Burlison: I have no ideas of my own; here's an ALEC bill

Progress Missouri does a nice job of examining the job ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) flunkies, including Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Springfield; and Speaker of the House Tim Jones, R-Eureka, are doing of introducing that organization's cookie-cutter bills designed to promote business at the expense of the middle class.

ALEC has been at the forefront of the effort to destroy unions and Burlison is happy to attach his name to a bill that only includes two words contributed by the legislator- "Eric Burleson."

The Progress Missouri piece compares Burlison's HB 77 to ALEC's "model legislation."

Perhaps I was a bit harsh earlier. Burlison did change a word or two here or there, but otherwise is passing this bill off as his original thought. In the Missouri House of Representatives, that is called legislation. If Burlison were to try that nonsense in my classroom, it would be called what it is- plagiarism.