When Taxpayers

Say ‘No’

To the Editor:

Many towns, most states, and our federal government have huge unsustainable deficits that collectively equal a “national financial crisis.” But this is ignored by the Democrats and union antics in Wisconsin…whose teachers and government employee unions still want guaranteed raises and rich benefits unchanged.

This is too much; it is time taxpayers say: “Not with my nickel.” In fact, that is just what they did last November, both in Wisconsin and across the country when Democrats not only lost governors, the House of Representatives, but also lost 700 state legislature seats nationwide.

Taxpayers reasons to say No!

1. Protestors and union members are putting their personal financial interest ahead of all other American taxpayers during a national crisis.

2. Over the years they used to say: “All they wanted was…their fair share.” But today America’s majority of taxpayers who pay their salary are not receiving raises, in fact if they still have a job (14 million do not), most have had their pay frozen or have taken pay cuts. Additionally all on Social Security have had a “pay freeze” for the last two years. So, unions’ fair share of pay cuts and pay freezes should at minimum be a pay freeze.

3. Neither teachers nor other unionized government workers work in sweat box conditions of the 1930s, nor do they work under gross failings of autocratic management of the 1930s or 1940s.

4. Those complaining actually have better pay and benefits than most in the private sector who pay their salary.

For a broader perspective, let’s look at the words of a former labor leader Harold J. Ruttenberg who worked in the labor movement at the United Steelworkers of America and the AFL-CIO 1934–1946. Mr Ruttenberg left the labor movement in 1946 because he was disenchanted with the union’s lack of partnership with employers toward a “win-win situation” that he observed and could not change. After leaving, Mr Ruttenberg became a “capitalist” owning and developing many companies, including The American Voting Machine Company. In 1960 he authored a book Self-Developing America. Here are some quotes from his book: “But this is an old story of how we all — organized labor, industry, politicians, educators, and everybody else — try to preserve their vested interests. The strength of America is that we all, one by one, have to yield when our vested interests conflict with the general welfare of the country as a whole.

“I asked, ‘What do we do when the gross failings of management have been corrected?’ The answer was direct, we shall keep right on asking for more. Our job is to get as much for our members as we can cajole, squeeze, or force out of companies. It is an easy job, once we get a…better contract, we have no further responsibility. It is entirely up to management to find the means to pay the bill.”

Bottom line, this is about the right of the people to elect and govern themselves versus entrenched self-interest who are defying the will of the people. Note: Unions represent 12 to 14 percent. We are the other 86 percent. What are we, chopped liver?

Daniel Kormanik

85 Great Ring Road, Sandy Hook                          February 23, 2011