September 11, 2012
C'mon Rahm
Rahm Emanuel sounds a lot like Scott Walker. Like Walker, Emanuel would like to break the teachers union so he can "reform" education in Chicago, apparently even if that risks Obama's reelection. Unless of course this is Obama's Sister Souljah moment that will demonstrate to swing voters that Obama and Emanuel are not going to let unions dictate educational policy. Are they willing to forgo union support in the November elections to make the point? I would hope not, but Rooster Rahm enjoys the spotlight. So this strike could be long, bitter and permanently divisive.
Not a good time to buy beach front property along the east coast. New York is focused on rising seas and studying the impact of more severe storms. Articles about climate like the latest one in the NY Times are creeping, ever so slowly, into the news, and may soon dominate news throughout the country.
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True, but in a tight presidential race the timing of this strike could not be worse. It's just the thing that the republicans need, whether President Obama endorses the strike or not, to tip several close states to Romney. I am a teacher in Wisconsin where we lost the right to strike under Gov. Thompson 2 decades ago. I support their right to strike, but I also understand prudence in these times and how this event may be portrayed by the media and the republican opposition.
-Craig Koch | Appleton, WI | September 11, 2012
Though I respect the previous letter response, I would in part disagree. This is exactly the political moment for the country to wake up, and realize that some issues, to have legitimate attention, other than in huge class action, costly lawsuits, are protectively dependent upon union action and yes, collective union action.
Some of these issues are: -the right to stand up for inappropriate treatment of children, whether suspected in the school or in the child's home, -the right to object to unfair hours, wages, benefits, hostile, or harrassing treatment in the workplace, unfair labor practices, -the right to object to the "witch-hunt mentality" of parents who cannot or will not send kids to school with a decent physical and mental background,and are never so much a parent, as when they can scapegoat the schools for deplorable conditions that they or society inflicts upon their children,) -the right to stand up for other staff when mistreated. (If required procedures including career counseling are followed in staff removal, tenure does not have to be a problem. Some type of tenure is necessary due to complicated multi-type clients. Otherwise, no one will put themselves in such careers. Teaching careers are already blessed with great hesitation, professionally, and financially.)
These are the rights that Chicago teachers are fighting for, and for which any union, or any ethical American, worth salt, will stand up.
As far as the longer school day, the mayor is right if a longer school day matches or is close to the rest of the US. Was it originally shortened to get two daytime student schedules through the facilities? If so, that was not faculty's decision? As they say, it's complicated.
Great Greed is hiding the truth and complexity of all issues to sell profit...because "private" anything serves profit; to hell with any quality assurance or ethical treatment of others.
There's that word again, "ethics." And morality?..Can't even mention it in the same sentence with those kinds of people. No, wake up, Americans. If you throw away decent priorities, your rights and fairness to the pigs, your children will live with worse consequences than the Republicans' big deficit.
The first step, is to bring American jobs home by punitive tariff and tax for locating a business headquarters or manufacuring facility overseas. Period. The second is prosecution and deportation for offshoring profits.
So, yes, this is a great time to look at why there is a need for unions...and what they stand for. Those who want to destroy the unions want to destroy public schools and put that money into private schools which can grease their investment profit. Then it becomes possible to deny decent wages to adults from public schools...and favor good resumes/jobs/wages to adults from voucher or private schools where resumes might be purchased.
Begins with school but it goes way beyond school!
PS. Read D. Stockman (Reagan budget chair) harsh criticism of current Republicans!
-hmj | Madison, Wi | September 12, 2012
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