Ban the Bomb
February 23, 2011 11:48 AM
I just got back from a press conference of local officials from around the state who have signed onto an open letter to Governor Walker telling him that collective bargaining works. That letter now has over 300 signatories and the list grows every day.
What each of us said in our own way is that the Governor's characterization of the end of collective bargaining as a "tool" to help us solve budget problems is misplaced. If we need a tool it's more like a jigsaw, but the governor wants to hand us a nuclear weapon. The problem we've got can be handled in a way that's surgical. It doesn't require the huge collateral damage that comes with a bomb.
We anticipate that there will be cuts to state aid programs and we will need to trim spending, but there is just no need to turn back 40 years of labor peace to get us where we need to go. We need to be able to address these problems locally employing our own community values. Our message is: give us the tools we can actually use in our own skillful way. Ban the bomb.
