The General Assembly. Government bought and paid for by the unions. Reason #1 that I'm leaving this state.

I think there are more lawyers in the general assembly than union members. Unless there is a lawyers union, then we're all in trouble.

But everybody acknowledges that lawyers are scumbags. There are plenty of people in this state that don't seem to think that the people that run the state's unions are scumbags (Nee, Walsh, Crowley, yada yada yada...)

Crowley is a slimeball. Like all progressives he is what squirrels bury-nuts.

There are some tweaks that extended conversation could make to this, but unions and lawyers aren't really comparable in this conversation. The state isn't the #1 employer of lawyers, and the biggest part of its budget isn't negotiated in the form of lawyers' salaries.

Something puzzles me. Ruggerio makes more money from the union biz (and one with alleged mob ties!) than any of the legislators who've been attacked as union hacks here, but no one has ever brought him up here. Is it because he's one of the Democratic good ol' boys with ties to the leadership who gets protected?

>>But everybody acknowledges that lawyers are scumbags.

Many are – particularly the ambulance chasers that advertise on TV with those schlocky ads.

FWIW, way back over 20 years ago when I was in my first year of law school, my apartment mate was a fellow first year from Vermont. He had served in the Vermont House of Representatives (still had the license plate on his pickup truck when he started law school).

Inevitably we talked politics, and one time he asked me why I wasn’t involved in politics in Rhode Island, since obviously I followed current events and had an interest in politics.

My response was that politics in Rhode Island was so thoroughly corrupt that the thought of becoming involved with it never crossed my mind; that I didn’t want to rub elbows with people like that, much less become one of them.

This was not long after Bevilaqua was booted from the Supreme Court, but years before RISDIC (much less Operation Dollar Bill). Same 'ole same 'ole on Smith Hill.

>>There are plenty of people in this state that don't seem to think that the people that run the state's unions are scumbags (Nee, Walsh, Crowley, yada yada yada...)

The people who run the state’s unions aren’t scumbags (at least not across the board). They’re doing what they believe in. That is collectivism and its subsets socialism / fascism / liberalism / progressivism (BTW, the reviews of the new book “Liberal Fascism” indicate that it provides a great expose of this relationship).

To a collectivist having government (a/k/a/ “the state”) being the largest “employer,” and controlled by “collective” bargaining, is real progress on the road to the ultimate goal – a “workers paradise” from which capitalism and individual thought and liberty and property rights have been displaced by “equality” and the “collective good.”

“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” – Sir Winston Churchill

Most union members that I know are not socialists, facists or liberals. Mediocroty in the union ranks is a myth perpetuated by people who feel threatened by the power of the group. As individuals, our skill, dedication and self respect is what motivates, not the collective good. An individual employee is powerless. All the employees not so much.

“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” – Sir Winston Churchill

Nice speech but not relevant here. I agree with Winston Churchill 100%.

Michael,

If that is the case, and I have no reason to doubt you, then it's high time you stand up and fight to keep your union dues from going to support socialists, facists and liberals.

"It's curious how Crowley managed to cull that information away from something that he wanted to highlight"

Someone affiliated with the NEARI is supplying incomplete information?? I'm shocked, shocked!

>>Most union members that I know are not socialists, facists or liberals. Mediocroty in the union ranks is a myth perpetuated by people who feel threatened by the power of the group. As individuals, our skill, dedication and self respect is what motivates, not the collective good. An individual employee is powerless. All the employees not so much.

Michael,

I agree with you in part - in dysfunctional workplaces unions can bring something to the table as regards disciplinary matters and such. But so too can employee collective action without a union.

But the philosophy underlying unions, and adhered to by their leaders, is definitely socialist / collectivist. Its origins lie on the Marxist working class vs. capital world view.

If modern labor unions were really about their members / workers, then they wouldn't support forced unionization (closed shops); withholding of full financial disclosure to members; sham internal "union democracy" (such as having to "vote" in public and the inability to vote for all union officials instead of just a local rep).

Ditto the unions' efforts to eliminate secret ballot elections during organizing campaigns ("card check" / the so-called "employee free choice act") ... but still requiring secret ballots for efforts to decertify a union.

As for mediocrity and unions - police, firefighters and airline pilots seem to be exceptions, and I attribute this to the fact that members' own lives are on the line, and so they demand excellence from themselves and each other, and the pride which deservedly arises from that.

Beyond those exceptions, unions promote mediocrity because the contractual protections from discipline and termination, coupled with the emphasis on seniority over performance, inevitably overly protect the slackers, which in turn demotivates others ("why should I put out if he/she doesn't have to?").

In a perfect world, where we could all trust each other to do the right thing, we wouldn't need unions at all. But as we all know...

"Beyond those exceptions, unions promote mediocrity because the contractual protections from discipline and termination, coupled with the emphasis on seniority over performance, inevitably overly protect the slackers, which in turn demotivates others ("why should I put out if he/she doesn't have to?")."

Tom, you describe the weakest members of not only humans, but the human race as well. Are we to abandon what is for many of us the only means we have giving us a chance of a safe workplace, good pay and benefits? Sure, there are those who corrupt the opportunity that the safety of the union provides, but those kind of people exist in all walks of life.

I was twenty-nine when I joined my union. My loosly defined opinion of unions at the time was negative, at best. I believed in the fairness of the market and my ability to thrive in that marketplace. As years progress I still have a negative opinion of a lot of union strategies and a very dim view of our national leaders. However, I have learned firsthand how the people with the power will subjugate those without.

I now view unions as a necessary force whose existance keeps those in power in check. Management rights look great on paper, privatization in a competitive market appears to be a great way to balance budgets but in reality it gives more power to those powerful few, ultimately lowering the quality of life of millions of workers.

Somebody has to fight fires, teach, nurse, dig holes, wash floors and bang nails. Without orginized labor, we would be getting crumbs for our efforts, much like the slaves in China.