September 14, 2008
It is amusing how everyone talks about 'change'. Politicians continually use the word to show how they will be truly different than the person currently in the position. Voters seem to love the idea of change. However, it begs the question of if the public truly wants change.
Governor Patrick finally moved forward with legislation to change Road Details, and the strange way Massachusetts handles them; you see, MA is the only state that requires them to be done by Police. However, due to the way the Governor worded the language, he left a loophole big enough for the unions to try and exploit. Basically, flaggers could be used in certain instances unless the local city/town has an ordinance or contract language to the contrary. So, here they come prior to the law's enactment.
One especially interesting one is in Revere MA. A quote in today's Boston Globe sums up what is wrong with the way we sometimes address issues and move forward with 'Change' --
[story here = http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/09/14/unions_rush_to_protect_details/]
In Revere, for instance, city officials say they are willing to protect details in the union contract in exchange for officers agreeing to accept mandatory drug and alcohol testing.
As a society, we want to make sure that Roger Clemens or other sports entertainers do not use drugs, but are willing to bargain on if our tax-paid (yes, remember we directly pay the salaries to the Police) should be drug & alcohol tested.
So sure, we all want change. Right up to that point BEFORE it effects something dear to our hearts.
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Joseph Gillis Jr.
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