Not asking anybody to support them. Like I said before, I have no problem with somebody being against unions. I'm sure they have their reasons, and I respect that. I'm not arguing for or against RTW. Personally, I don't believe anybody should be forced to join a union if they don't want to -- but if they don't, then they should be on their own to negotiate their own compensation packages and to defend themselves against the potential whims of an employer. All I'm saying is, it's unfair to lump all unions in the same category based on the actions of those clowns in Lansing or based on the stuff that happened in the UAW that was referenced in prior posts. That's as silly as saying that all Muslims are bad because of the actions of a few extremists, or that all Mexicans are illegal immigrants because they're Mexican. Any group of people or organizations have their share of rotten apples.
I could tell stories about how the IAFF helps raise millions of dollars for Jerry's Kids, or how locals raise money for camps for burned kids, local kid's sports teams, athletic booster clubs, or numerous other charities. I could tell stories about how our local uses its own money (not the city's) to purchase smoke detectors to give away to people who don't have them (and in some cases will even install them). I could tell stories about how we took cuts and concessions to help the city financially, offered to pay the salary of a police officer until the next fiscal year so he wouldn't get laid off (city declined and somehow found the money), and worked to help them get millages passed-- all while they continue to waste money on such things as city vehicles and gas (that they use personal use as well as business use) for department heads. But I doubt it would do any good because some folks' minds are made up that we're just a bunch of greedy SOB's looking for "more, more, more".
Personally, I choose not to judge books by their covers but if other people want to, that's up to them.
