Joy?

   While I wasn't much of a scholar, I was always an athlete; my main game our "national pasttime", baseball, i.e., I started at about 7 years of age and did the whole gambit! The whole gambit means little league, high school, college, and semi-pro ball; then on to "fast pitch" softball and finally "slow pitch" softball (kinda like going from birth to death wherein at the final stage, you not only can't play anymore but someone else has to help you go to the bathroom?)!

    During this process, I can never forget "Casey at the Bat", i.e., poetry that I always assumed every high schooler had to read just like every college kid had to read "Catcher in the Rye"?  Significant was the line "There is no joy in Mudville, Mighty Casey has struck out" (or something like that? Hell - I'm not going to do any internet research like I had to do with Robert Sevice and the "shooting of Dan McGrew").

    Suffice to say while there probably is resounding joy in "Cleveland" over the alleged "overwhelming" passage of this non-agreement, 70% of the membership have spoken in plain terms - I cannot or will not vote for this agreement!  The "theory" that everyone that didn't vote supported the agreement is as viable as 21%  outvoting 7%  is an "overwhelming majority" !  One would hope the UTU, based upon this voter turnout, will give up their "scam" that there should be an "A Card" Vote on the KCS, obviously leading to "decertification" of both unions!

Not to worry, no vote will ever happen and of course it has nothing to do with whether BLE and IBT merge!  The UP panel decision is "solid" from three (3) respected neutrals and it will not be overturned in favor of UTU's specious averment that all Class I's need to be treated the same as short lines!   (YO - Monty - I give you a better chance of making "precedent" that a District Judge has no jurisdiction pursuant to 45 U.S. C. § 153(q) than getting a vote on the KCS!)! Opps, I forgot that you already won that one in District Court?  Now site your victory the next time out and see if any federal judge with give up his authority as easily as "Petie" did?*     * Please note that it is not expected that normal union members other than designated legal counsel (they still do have to be a union member of a local?) or high ranking union officers will understand this comment!

While there may be "JOY" in Cleveland (both UTU and BLE hierarchy), there is no joy throughout the land as concerns the UTU and BLE membership who still rightfully fear any agreement that allows everything to be determinded at a "later date" and all subject to "binding arbitration"! 

The "TRUTH" is rather simple at this stage for the "drones", i.e. workers - we have an agreement which was passed by a small minority and we have no way of knowing how it will impact us other than our hierarchy says "it's the best agreement in 30 years"?  The question in every workers mind is will you proove that statement correct before you ask us to re-elect you in Miami in August next year?