By Alan Elmont
Re “Welcome to the Cells of Prisoners of Our Teachers Unions”
During the School Board elections last year, I questioned the value of endorsements by the Teachers Union and the Assn. of Classified Employees.
I have issues with endorsements of candidates by unions whose sole responsibility is to negotiate for the wages, benefits and working conditions of its members, whose very wages, benefits and working conditions are drawn from the public weal.
The following quote oft comes to mind when I think of public servant union endorsements:
“A Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of Government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess of the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that Democracy always collapses over a loose fiscal policy…”
–Professor Alexander Fraser Tyler, writing when the states still were colonies of Great Britain, explaining why democracies always fail.
Mr. Elmont may be contacted at aelmont@ca.rr.com
