Norma Rae: "Union NOW, and someday I'll beat the snot out of a Boy Scout with this sign!"

When we were forced at the point of an evil snarl to watch "Norma Rae" by our high school economics teacher, who knew that when Sally Field was skinny dipping with Yankee union organizer Reuben what's- his-name, they were actually plotting the destruction of the Boy Scouts. From the Morning Call of Allentown, PA:

In pursuit of an Eagle Scout badge, Kevin Anderson, 17, has toiled for more than 200 hours hours over several weeks to clear a walking path in an east Allentown park.

Little did the do-gooder know that his altruistic act would put him in the cross hairs of the city's largest municipal union.

Nick Balzano, president of the local Service Employees International Union, told Allentown City Council Tuesday that the union is considering filing a grievance against the city for allowing Anderson to clear a 1,000-foot walking and biking path at Kimmets Lock Park.

"We'll be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails," Balzano told the council.

Balzano said Saturday he isn't targeting Boy Scouts. But given the city's decision in July to lay off 39 SEIU members, Balzano said "there's to be no volunteers." No one except union members may pick up a hoe or shovel, plant a flower or clear a walking path.

Thanks goodness for the SEIU. Otherwise, the nation would be overrun with people who need a good butt whipping because they had the audacity to simply attend a Congressional town hall meeting, not to mention a bunch of goody-two-shoes Eagle Scouts who need to have a sock stuck in their "Be Prepared."

I love my union friends, but when is it going to occur to them that there are only three ways they have been able to recruit new members lately? (a) Have the government take over General Motors and Chrysler and effectively hand them to the unions, (b) say a bunch of bad things about Paula Deen to Mexican pork plant workers who don't care as long as they can stay in the country, or (c) have health care legislation finagled in such as way as to force a bunch of people to join a union whether they want to or not. Well, (c) hasn't occurred yet, but it would if the House health care bill becomes law.

"Hey, unions just have a few bad apples. Not only that, but Dick Trumka (head of the AFL-CIO) unfurled a plan that would create or save (a bogus, phony-baloney phrase that should never be believed coming from anyone, regardless of political persuasion) two million jobs! He wants to lend TARP money to small businesses!" No doubt small businesses that do business with unions, but the digression can wait. "Dick also wants to get the government moving on roads, schools, etc." I'm sure the small string attached will be the labor has to belong to a union, with it's requisite pay level, regardless of actual labor costs. Union leaders and their backers have tried this argument before, that bigger unions help the economy recover. In fact, as James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal's "Best Of The Web Today" pointed out, the New York Times' editorial page made this argument almost a year ago:

• "The argument against unions--that they unduly burden employers with unreasonable demands--is one that corporate America makes in good times and bad. . . . The real issue is whether enhanced unionizing would worsen the recession, and there is no evidence that it would. There is a strong argument that the slack labor market of a recession actually makes unions all the more important."--editorial, New York Times, Dec. 29, 2008

The New York Times organization completely stands by that assertion today. Oh, wait a minute:

• "The New York Times News Service will lay off at least 25 editorial employees next year and will move the editing of the service to a Florida newspaper owned by The New York Times Company. . . . The plan for the news service calls for The Gainesville Sun, whose newsroom is not unionized and has lower salaries, to take over editing and page design."--news story, New York Times, Nov. 13, 2009

Unions gave more than $400 million in contributions to politicians last year. Members of unions should ask their leaders whether, if that money hasn't bought them anything in the way of serious bribed influence in Washington yet, could they at least get some decent hair for Dick Trumka.













Unless, of course, he is waiting for his hair to be covered under a government health insurance plan, since it appears to be a pre-existing condition.