Labor Union Blog

Laura Bliss Morris sends this report on the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s big conservation fundraising shooting contest.

Nearly 200 shooters—of all skill levels—attended the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA‘s) third annual Kansas City Clay Shooting Triathlon on Oct. 8.

Raising $90,000, which will help support the USA’s nationwide conservation programs, the event brought together union members, contractors, family members and outdoor enthusiasts for a fun-filled day of outdoor recreation at the Saddle and Sirloin Club.

Boasting the highest number of pre-registered shooters for a USA event, the triathlon offered participants the unique opportunity to shoot 50 rounds of sporting clays, 25 rounds of five-stands and 25 rounds of trap.

Drawing nearly 30 teams from across the Midwest, members of Boilermakers (IBB) Local 363 in Belleville, Ill., took home the top prize for the team shoot with a score of 406, while Roofers and Waterproofers President Kinsey Robinson took home the top prize for an individual shooter with a score of 94. Says USA Executive Director Fred Myers:

Not only did the event raise a record amount of money to support our conservation mission, but it brought together union members from various communities around the region—uniting them for a great cause.

In 2011, the USA will host 25 sporting clays and trap shoots in 17 states across the country—including Alaska, California, Nevada, Kansas, Missouri, Washington, D.C., and more. For more information, click here, and for video highlights, click here.

Sometimes you have to move beyond issue papers, fact sheets and dry reports to make an impact. So, here’s a rap to scrap the cap, courtesy of Social Security Works Washington and the Economic Opportunity Institute (EOI).

If Congress cuts Social Security—as many on the so-called budget deficit Super Committee want to—and doesn’t act to ensure that the wealthy pay their fair share, as these rappin’ grandparents rhyme:

Only safety net is our next of kin
Look out son, cause we’re movin’ in.

The cap in the rap, of course, is the Social Security payroll tax.

Everyone pays Social Security taxes only on the first $106,800 they earn, which means most people pay Social Security taxes on their whole paycheck. But after $106,800, there are no contributions to Social Security, so a whole lot of wealthy people don’t pay a dime in Social Security taxes on most of what they make.

Social Security could pay full benefits forever if millionaires simply paid the same Social Security tax rate as most other people do. So, click here to sign a petition to Congress to scrap the cap and here for lyrics and credits for this outstanding video.

H/T to Kathy Cummings, in communications at the Washington State Labor Council (WSLC), for turning us on to the Scrap the Cap rap.