Save Christmas; fire the union

You know your union has gone overboard when even the New York Times is siding with the state and proclaiming your strike “ridiculous.”

That's right – the newspaper that is the haven of seemingly all leftist causes within the rational sphere cannot even see fit to justify the crippling – and, yes, illegal – strike of New York City Transit Authority workers that has paralyzed Gotham just days before Christmas.

A city finally recovering from the economic hardships of 9/11 is seeing its seasonal tourism devastated by a bunch of self-righteous, whiny and selfish union members who are completely out of touch with reality. The Times says it best:

The bar for job actions by New York City transit workers is set, legally, out of reach for good reason. A strike that halts buses and subways that daily carry seven million riders can devastate New York's economy and countless lives. The New Yorkers who took to the streets yesterday, some walking miles to work or other appointments, deserved better than the explanation they got from leaders of Local 100 of the Transport Workers Union - who said they had no choice but to tell their 33,000 members to begin an illegal walkout. That's ridiculous.

Negotiations did not have to end when they did. There was no impasse. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state entity that runs the system, had compromised on several major points at the negotiating table. When Roger Toussaint, the union chief, walked away, his members were being offered a chance to continue to retire with full pensions at age 55. New hires would have to pay into that pension, but workers would continue to pay nothing toward their health benefits. That's a deal that many riders, including those who struggle to pay the $2 fare, would gladly take.

Indeed, New York City has been within the right so far. And now that the metropolis' very livelihood is in the hands of a bunch of senseless union thugs, it is time the city continues down the correct road. Indeed, it is time for Mayor Bloomberg to borrow some words from Ronald Reagan, “I must tell those who fail to report for duty this morning they are in violation of the law, and if they do not report for work within 48 hours, they have forfeited their jobs and will be terminated.”