

Democrats devour their own in divisive primaries By Common Ground Staff

individuals experience financial loss,harmed reputations, and intellectual-propertytheftasaresultofhackers,themarket for computer security servicesgrows.Technology-industrygroupsandtheNewEnglandInstituteofTechnol-ogy have joined me to launch the Cy-berFoundationsCompetitiontoexposehigh-school youth to this career pathanddeveloptheirtalents,whileagroupof post-secondary schools, businesses,andstateagencieshavecometogethertostartacybercenterofexcellencetotraincollegestudents. Finally, we must prevent damag-ingfederalbudgetcutsinthisareaatatimewhenstateslikeRhodeIslandhavevirtuallynoflexibility to expandwork-forcedevelopmentprograms.Ihaveleda bipartisan effort with my fellow co-chairman of the Congressional CareerandTechnicalEducationCaucus,Glenn

Thompson (R-PA), to restore PerkinsAct funding that gives students accesstothelatesttechnology,equipment,andtrainingtopreparethemforhigh-wage,high-skill, high-demand fields like en-gineering, information technology, andhealthcare.Furthermore,wemustworkin a bipartisan manner to reauthorizethe Workforce Investment Act, whichprovides primary federal support forworkforceandtraininginitiatives. The skills-gap challenge is eminentlysolvable ifwework together.Weknowthe right approach. Now we need tomakeitatoppriorityinourstate,recog-nizingthatourfuturedependsontakingfull advantageofourmostvaluable as-set:ourpeople. Congressman Jim Langevin is running for re-election in Rhode Island’s Second Congressional District.

WORKFORCE cont. from page 5


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Rhode Island to Planned Parenthood.Even Gov. Lincoln Chafee, he said,backedhis opponent—and said so in anationalgaypublication. McCaffrey, who ended up winning,is stickingbyhis gunson thegaymar-riageissue.Marriage,hesaid,isbetweena man and a woman, and his positionhas remained unchanged. Upsetting ashisstancemaybetothemoreprogressivewing of the Democratic Party, McCaf-frey’salsobeenoneoftheforemostpro-unionDemocratsintheGeneralAssem-bly.Twoyearsago,hesponsoredbindingarbitration legislation for teachers andhe also sponsored a comprehensive billaimed at reducing the misclassificationand underpayment of construction andtradeworkers. He says he wishes the race had beenmore about his efforts to help workingRhodeIslandersandWarwickinparticu-lar, such as his role in getting JohnsonandWalesUniversitytoagreetopaythecity$400,000inlieuoftaxes. Asked to describe what kind of aDemocrat he is, McCaffrey said, “I’ma Democrat who cares for the workingmenandwomenofRhodeIsland,who

cares for the little people and wants toprotectthemasbestashecan.”

Fiscal issues at stake in East Providence Itwasfiscalissues,however,thatcametothe fore intheprimaryracebetweenDanielDaPonteandRobertoDaSilvainEastProvidence. Inparticular,muchofthe showdown was fueled by lingeringpassionsoverthepensionreformbattle:DaPontewasseenasapensionreformer;DaSilva, whoisapoliceofficerinPaw-tucket,votedagainstthebill. But inan interview,DaSilva said theraceairedlegitimateissuesofdifferencebetweenthetwoDemocrats.“Iwouldn’tsay infighting,” DaSilva said. “It’s justtwopeoplewhohad twodifferentphi-losophies.” He hit DaPonte for supporting taxbreaks for wealthy individuals and cor-porations and passing on state budgetshortfalls to the cities and towns,which,in turn, pass the cost on to the middleclassintheformofrisingpropertytaxes.“I can’t lookmyself in themirror after Ivotedonthebillthat’sgoingtoimpactthemiddle class and thepoor [while] givingtaxbreakstomillionaires,”DaSilvasaid.

DaSilva said he may run again. Inthe meantime, he hopes the close raceprompts DaPonte to rethink the fiscalpolicieshehasbacked.“I’mhopingthathe learned from this electionandwon’tbe the same Dan DaPonte,” DaSilvasaid. DaPontedidnotrespondtoarequestforcomment.

Insiders battle in Lincoln But neither issue—marriage or pen-sions—canexplainwhytheprimaryraceforHouseDistrict44inLincolnturnedso bloody. Unlike the others, that racefeaturedtwomenwhowereremarkablysimilar:bothweremoderateDemocratswith insider connections. Costantino’sbrotherisaformerHouseFinancechair-manandthecurrentSecretaryofHealthandHumanServices.PetrarcawaspartoftheHouseleadership. “That race I think you have to lookatasoutsidethebox,”Profughisaid.“Ithink itwasunique to itsowncircum-stances.” Hesaidthattheracewasdeterminedalmostsolelybylocalissues. One key factor, he added, was Con-

stantino’ssheerdeterminationtogetintotheGeneralAssembly,coupledwiththefactthatPetrarcahadnotfacedaseriouschallenger in the past. (Profughi notedthathehasworkedforbothPetrarcaandCostantino.)

Unity by 2014? “Idon’tfeelalotofchangecoming,”onepoliticalinsidersaid,whenaskedtosummarize the outcome of the prima-ries.“Eachgrouphadalittlewin.Eachgrouphas losses. I don’t knowwhat tomakeofthat.” Thebigquestion,theinsideradded,isif,when,andhowDemocratswilluniteintheraceforgovernorin2014. How all the various disparate groupswithin the party—progressives, union-supporters, conservatives, and others—come together to support a nomineewillbetheultimatetestofwhethertheDemocratic Party in Rhode Island canachieve unity, or whether it has yet tolivedownWilliamRogers’ famousdic-tum–I am not a member of an organized political party. I am a Democrat.

PRIMARY cont. from page 6


Scholarshipsearchingshouldbeanim-portantpart of everyone’s college fund-ingplans.Startyourscholarshipsearch-ing by ninth grade. This will give youtime to learn how to effectively searchandwinscholarships!Herearethebasicfivethingsyoushouldknowaboutschol-arships.1. Scholarship deadlines are NOT

just in January or June. Scholarship

deadlines are sprinkled throughoutthe year.Thismeans you shouldbesearching and applying for scholar-shipsallyearlong!

2. Always search for scholarships atyourchosencollege.Onceyouknowwhere you will be attending, useMeritAid.com to search for college-specificscholarships.

3. Whenyou apply forfinancial aid it

is a gateway to state, as well as in-stitutional aid, and scholarships!MoststatesuseyourFAFSAdatatodetermine state aid and scholarshipeligibility.Alwaysfilefinancialaidbyyourcollege’sprioritydeadline.Thesedeadlinesvarygreatlyfromcollegetocollege, so be sure to research eachcollege’sdeadlinewellaheadoftime.

4. Scholarship applications do NOTall require long essays or applica-tions. Many scholarship commit-teesuse shortonline applications tohelp them determine winners morequickly.

5. MostcollegesdoNOTpenalizestu-dents that win scholarships by low-ering their financial aid. This is acommon misconception. Every col-legewill have their own scholarshippolicy, but most colleges are pro-scholarships.

Itisimportanttostartsearchingearlywhenitcomestoscholarshipsandcon-tinue to do this throughout your col-lege education. Most students give upafterthefirstyearincollege.Thisiswhythereisalwayslesscompetitionforup-perclassmenscholarships.Remembertosendathank-youcardtothecommitteethat awarded you a scholarship. Manytimestheywillrememberyouwhenyoure-applythefollowingyear.Learnmoreabout scholarships, admissions strate-gies,collegeessays,aswellasmanyothercriticalcollegeplanningtopicsthroughthe Mini Camp Series offered by theCollege PREP Collaborative this fall.Visit www.CollegePREPcollaborative.comtoday. Shelley Honeycutt is the Managing Partner for the College PREP Collabora-tive.

Five things to know about scholarshipsBy Shelley Honeycutt


students now on averageare taking five or moreyears to graduate, accord-ingtoHoneycutt. Withtheabilitytocon-solidatefederalPLUSloansintoa30-yearterm,itbe-comes conceivable howthe payment period couldstretch into someone’s re-tirement, Honeycutt said.Moreover,thereisnolimitonthecollectionperiodforloans,saidDeanneLoonin,anattorneyattheNationalConsumer Law Center inBoston. “That means thatliterallythe…governmentcould come after you for-everifyouareonafederalstudentloan”Looninsaid. Honeycutt said theproblem is further com-pounded by the fact thatstudentshavetheabilitytofullydeferpaymentswhilein school—even as inter-est accrues, borrow up tothe full costofattendanceregardlessofincomeorfu-

tureabilitytopay,andin-terestratesthatareashighas7.9percent,withorigi-nationfeesat4percentoftheprincipalbalance. Yet another factor: theeconomy. “Obviously theeconomyisaffectingevery-body,soalotofparentsarestruggling financially andmaybe weren’t when theysent their kids to college,butarenow,”Looninsaid. The power to garnishSocial Security checksstems from a federal lawpassed in 1996. Up untilthattimeithadbeenabi-partisanarticleoffaiththatSocial Security income issupposed to be safe fromcreditors,Looninsaid.“Soitreallywasunprecedentedwhentheypassedthelaw,”shesaid. It took several years toput the law into practice,with full implementationnot reallyhappeninguntilthe 2000 to 2001 time-

frame, according to Loo-nin. And of course, largenumbersofretireesweren’taffecteduntil default ratesstarted goingup in recentyears,shenoted.

Retiree who barely gets buy at risk Honeycutt says she of-ten does conference callsto help borrowers whoare facing financial crisis.NonewouldcomeforwardtospeakontherecordwithCommon Ground. Butonedidspeakonconditionofanonymity. “I just barely pay myrent and my car paymentas it is,” said the retiree,a69-year-old Massachusettsman. He said he’s on thehook for $17,000 in fed-eral PLUS loans that hetook out to help his son,now 35, get through col-lege. At the time, he saidhethoughthewasjustco-

signinga loan forhis son.Only later did he realizethat he was listed as theprimary borrower—mean-ingthatcollectionagenciescameafterhimfirst. As he struggles to keepupwiththeloanpayments,theretireesaidanofficialatoneofthecollectionagen-cies threatened to garnishhis Social Security checks.The retiree says he earns$1,315amonth fromSo-cial Security—well abovethe $750 threshold atwhich federal authoritieswillstopcutting. Inhiscase,hesaysheisfacingacutof$282.“Thatwould probably preventmefromeating,”hesaid. Sincehehasbeenunem-ployedsince2008andhasno other major source ofretirement income or sav-ings, there’s little he cando to deal with the debt.And his son’s income as awarehouse worker doesn’t

leave anything extra tohelpout—plus,hissonhastensofthousandsofdollarsindebtfromotherstudentloansthatheisfacedwithpaying.

How to avoid it It is easier to preventthe Department of Edu-cation from attaching aSocialSecuritycheck thanitistostopthemafterthefact, Honeycutt says. Hercompany offers optionsto distressed borrowers tohelpthemgetoutofdebt.Thoseoptions include theIncome Contingent Re-payment option, whichhelpsborrowerstoarrangefor payments that aremoreinkeepingwiththeirmonthly earnings, accord-ingtoHoneycutt. But the ICR option isnotavailabletoPLUSloanborrowers before July 1,2006. In general, there are

three ways out, accordingto Loonin. First, a bor-rowerwho is disabled canapply for a disability dis-charge.Forthosewhodon’tqualify,a secondoption isan income-based paymentplan. A third option is torequest a hardship-basedreduction. “Although there maynot be a perfect solutiontoyourcollegedebtcrisis,there are typically betterpayment options avail-able for most borrowers,”Honeycuttsaid.“Beinganeducated consumer is theprimary path to a betteroutcome.Seekoutprofes-sionals when needed oryou have reached a dead-end with your loan ser-vicer.” For more information visit www.studentloan-borrowerassistance.org or www.collegePREPcol-laborative.com

LOANS cont. from page 1

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July30,2012markedthe47thbirthdayofMedic-aidandMedicare,twopillarsoftheAmericanhealthcare system that together to provide services to over110 million seniors, children and adults. And, lastmonth,August14,2012,markedthe77thanniversaryofPresidentFranklinD.RooseveltsigningtheSocialSecurityActintolaw.TheActwasanattempttolimitwhat were seen as dangers in the modern Americanlife,includingoldage,poverty,unemploymentandtheburdensofwidowsandfatherlesschildren.BelowisasummaryofhowSocialSecurity,Medicare,andMedicaidhavehelpedRhodeIslandresidentsofallagesandbackgrounds.Theinformationispublishedinareportentitled,“SocialSecurity,Medicare&Medic-aidWorkforRhodeIsland.”Social Security works for the following Rhode Is-landersResidents and economy

• Social Security provided benefits to 203,660Rhode Island residents in 2010, equivalent to1outof5 residents. Inparticular,benefitswent

outto:135,197retiredworkers,34,381disabledworkers,13,186widow(er)s,5,447 spouses, and15,449children.

• Social Security provided benefits totaling over$2.7billionin2010,anamountequivalentto5.5percentofthestate’sannualGDP(thetotalvalueofallgoodsandservicesproduced).TheaverageSocialSecuritybenefitin2010was$13,130.

• Social Security lifted 61,000 Rhode Island resi-dentsoutofpovertyin2008.

Women• Social Security provided benefits to 107,483

womenresidentsin2010,equivalentto1outof5women.

• Without Social Security, the poverty rate of el-derlywomenwouldincreasefrom10.8percenttonearly50percent.

People of color• SocialSecurityprovidedbenefitsto7,498African

AmericansinRhodeIslandin2009,equivalentto1outofevery10AfricanAmericanresidents.

• Itprovidedbenefits to1outof7Latinohouse-holds in Rhode Island in 2010, totaling 4,919households.

Medicare works for the following: Residents and economy

• 178,870 Rhode Island residents received Medi-carebenefitsin2009,equivalentto1outofevery6stateresidents.

• Medicare provided $1.8 billion in benefits in2009—constituting 20.8 percent of all health-care spending in the state.Theaverageexpendi-tureperMedicarebeneficiarywas$10,198.

Seniors and people with disabilities• 146,235 of Rhode Island’s 178,870 Medicare

beneficiarieswereaged65orolderin2009,equiv-alentto8outofevery10beneficiaries.

• 32,317ofRhodeIsland’s178,870Medicareben-eficiaries were people with disabilities in 2009,equivalentto1outofevery6beneficiaries.

RHODE ISLAND cont. on page 14

How Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have helped Rhode Island By John A. Pernorio


school?’” Tassoni re-called. She said she wastalking about the recov-eryhigh school.At thatpoint, Rhode Islanddidn’t have one, so shewould have to move toMassachusettstogetherchildintoonethere,Tas-sonitoldher.Neveroneto refuse a request fromadistraughtmother,Tas-soniwasabletohelpherchildreceivetreatment. After the call, the“wheelsstartedtoturn,”Tassoni said. Why notopen a recovery highschoolinRhodeIsland? Tassoni soon intro-duced the legislationnecessary to make ithappen, and, this fall,the state’s first recoveryhigh school, the An-chorLearningAcademy,openeditsdoorsinProv-idence. It’s an anecdote that’semblematicofhowTas-sonihasworkedtirelesslytohelphis constituents.“We’ve worked side byside for the last threeyears.Somanytimesthephone has rung whenI’ve been with him andit’s a constituent. Andhe’s johnnyonthespot.He takes care of stuffright away for people.He follows through; hegets them to the rightperson,”Houlesaid. His dedication to his

constituents and hisdistrict, which encom-passes Smithfield andNorth Smithfield, hasmanifesteditselfnotjustinnewlegislationat theStatehouse.Whenaskedwhat his proudest mo-mentwasinthelastdoz-enyears,Tassonipointednot to a particular billor legislative effort, butto Friday Night LightsfootballgamesinSmith-field. Tassoni first proposedthe idea four years ago,raising the funds andsecuring the necessarysponsorshipanddonatedlabor from groups suchas Local 57 of the Op-erating Engineers andIBEWNo.99tomakeitareality. “The camaraderie inthe town is better. Thelocal businesses flourishmore because you cangeta lotmorepeopleata Friday Night LightsgamethanyoucanaSat-urday afternoon game,”Tassonisaid.“Thenum-bers are through theroof for Fright NightLights games comparedto a Saturday afternoongame.”

Homeless bill of rights InthelastseveralyearsintheSenate,Tassonihastaken on another cause:housing and homeless-

ness. And, as chairmanoftheSenateCommitteeonHousingandMunici-palGovernment,Tassonihadanexcellentvantagepoint for delving intotheissue. When Tassoni startedreceiving reports aboutthe poor conditions atHarringtonHall,ayear-round shelter forhome-lessmeninCranston,hiscommitteenotonlyheldhearings on it, they vis-ited the facility. “He re-allywent above andbe-yondtotourHarringtonHall,” said Jim Ryczek,Executive Director oftheRhodeIslandCoali-tionfortheHomeless. “It was the shock ofa life,” Tassoni said. “Ahundred people in afacility that I wouldn’tevenletmydogsleepin.Theyhadbetter accom-modations at Guanta-namoBaythantheyhadthere.” Tassoni put a callinto Governor LincolnChafee’s office, whichdispatched a mainte-nance crew to clean upand repair HarringtonHall—and promised tokeep better tabs on theconditionsoftheshelterin the future. Tassoni’sconcernsalsoledChafeetorevivetheInteragencyCouncil on Homeless-ness. “He really proved

to homeless people hewas their ally,” Ryczeksaid. While some legisla-tors may be willing tolisten, in Senator Tas-soni, thehomelesscom-munity found someonewhonotonlylistenedtothem, but also followedup with action. “Sena-tor Tassoni really brokethat mold. He went tothe mat for homelesspeople,”Ryczekadded. ButTassonididn’tstopthere.Next,aftertalkingwith advocates for thehomeless,he introducedthe Homeless Bill ofRights, intended to enddiscrimination againsthomeless individuals.The legislation specifi-cally insured that thehomeless have the righttousepublic areas, vot-ingrights,andtherightto equal treatment byemployers, law enforce-ment, and medical pro-fessionals, according toasummaryofthelegisla-tionprovidedbytheCo-alitionfortheHomeless. The bill passed andwas signed into lawby Chafee earlier thisyear, thanks toTassoni’sdoggedadvocacyforthelandmark legislation.“He’s like a dog with abone—he won’t let gowhenit’stherightthingto do,” Ryczek said.

“We’resadtolosehimasan advocate in the Sen-ate.” Thelawwasthefirstofitskindinthenationandnowisbeinghailedasamodelforotherstatestofollow,accordingtoare-centreport in theHuff-ington Post. Already,Californiaistakingupasimilarbill,Tassonisaid.For his efforts, he hasalso been awarded theBruceF.VentoAwardbytheNationalLawCenteron Homelessness andPoverty. The award willbeformallypresentedtoTassoniataceremonyinWashington, DC nextmonth. “My parents instilledinmealwaystobekindto people that are lessfortunate thanyouare,”Tassoni said. “And I al-waystookthattoheart.”

‘I’m not going to go away’ “I think we’re losinga legislator who put thepeople first, who puthis constituentsfirst, al-ways,” Houle said. “It’ssad to see someone likethatleaving.” Tassoni said he de-cided to make his exitfromtheGeneralAssem-bly this year because hewanted to leave on hisown terms—not some-body else’s. He plans to

spend more time withhis family and to de-vote more of his energyexpanding his businessinterests, which includeTheSentinelGroupandCommonGround. Asked for any adviceforothersseekingpublicoffice, Tassoni said: “Ithinkyouhave tomakesure you have a cleanrecord, nothing in yourcloset, careful who …youtrust.Becarefulwhoyou go in the foxholewith and always watchyourback,becausepoli-ticsisaruthlessgame.” Would he ever con-sider running forpublicofficeagain?“Absolutely,unequivocally no …way.” But even though hewon’t be in the State-house anymore, Tassonisaidthatdoesn’tmeanhewilldisappearfrompub-liclife. “I’m not going to goaway. I may take a stepbacka littlebit,butI’mnot going to go away. Ithinkthattherestill isaneedforaguylikemetogo out and try to raisemoneyandtryhelppeo-ple in the predicamentsthat they’re in,”he said.“I’llnevershyawayfromhelpinganyone.Ifthere’shelp tobehad theycancountonme.”

TASSONI cont. from page 2


Haveyoueverwalkeddownthe aisles of the market andwondered why bags of bluecorn chips were being sold?Are theydifferent fromtheirfellowyellowcornchipsyouseestockedontheshelves? Well, yes, the benefits ofeatingbluecornaredifferentfromconsumingyellowcorn.Ibetyouarewonderingwhy?Studieshaveshownthatbluecorn is higher in the aminoacid lysine, the antioxidantanthocyanin, zinc, and ironthan most yellow or whitecorn.BluecornalsocontainsVitamins A and Thiamine,B2,andniacin.Researchhasalsofoundthatblue-corntor-tillas contain more proteinthan their yellow or white

corn counterparts, as wellas lower starch content andlower glycemic index (GI).This is good news becausefood with lower starch andlower GI breaks down moreslowly into sugars absorbedbythebloodstreamandcanhelp people avoid spikes inbloodsugarlevels,whichcanbehelpful forpeopleon lowGIdiets,suchasdiabetics. And there is more. Bluecorn contains a wide varietyofantioxidants.Itisthesean-tioxidants, suchasxanthenesand zeozanthaene that givethiscornitsbluecolor.Thesearethesamenutrientsfoundin other bluish foods suchas blueberries, blackberries,grapes,andraisins.

However,themostamazingnutrientbluecorncontainsisa special form of Selenium.This mineral is importantfor antioxidant activity,heavy metal detoxification,infection-fighting ability,cancerprevention,andmen-tal health. Additionally, bluecornisveryeasilyassimilatedandwellutilizedbythebodyand is the main benefit ofbluecornintermsofitsmin-eralcontent. Sogoahead,givethisbluefoodatryandfillyourbodywith nutrients and antioxi-dants without unbalancingyour blood sugar. Enjoy therecipe!

Blue Food: The miracle of blue corn chips By Joy Feldman, NC, JD

It’s a RainbowTostado Sandwich

Ingredients:4bluecorntortillasorbluetacoshells1cupofblackbeans1cupoflettuce,shredded2cupsofeggs,choppedor2cupsofnaturalchick,chopped1cupofgratedcheese(rawmilkcheeseispreferred)

Directions:Usingafrypan,lightlysautéthetortillasinbutter.(Ifusingbluetacos,warmshellsinovenat350degreesforabout3-5minutes.)Theyshouldgettoastyandabitbrown.Forbestresults,turntortillasoften,sotheydonotburn.Whenthetortillasareready,placeallyouringredientsoutonthetableandarrangeyourownmeal.Thisisafunmealtogetthosekiddosinvolvedincreating.Theywillhavefunmakingtheirownrainbowsandwich.

Joy Feldman is a nutritional consultant, author, writer, and lec-turer. She is the author of JoyfulCookinginthePursuitofGoodHealth,andIsYourHairMadeofDonuts? Learn more by visiting www.joyfeldman.com or isyourhairmadeofdonuts.com


AFSCME Local 2881Representing RIDEM and CRMC

www.local2881.org

AsIwritethis,wearequicklyapproachingtheculmination of anotherelection cycle. As weknow, all politics is lo-cal,especially inRhodeIsland.Whileanumberofhotlycontestedracesarecomingdowntothewire, we have the op-portunityonNovember6tocastavotethatisawin-winscenarioforallof the state – and thatis voting yes on Ques-

tion 1 and Question 2tobring tablegames toTwin River and New-portGrand. Onthisissue,businessand labor see eye-to-eye,asboththeGreaterProvidence Chamberof Commerce and theRhodeIslandAFL-CIOhaveendorsedtherefer-enda as well as a num-ber of other organiza-tions.Why? This is about thepreservation of 900good-paying jobs atTwin River—and thecreation of 650 newjobs here in the state,350ofwhichwillbeatthecasino,andanaddi-tional 300 in the com-munity to support theincrease in operations.This is aboutmaximiz-

ing the third largestsource of revenue forRhode Island—in FY2012, the state’s shareofTwinRivervideolot-tery terminal revenuewas$290million.Withunemployment hover-ing around 10 percent,and the fact that threemega-destination ca-sinos will be going upinMassachusetts in thenear future, we can illafford not to capitalizeon the opportunity wehave this November toadd jobs and preserverevenuebybringing ta-blegamestoTwinRiver. Newport Grand,meanwhile, generatesmore than $30 mil-lion each year in gam-ing taxes. Since 1994,Newport Grand has

paid more than $550millioningamingtaxestotheStateofRhodeIs-landandmore than$9million to the City ofNewport. In business, havinga proven track recordof success is crucialfor consumer confi-dence. Twin River hasincreased its year-over-yearrevenuein33ofthelast 36 months. TwinRiver’s“convenienceca-sino” model and man-agementhaveaformulathat’sworking.Notonlyis the casino easily ac-cessible, but, more im-portantly,it’saccommo-dating. Twin River hasrecently invested heav-ily on customer servicetraining for its employ-ees,andtheyhavebeen

reapingtheresults.Thepersonalized attentionandintimateappealarepartofTwinRiver’sfor-mula for success, andwillcontinuetobeoncetablegamesarebroughtinthemix. So this November6, let’s leverage one ofRhodeIsland’smostim-portant assets, and cast

our vote for jobs andrevenue—and approveQuestion 1 and Ques-tion 2 for the good ofthe state andourecon-omy. Laurie White is presi-dent of the Greater Provi-dence Chamber of Com-merce.

Vote to bring table games to Rhode Island By Laurie White

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Medicaid works for the following: Residents and economy

• 204,829RhodeIslandresidentsreceivedMedicaidbenefitsin2009,comingoutto1outofevery5stateresidents.

• Atotalof$1.9billioninMedicaidbenefitswerepaidin2009,constituting21.5percentofallhealth-carespendinginthestate.TheaverageexpenditureperMed-icaidbeneficiarywas$9,243.

Seniors, people with disabilities and long-term care residents• 28,103ofRhodeIsland’s204,829Medicaidbeneficiarieswereaged65orolder

in2009,makingup1outofevery7beneficiaries.• 40,917ofRhodeIsland’s204,829Medicaidbeneficiarieswerepeoplewithdis-

abilitiesin2009—accountingforabout1outofevery5beneficiaries.• Medicaidprovided$577millioninlong-termcarebenefitsforRhodeIslandresi-

dentsin2009,includingnursinghomecarefor5,170nursinghomeresidents,accountingfor2outofevery3stateresidentswhoareenrolledinnursinghomes.

To read the full report by Social Security Works, go to www.ri-ara.org click on the RI ARA News tab, at the top of the page, click on To Read How Social Security & Medicare Helped Rhode Island. John A. Pernorio is president of the Rhode Island Alliance for Retired Americans.

RHODE ISLAND cont. from page 10


The nurses of Law-rence General Hospitalin Massachusetts areoutraged by a recentdecision from hospitalmanagement to lay offstaff, close services, andrestructure how nursesdeliver patient care atthe facility, particularlyat a time when nurseshave been strugglingwith inadequate RNstaffing levels thatcom-promise their ability todeliverthecaretheirpa-tientsdeserve. On Sept. 14 hospitalmanagement informedthenursesunionoftheirintention to lay off asmany as 15 nurses, in-cluding eliminating all

nurse educators, closingtheirshort-stayunit,andoutsourcing the hos-pital’s lactation (breastfeeding) consulting ser-vices to the local com-munityhealthcenter. The short-stay unit,which cares forpatientsundergoingminor inva-sive procedures, such ascardiac catheterizations,ultrasound proceduresand interventional radi-ologyproceduresthatdonotrequireanovernightstay, as well as patientsundergoing transfusionsandoutpatientinfusionsfor chronic conditionssuch as Crohn’s diseaseor multiple sclerosisby staff who special-

ize in the care of thosepatients, will be dis-banded. Those patientswillnowbemovedtoal-readyoverburdenedandunderstaffed medicalandsurgicalfloorswherenursesareunpreparedtodeliverthesamelevelofpatient care and wherethese patients, many

of whom are immune-compromised, will beexposed to infectiousdiseasesandotherhealthhazards. It is importantto note that many ofthese changes violatesome of the hospital’sownpolicies. In addition, the hos-pitalhas recently closed

bedsinitsintensivecareunit, decreasing criticalcare beds to nine andadditionally using non-critical beds to care forcritically ill patientswhere nurses are un-abletoprovidethesamestandard of care thesepatients require. Thatchange, combined withthe recently announcedchanges, has raised theireofanumberofnurs-esandhasresultedinthefiling of more than 19officialreportsofunsafestaffing conditions atthe hospital on specificshifts where the nursesreported that the safetyofpatientswasplacedinjeopardy.

Management has alsoinformed the unionthat this isonly thebe-ginning of their plansto redesign patient caredelivery at the hospi-tal, and in the comingmonths they plan toconvert a 40-bed medi-cal surgical unit into atelemetry unit for pro-viding care to patientsrequiringmorecomplexcardiac monitoring,withnocommitmenttoaddortrainstafftoworkonthatunit. “Nurses are up inarmsoverthesechangesand are deeply con-cerned about their abil-itytodeliversafepatientNURSES cont. on page 19

Lawrence General Hospital announces changes that nurses believe threaten patient safety


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TheWhitehouse forSenatecampaignre-leaseditssecondtelevisionadvertisementtitled“Holes”inmid-September. Inthead,SenatorWhitehousetalksabouttheneedtobringAmericanmanufacturingjobsbackhome. “JobnumberoneforSenatorWhitehouseremainshelpingtoputRhodeIslandersbacktoworkduringthesetougheconomictimes,andthat starts with helping to bring jobs back toAmerica,” saidTony Simon, Campaign Man-ager.“IntheSenate,SheldonhasbeenastrongvoiceforeliminatingtaxbreaksforcompaniesthatoffshoreAmericanjobs.” SenatorWhitehouse has been one of theleadingvoicesintheSenateforbringingAmeri-canjobsbackhome,hiscampaignsays.Inpar-ticular,hehas:• Cosponsored and voted for the Bring

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companiesthatbringjobshomeataxcred-it of 20 percent of the “reshoring” costs;

• Cosponsored and voted for the Creat-ing American Jobs and Ending Offshor-ing Act, a bill that would have offered atax incentive to companies for bringingjobs home, and would have discouragedoffshoring by eliminating the deductionformovingcostsandimplementingaver-sion of the Offshoring Prevention Act;

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care,” saidPattyRogersSullivan,RN,chair of the nurses’ local bargainingunitoftheMassachusettsNursesAsso-ciation/NationalNursesUnited.“Theyare making dramatic changes to howcareisdeliveredatthishospitalwithoutdiscussing or reviewing these changeswiththenurseswhodeliverthatcare.” The union has filed a class actiongrievance on behalf of the nursesimpacted by these changes, citingthe hospital’s failure to provide theminimumtwo-weeksnoticerequired

undertheunioncontract.TheMNAhasalsorequestedacopyofthelong-termplanannouncedbymanagementfortheredesignofthenurses’worksothat they can offer their opinion onthe safety of this plan for patients.The nurses also want to make surethat anynurse affectedby the layoffhastherighttobumpintoanewpo-sition with appropriate orientationand training to care for patients onthatunitasdefinedintheircontract. “We are alarmed and outraged

that thesedecisionshavebeenmadewithoutourinput,andthattherehasbeen no guarantee that staffing willbeimprovedonunitswhereallthesepatientsarebeingmoved,and/orthatthose nurses will have the resourcesandeducationtheyneedtomaintainthequalityandsafetyofpatientcare,”Rogers-Sullivansaid. Thenursesarealsoconcernedthatthe layoffshavebeen targeted at themostexperiencednursesandatnurseswhoareactivein,andleadersof,the

union.TheMNAisexploringwheth-erornotthehospitals’actionwarrantsachargeofunfairlaborpracticewiththeNationalLaborRelationsBoard. In response to the changes, theunion has called for an emergencymembership meeting to brief thenurses,andtoplannextstepsintheirefforts to educate the public aboutthese potentially dangerous changesatthehospital.

NURSES cont. from page 15


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Thisyearmarksthecel-ebrationofthe77thanni-versary of the enactmentofSocialSecurity. Signedinto law by PresidentRoosevelt, this social in-surance program embod-ied principles articulated

by FDR and New Dealappointees on the Presi-dential Committee onEconomicSecurity. Historians of the NewDeal note that the Presi-dential Committee madea number of sweeping

recommendations oneconomic security thatincluded a key finding:Social Security would beacontributoryprogramsothat it avoided the stigmaofbeing labeled as ‘relief ’or a ‘government hand-

out.’ Further, the em-ployee contribution wasseenasmeanstoinsurefi-nancialpermanencetotheprogram.The New Deal-ersbelievedthatdedicatedfunding would be criticalindeterringopposition to

the very existence of OldAgeInsurance. Strong support for Social Security Indeed, despite someconcerns over its finan-cial health, Social Secu-

rity retains a high degreeof public support. Re-cently, a poll by AP/GfKshowed overwhelmingbacking for the program:74 percent identifiedSocialSecurityas“extremelyFUND cont. on page 21

Time to fund Social Security for another 75 yearslifting income cap makes the difference!By John A. Furia


PROVIDENCEFIRE FIGHTERS LOCAL 799

Providence’s BravestSaving Lives and Property Since 1854

Paul A. Doughty, PresidentPhilip F. Fiore, Vice PresidentDerek M. Silva, SecretaryChristopher J. Stoney, Treasurer

Anthony P. Lancellotti,EAP Chairman

Executive Board Representatives:Christopher J. JannittoJoseph P. MoreinoHans RamsdenWayne C. OliveiraZachariah KenyonAnthony Toro

orveryimportant.” Also, a clear majority favoredincreased payroll taxes to fundSocialSecurity,insteadofreduc-ingbenefits.Policy options—overlooked or largely ignored In spite of strong public sup-port,debateonthefutureofSocialSecurityseemsfocusedoncutsinbenefitsorsubstantialtaxincreasesto maintain its solvency. Otherpolicyoptionsappeartohavebeenoverlookedorlargelyignored. One such option, that has notreceivedwidepublicity,wouldliftthe income–limit on earnings forpaymentofpayrolltaxes,estimatedat $110,100 for 2012.Currently,earningsabovethatincomeceilingor cap are not subject to payrolltaxes that finance Social Securitybenefits. Lifting the income-caphas been estimated to affect onlyabout 6 percent of high-incomeearnersandwouldnegatetheneedfor across-the-board payroll taxesfor Social Security participants.

In addition, high-income earnerswouldalsoreceiveenhancedSocialSecurity benefits for their addedcontribution. Indeed,thismightbecharacter-izedasa“win-win-win”option.

New revenue extends the life of Social Security Liftingtheincome-caphasbeenprojectedtoprolongthelifeofSo-cial Security for an additional 75years!Studiesofthisoptionextendbackto2005,whentheEconomicPolicy Institute, a Washington,DCthinktank,madethisrecom-mendation. The Senate Committee onHealth, Education, Labor, andPensions, in a recent report, alsohas proposed lifting the incomecap.ChairedbySen.TomHarkin(D-Iowa), theCommitteeReportsupportedthisasasustainablefis-calalternativetoprotectSocialSe-curitybenefits. Avariationhasbeen advocatedbySen.SheldonWhitehouse (D-Rhode Island). Sen. Whitehouse

has proposed lifting the cap onearningsover$250,000.Heserveswith Harkin as a member of theSenate Committee that recom-mendedpreservingSocialSecurityand proposing additional legisla-tiontoenhanceeconomicsecurityforretirees.

Quibbles over funding projec-tions When lifting the income-caphas been proposed, some havequibbled about the accuracy offundingprojections.Isitforafull75yearsorcould itbe less? TheofficeofSen.WhitehousereportedthatSocialSecurityactuarieshavecalculated that proposed legisla-tion provides additional fundingfor75years,fromthedateofen-actment. Therefore, if legislativepassage occurs next year, SocialSecurity funding would continuethroughtheyear2088. Be it 2088 or whatever yearprojected, it provides additionalfunding for many years to come!Good news for some 13 million

seniorswhorelyonSocialSecuritytohelpkeepthemoutofpoverty.

Time to protect Social Security Now is the time to act on apolicyoption thathas the virtueof simplicity, while preservingSocial Security into the distantfuture.Sometimes,creativeideasand worthwhile policy alterna-tivesdon’tneedcomplexity.Lift-ing the income-cap is one suchexample. Simply stated, lifting the in-come-cap lifts the elderly out ofpoverty and provides economic

securityforcurrentandfuturere-tirees. It also commemorates the visionofFDRandpreservesSocialSecurityas the economic centerpiece of theNewDeal—77yearsafterpassage. John A. Furia serves on the Augs-burg College faculty. The College is located in the Twin-Cities (Minne-apolis-St. Paul) and has been ranked as a top higher educational institu-tion in the Midwest. He previously served, for over 20 years, as Execu-tive Director of AFSCME District Council 94, New England Region.

FUND cont. from page 20

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Providence—Provi-dence voters called outthe billionaire KochBrothersandotherspecialinterestswhohavethreat-enedtospendmorethan$400millionona“greedagenda” that will weakenAmericaataprotesteventheldSeptember24. The Koch Brothersand other mega-billion-aires have advocated formore tax breaks for thesuper-rich, while dis-mantling the AmericanDream for millions ofAmericans and cuttingprograms that makeAmericastronger. At Kennedy Plaza,Kate Brock of OceanState Action and Pat

Crowley of the NationalEducation Association-Rhode Islandnoted thattheKochs’GreedAgendahas hurt Rhode Island’smiddle class throughtheir support of radicalpolicies including theelimination of the mini-mum wage, the privati-zation of Medicare andSocial Security, and theendingofpay equity forwomen.“If the Koch Brothersand their special interestfriendsaresuccessful,payequityforwomenwouldend, workers would gowithoutaminimumwageorevenbasicprotections,andMedicareandSocialSecuritywouldbeathing

ofthepast,”saidBrock.“TheKochbrothersposeauniquethreattoRhodeIsland and to America,”Crowley added. “Notonlyhave theypromisedto contribute hundredsof millions of dollars toinfluence this election,but those dollars arein service of an agendacharacterized by greedandastunningdisregardforthewell-beingofournation.” The Koch-operatedCato InstituteandHeri-tage Foundation advo-cate partially privatizingSocialSecuritybydivert-ing Social Security taxesinto privately managedretirement accounts.

SuchaplanwouldenrichWallStreetbanks,whichwould gain enormousfees from the billions ofdollars shifted to theirmanagement,while risk-ing Americans’ financialsecurity. Meanwhile, theKochs’ Americans forProsperity backed theproposed FY 2013 bud-getthatwouldtransformMedicare into a vouchersystem, raise theeligibil-ity age, and reduce pre-scription drug coverage.A study done by thenonpartisan Center forBudget and Policy Pri-oritiesconcludedthatthebudgetplanwould leavemanyseniorswithoutac-cesstosatisfactoryhealth

care and gradually shiftcoststoseniors. The Koch Brothershavespentdecadesbuild-ingavastspecial-interestmachine that targetsevery level of govern-ment. The brothers arewell-known for fund-ing innocuous-soundingfrontgroupsthatseektodismantle safety regula-tions, eliminate govern-ment funding for roadsand bridges, and stripAmericansofhealthcareanda social safetynet—allinanefforttoincreasetheirownenormousbot-tomline.Thisyearalone,the Koch brothers havepledged to spend $400millionundertheauspic-

esoftheirvariousgroupstowardstheelection,andmillionsmoreinsupportoftheiragenda. “If you spend $400million, you expectsomething in return,”said Patriot MajorityPresident Craig Varoga.“Billionaire oil tycoonsCharlesandDavidKochand their special inter-est friends are spending$400milliontobuythisyear’s elections—and ad-vancetheiragenda.

What’s their payback?”The 12 Points of the Greed Agenda are: 1. GiveMoreTaxBreaks

totheSuperRichKOCH cont. on page 23

Activists, workers protest Koch brothers’ ‘Greed Agenda’By Common Ground staff


Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals

Marcia B. Reback President

356 Smith Street (401) 273-9800 Providence, RI 02908-3761 FAX (401) 331-8815 [email protected] www.rifthp.org

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2. Privatize Social SecurityandMedicare

3. SuppressVoting Rights forWorkingandMiddleClassFamilies

4. Cut Funding for PublicSchools in Favor of For-ProfitEducation

5. Roll Back Consumer Pro-tections and ImportantRegulations on Wall StreetandBigBanks

6. Lower Wages for MiddleClassFamilies

7. EliminateWorkers’Rights8. Block Pay Equity and

Health Care Equity forWomen

9. Continue Special Give-aways to Super-Rich OilCompanies

10.Privatize Firefighting andImportantPublicServices

11.Cut Funding for Veterans’Services

12.ProtectSpecialInterestPol-lutersfromCommonSenseRegulations, Even if it In-creases the Risk of CancerandOtherFatalIllnesses

The“StoptheGreedAgen-da” bus will visit Americans

from all walks of life who areharmedby theGreedAgenda,including teachers, construc-tion workers, firefighters, po-lice officers, students, and themiddleclassmorebroadly. Thetourispartofabroad-er initiative Patriot MajoritylaunchedinAugust.Thegrouplaunched television and Inter-net ads along with aWeb siteto educate voters about thereported $1 billion right-winggroups, ledbytheKochs’plantospendthiselectioncycle.InSeptember,thegrouplaunched

state-specific ads.The ads andtour are both designed to cutthrough thenoise of the cam-paign to let voters know notjustwhoisbehindtheconstantbarrageofpoliticaladstheyareseeing,butwhat thosebillion-airesplantodowiththecoun-try. More information aboutthe campaign canbe found atwww.stopthegreedagenda.com. Patriot Majority USA hasaverywelldefined,multi-year,bipartisan primary purpose,whichistoworkoneconomicsolutions and encourage job

creationthroughouttheUnitedStates. Earlier this year, it rantwo issue ads applauding aGOPRep.DavidMcKinleyofWestVirginiaforvotingagainstending Medicare (http://ti-nyurl.com/d7jk7ob). PatriotMajority USA’s future legisla-tiveadvocacy,in2013andbe-yond, at both at the nationalandstatelevels,isbasedonthegoals of the Patriot MajorityActionPlan.Seemoreathttp://www.patriotmajority.org.

KOCH cont. from page 22

common ground october edition

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