It's no coincidence that this is happening now, in the era of Bloomberg, Rhee, and Obama. One of Obama's promises to the NEA was, "I'll do it with ya, not to ya." Those words, however, have proven to be as empty as those of "change" and "hope."
For those of us who've been around the block once or twice, the "change" will be having no more job. And the "hope" will be that we're not overqualified for that gig at Taco Bell.
This is a time for us to stand tall, because we cannot tolerate this. The middle class is under attack, and the very best place in which to stick a knife is to teachers, the last bastion of vibrant unionism in this country.
Call your state senator, and call your assembly person. Tell them that you believe teachers are important. Tell them you don't want to rely on the good graces of Michael Bloomberg and Joel Klein to keep your jobs. You don't have to tell them you've seen no evidence of good graces from Tweed, but if you think that will punch up your message, tell them that too.
This is national idiocy. People all over have tough times, and think if they screw things up for teachers, they will somehow be better off. If Americans were smart, they'd march to Albany with torches and pitchforks, demanding they, too, have unions and job protections--just like the teachers do.
That's what Americans need. Let's not allow Wal-Mart to dictate how we run education, or how we compensate our working people.
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