I've been far more damaged by current and former union "leaders" for standing up for my own employment rights and those of my colleagues than by "management," except in cases where such union officials aspire to or gain administrative positions themselves. The problem is further exacerbated by the ignorance far and wide on the part of teachers as to their own individual, professional, and collective employment rights and the contents of their own collective bargaining agreement that is meant to safeguard them. The result is that everyone runs and hides whenever there's a problem, or buries their head in the sand, hoping ti won't be them next.

The unions are weakened by nature of their own internal lack of democracy, and for those concerned about where their dues money is going, they need to begin with instilling democratic procedures in their own local. The NEA and the AFT are really no different – both sell their members down the river at every opportunity, locally and in terms of state and national policy. And yes, both of them want your money. The bottom line is that without effective representation, we are left with toxic environments to work in, because that's what we have right now, and that's not good…

The disturbing thing about Chanin is that he really doesn't believe in protecting teachers from a toxic work environment, and why should he – he's been a top union bureaucrat for decades. It's difficult enough teaching in today's public schools without the support of self-serving administrators. It's even more difficult with self-serving union bureaucrats who purport to be on your side but are not. It's impossible in at-will employment status where there need not even be a reason provided for getting rid of a good teacher. The only reason there are "bad" teachers out there is because of inept administration. The ideal is a cohesive, well-led learning community, where retaliation for 'asking too many questions' about best practices is not the modus operandi.

As for the proverbial "do nothing" teacher, the author overlooks the policy of ADMINISTRATORS transferring teachers out of the classroom to "do nothing" in what have been dubbed "rubber rooms" as a means of retaliation – often for challenging administrative policies or asking too many questions about best practices in education.

Finally, it's just unethical when unions solicit funding for nonpartisan local elections and then launder the money dollar-for-dollar with dues money which can legally be spent on such anyway, only to create a warchest fund for a predesignated national political party for partisan elections. It doesn't have to be that way – it can just as well be the case that members vote within their union for donations to national political parties to be allocated proportionally according to a vote of their members… and that the political parties be more than only two possible choices.

…All of which reflects the Marxist-Leninist thughish nature of Obama when advising: "If you bring a knife, we bring a gun…."

Those are the –relatively small but very well organized, funded and active– hardcore-Left minority of ruffians now well entrenched in all walks of life (i.e., governance, the Democrat Party, the media, academia, entertainment, finances, industry, the intelligentsia, organized labor, organized "liberation-theology" religion, etc.) sinking America in the abyss of socialism.

The N.E.A. and C.T.A. left me to become a union. By the way they got advice from community organizer Saul Alinsky on how to do it. This was a tragedy for education in America.

We need to restore freedom of choice and integrity to the teaching profession. We also need to get the facts by Understanding Unionism in Public Education and what it has done to the teaching profession. I retired in 1986 and have fought unionism for decades.

Industrial type unionism was never intended for public employess, least of all school teachers. Even Franklin Delano Roosevelt would turn over in his grave.

In California we have the Rodda Act of 1975. This collective bargaining law for union teachers was approved by Governor Jerry Brown. It was previously vetoed by Governor Reagan.

The Rodda Act has turned out to be a bonanza for the leftist control advocates. – muzzling, cloning and politicizing. If you are a conservative, libertarian, republican, christian or independent you could be in the closet with your views. That is wrong.

Union principles are an albatross around a teacher's neck.

Payroll deductions of dues should be allowed for the minority for they can become the majority by the votes yearly if necessary of independent common sense teachers. The education of our children has been short-changed with legalized unionism in public education. In February 2011, I posted some past letters on my blog George H. Kubeck.

If you are in West Virginia, please also see http://insectman.us/exodus-mandate-wv/index.htm.