Tag Archives: Letter to the Editor

A Holiday Prayer – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Mike

A Holiday Prayer

For more than a year, I have written letters to inform residents about the wildly excessive and unsustainable city employee union compensation and pensions that threaten our city’s future. My facts and information come from official sources, mostly City Hall public records, and are independently verifiable.

One positive result has been the voters’ rejection of millions of dollars in new and unnecessary business taxes and residential trash fees. Another has been some, although greatly inadequate, city employee union concessions. … Continue reading →

Posted in El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on A Holiday Prayer – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Michael D. Robbins

Out of touch – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Mike

Last week’s letter from Neil Snow demonstrates how much government union members and their political supporters are out of touch with the real world where the rest of us work, produce things and pay taxes.

Snow presented ludicrous objections to, and gross misrepresentations of, Michael Robbins’ well-reasoned recommendations to reform El Segundo’s city employee union contracts to keep the city from having a financial catastrophe.

He objected to Mr. Robbins’ recommendation that city employees pay all of their pension “employee contribution,” and at least half the total contribution, which is common in private industry, instead of the city paying the entire “employee contribution” and “employer contribution.” Snow misrepresented that recommendation, claiming that Mr. Robbins wanted to make “employees pay their entire pension.”

Snow is out of touch to expect taxpayers to continue paying all of the government union members’ pension contributions, and to expect that union members should never have to contribute a single dollar into their own pensions. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Out of touch – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Labor union overreach – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Mike

For many months now, the other side has had no substantive arguments, so all they can do is throw hate speech and deceptive pseudo-quotations at me.

If having highly paid workers with tons of benefits were the key to honesty and good performance, then the term “featherbedding” would never have been invented to describe union overreach that included incompetent, lazy, disloyal, dangerous employees who are getting overpaid to do practically no work.

Would we have better, more honest firefighters by paying each one $10 million instead of $150,000 to $357,000 per year in total compensation? … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Crimes, El Segundo, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Firefighters Commiting Crimes, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Labor union overreach – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Doesn’t like unions – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marc Rener

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Mike

Neil Snow is the epitome of naivete that unions love in their members.

He knows nothing about the payoff and kickbacks (called contributions) made by unions to the politicians who gave them these ridiculous contracts.

Union integrity? Unions can and do recruit aliens, both legal and illegal, as members? S.E.I.U. ring any bells?

So much for the English-speaking Americans workers the unions claim to protect.

The billions of taxpayer dollars to “save” GM? Stockholder shares became worthless, yet 40 percent went to protect the union pensions.

In his letter to the editor in last week’s paper, he “parrots” from union manuals every propaganda terminology and definition. He writes, “‘scabs’ . . . is an euphemism for someone who cannot get a job on their own merit.”

He writes, “Employees who would accept lower wages, no bargaining rights and no job security do an inferior job. Lateness, no show, stealing.”

“Now just imagine those types of employees who would agree to those terms. And now imagine they are firefighters and police,” writes Snow.

Tell that to the non-union waitress at the Kettle restaurant in Manhattan Beach, or the non-union Federal Express Drivers, secretaries, auto mechanics, every person in the U.S. military, the 80 percent (280 million) of Americans in this country who are non-union. Sainthood of unions? … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Crimes, El Segundo, Firefighter Union Corruption, Firefighters Commiting Crimes, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Doesn’t like unions – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marc Rener

Just the Facts – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Mike

As Ronald Reagan said, “facts are stubborn things.” Unlike the extremist rants against me, which now include calls for censorship and threats of death by withholding emergency services, I just deal with the facts in order to prevent my city’s bankruptcy and loss of vital services. The people attacking me resort to these sorts of threats because they have no facts on their side. My information comes from official sources as documented at PublicSafetyProject.org.

If Measure P succeeds in liquidating the El Segundo Fire Department, then all other South Bay Cities will suffer reduced mutual aid emergency services. Even worse, if the voters are deceived into passing Measure P, it’s likely to start a trend of union takeovers of other South Bay cities. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, Firefighter Union Corruption, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Just the Facts – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Unsustainable – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Bill Barks

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Mike

I wish to applaud and express support for frequent letter writer Michael D. Robbins of El Segundo. Mr. Robbins is exactly correct in his comments regarding the firefighter/police unions and the fantastic compensation packages they have been able to carve out of various ill-advised city councils in the beach cities over several years. Let it also be clear that I applaud the skill and dedication of most of the firefighter and police professionals. However, this unsustainable compensation policy has to be brought under control. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, Firefighter Union Corruption, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Unsustainable – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Bill Barks

Recycle Bin Sting – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Jim Dutchess

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Mike

Recycle Bin Sting

The El Segundo Police Department is currently conducting an undercover sting operation targeting people who are getting recycle cans and bottles from the curbside bins. I was witness to an arrest made by two uniformed policemen in two undercover cars, with a third black & white vehicle and another officer to transport the man to jail. Why so many needed to cruise the streets? The man involved was removing about 40 cents worth of aluminum cans from my neighbor’s trash.

El Segundo is in the middle of a large deficit, causing city worker layoffs and furlough days. How much money is this undercover operation costing our city? … Continue reading →

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“Free” Trash Collection – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by George Hoopes

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Mike

“Free” Trash Collection

The Feb. 3 edition of the El Segundo Herald had a front-page article entitled “Free Trash (collection) to Continue…” Let’s get one thing straight! There is no such thing as free trash collection in El Segundo and your contributing writer, Brian Simon, fully knows that; so why does he use the front page of the newspaper to perpetuate his cockamamie lies by continuously repeating “free trash collection”?

It’s not free! It never has been free! It never will be free! El Segundo property owners pay and pay dearly-through ultra-high property taxes for this service. Thats one of the reasons we have property taxes. That’s why we pay property tax. … Continue reading →

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