Of course it isn’t. Are you denying that the teacher’s union in this state hasn’t been heavy handed in the way they lobbied for certain politicians and for the passage of certain laws? Or lack of passing? The pressure they put on fellow teachers who may disagree with the popular union political views and even students to tow the line is sometimes disgraceful.
From the link, which is clearly biased, but it will support my assertions with some data.
For those of you who don’t understand why Scott Walker was elected to fix this mess, here are a couple more links to help clear the waters.
Dems taunting the pubs that voted in the assembly.
K, last one for now.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-union-20110217,0,7977108.story
Some common sense from a conservative viewpoint.
Dio, I’d like your honest opinion on this topic after you’ve had a chance to get caught up.
I’m not so sure why people get thier panties in knots when groups of middle class workers have a powerful presence in legislative bodies. Industries, corporations, and wealthy individuals do-- these groups push for legislation that will benefit them all the time-- so why is it that the right wing demonizes worker organizations when they lobby for things that will benefit *their *members? There’s nothing wrong or unethical or undemocratic about it. In fact 10,000 people lobbying for something seems much more democratic than 1 person with $5,000,000 doing the same.
Just because these people don’t have billions in the bank, or own multi-national corporations, doesn’t mean they don’t have the right to put massive amounts of pressure on the people passing laws that will directly affect them.
Scott Walker was not elected to bust any unions. The budget has nothing to do with this conflict. Walker never campaigned on busting the unions and was not elected to do any such thing.
Because the duty of the elected officials is to do what’s in the best interest of the State, which is often what the people voting for them also have in mind. In this case, and in many other States, the State Labor Unions don’t care what’s in the best interest of the State, putting the two groups at odds.
The State, being the Unions Workers (for lack of a better word) boss, has decided to finally act like their boss, not their equals.
The public unions in Wisconsin had already been quite willing to take pay cuts and pay more for medical insurance and pensions, so you’re wrong. They are nothing but willing to sacrifice for the good of the state (even though they had nothing to do with the problem). They just aren’t going to give up their collective bargaining rights, nor should they.
I also think it’s weird that so many right wingers seem to view just compensation as some kind of largesse or gift. Why should people not be justly compensated for their labor? explain that to me.
If you haven’t figured out yet that, to a conservative, wealth is virtue, you’re way behind. If someone is a billionaire, then obviously nature has endowed that person with intelligence, wisdom and holiness well beyond a poor person, so it’s imperative that we all bow down to their wants and needs. See?
So I guess we will hear no more complaints from conservatives when democratically elected governments decided to nationalize banks, airlines and other companies.
And since when is the best interest of the State ever been of importance to American conservatives? I thought individual liberty was paramount (unless, of course, it goes against God’s will). No, the duty of elected officials is to do what’s best for their constituents.
And it is nice to see the lie about supporting free markets and fiscal conservatism exposed. Free markets only exist when both sides have equal negotiating power. And fiscal conservatives have no business lowering taxes during a budget crisis or authorizing no-bid contracts.
I have no idea what Walker believes in, but I am damn certain sure of what he does not.
Har, har. If you’d care to read the links I posted above you’ll see that State workers are compensated far and above the national average for comparable work. Especially and mostly in their benefits. No one is trying to say they don’t deserve to be fairly compensated. What they have isn’t fair and the State can’t afford it anymore.
Walker isn’t trying to bust the unions. That may be a future side effect, but it isn’t his goal. What he is doing now is exactly what he ran on. He won the election handily and the entire State flipped from left to right. This is what the people of this State want! It was decided during the election. What is happening in the capital right now is NOT the democratic way of handling the issues. That already took place, let the assembly and the State senate vote the way they were elected to vote and let the governor run the state according to the wishes of the popular vote. This isn’t a bait and switch that we have here, there is no reason to panic. The elections are over and promises are being kept.
Move on.
You have no idea. If you think these waters are rough, wait until the REAL meat of his budget cuts arrive.
I’m really thinking all the highly offended authoritarians are going to be very surprised by the way this ends. You. Are. Not. Winning. This. Especially in Wisconsin, where progressivism BEGAN!
Another conservative untruth.
They have nominations. they have voting. They are a shining example of Democracy. They work for the good of all members. Yes a shining example.
They have a significant amount of members forced to join, and made to pay into political campaigns they don’t support.
What would you call that a shining example of?
I’d call it a polished turd.
It doesn’t matter how or when they get paid, it all comes from the taxpayer in the end. If you decide to pay them 100k per year and let them invest it or pay them 60k in salary and 40k in some type of deferred annuity. Their pension isn’t the only problem here, it’s the entirety of their benefit package which also includes medical.
He said sarcastically.
I don’t agree. Unions tend to equalize the talents of everyone and no one can stand above the rest. Often, the best and the worst workers get the same benefits, pay and representation. I’d rather earn those things, not have them handed to me just cause I pay dues.
Not at all. Any union has a training program. it has different job descriptions with differing pay rates. They have seniority and pay scales that go along with it.
You have no understanding of unions.
An employee paying into a benefit costs the employer how?