Proving Them Right
Newly elected Governor, Scott Walker and his introduction of Assembly Bill 11 to the Republican dominated Wisconsin Senate, which strongly would sharply and strongly curtail the collective bargaining privileges of the state’s public sector unions has enough votes in the Wisconsin Senate but the 14 Democrat senators have fled the state in order to prevent that vote, or any other, from happening.
The one thing these 14 criminals and the the 100+ “teachers” that deliberately shutdown most schools in Wisconsin have done is prove Gov. Walker and the GOP right. Their bit of sophomoric theater has empirically proven the dangers of collective bargaining and of agreements that enable unions to shutdown needed civil services in order to coerce the government to bend to their will and demands.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, surprisingly since he was far to the Left of even Obama, said it best in his letter to Luther C. Steward, President, National Federation of Federal Employees on the resolution of Federation of Federal Employees against strikes in federal service:
The desire of Government employees for fair and adequate pay, reasonable hours of work, safe and suitable working conditions, development of opportunities for advancement, facilities for fair and impartial consideration and review of grievances, and other objectives of a proper employee relations policy, is basically no different from that of employees in private industry. Organization on their part to present their views on such matters is both natural and logical, but meticulous attention should be paid to the special relationships and obligations of public servants to the public itself and to the Government.
All Government employees should realize that the process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service. It has its distinct and insurmountable limitations when applied to public personnel management. The very nature and purposes of Government make it impossible for administrative officials to represent fully or to bind the employer in mutual discussions with Government employee organizations. The employer is the whole people, who speak by means of laws enacted by their representatives in Congress. Accordingly, administrative officials and employees alike are governed and guided, and in many instances restricted, by laws which establish policies, procedures, or rules in personnel matters.
Particularly, I want to emphasize my conviction that militant tactics have no place in the functions of any organization of Government employees. Upon employees in the Federal service rests the obligation to serve the whole people, whose interests and welfare require orderliness and continuity in the conduct of Government activities. This obligation is paramount. Since their own services have to do with the functioning of the Government, a strike of public employees manifests nothing less than an intent on their part to prevent or obstruct the operations of Government until their demands are satisfied. Such action, looking toward the paralysis of Government by those who have sworn to support it, is unthinkable and intolerable.
— F.D.R.
August 16, 1937
President Obama – or one of his mouthpieces with Organizing for America who’ve been stoking these protests; it’s unclear which – has described Gov. Walker’s bill as an “assault on unions” but the truth is that both the actions of the Wisconsin Democrats and the public union members is a clear and present assault upon- and danger to the People of Wisconsin who these state employees purport to serve.
They’re on the wrong side of current and future history and, most definitely, on the wrong side of the war for America’s future. They’re actions have proven this and proven Gov. Walker and the GOP absolutely and incontrovertibly right.
~*~
Keep your eyes open. Travel light but load heavy, and always put another round in the enemy after they’re down. 😉
Tags: America | Civil Servants | Democrats | FDR | Labor Unions | Liberals | Politics | Public Sector | Republicans | Scott Walker | Wisconsin
February 19th, 2011 at 6:04 pm
Bravo! I had to use the quote. I was looking through Wilson and FDR stuff recently with a lot of focus on contrasting them to current policy/politics. This was a great one. Too bad JFK was so desperate for $ and power to obey.
February 19th, 2011 at 6:20 pm
Well then, I’m glad I included it in the post, Alfie. 🙂
Yes, it’s sad that JFK failed to do the right thing but, as you said, he was desperate for money and power and the unions were a ready source of both – and a dangerous enemy to cross.