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The President is calling on all citizens to participate in our nation’s recovery and renewal by serving in our communities. Well, everyone but the Boy Scouts:

In pursuit of an Eagle Scout badge, Kevin Anderson, 17, has toiled for more than 200 hours hours over several weeks to clear a walking path in an east Allentown park.

Little did the do-gooder know that his altruistic act would put him in the cross hairs of the city’s largest municipal union.

Nick Balzano, president of the local Service Employees International Union, told Allentown City Council Tuesday that the union is considering filing a grievance against the city for allowing Anderson to clear a 1,000-foot walking and biking path at Kimmets Lock Park.

“We’ll be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails,” Balzano told the council.

HT to my friend Andy N. I will give the unions a little credit on this one for consistency. Throughout their history they have abhorred any low wage competition. One reason unions support raises in the minimum wage is not because they particularly care about low wage workers (they do not – in fact union wages are far higher than the minimum wage). Nope. The reason for it is that when you raise the price of low-wage non-union workers, it reduces the relative cost of hiring union workers – in other words, it improves their competitive position. So at least they are consistent by “looking into” the nefarious actions of the Eagle Scout.

This is par for the course for unions however. What is less obvious is why “we” as Americans believe that no worker should be paid less than the minimum wage (nor do we allow people that WANT to work for less to actually do it), but at the same time, we allow people to work for 100% less than the minimum wage. It is not OK for me to take a job paying $6 per hour, but somehow it is OK to take a job paying me $0 per hour. On what principle do you hold both views? Because volunteers are just trying to get experience so that they could move up later in life? Then does that not also apply to minimum wage work? Is it because volunteer work is not producing anything at all of value? If that’s the case then why would the union guys want that work? Are they serious that we should be paying for things that are not worth anything? Sorry, but we’ve done enough of that at GM.

Anyhow, I wonder what the union thugs plan on doing after they investigate this vicious Eagle Scout? Does that language not constitute a threat? Am I the only person that finds this repulsive?

4 Responses to “Evil Job Killing Eagle Scouts”

  1. Harry says:

    What a post! So many ideas, too little time.

    For the two others that follow this blog, namely, Wintercow and Speedmaster, let me applaud Wintercow for posting a story from the Lehigh Valley, golf heaven, where Wintercow and his herd kindly helped me run my hole.

    This must be perplexing to Speedmaster, with Witercow having referenced volunteer work. I have the evidence of Wintercow doing volunteer work, even as his wife Rachel watched his children.

    Mike, your analysis of the above is correct, as usual.

    Best wishes.l

    H

  2. Michael says:

    Not to mention that it is possible to work at a lot of places for $0/hr when we call it an internship, but you cannot intern anywhere; it cannot be McDonald’s. (http://www.janhelfeld.com/shop/interview/pelosi/)

  3. wintercow20 says:

    Just think of all the paid jobs I destroyed by volunteering to help you on hole 8. And just think of how much danger I put the spectators in because I was not union trained and certified to follow the flight of a golf-ball or to properly wind and unwind rope to do gallery control.

  4. […] But how could the government stand for this in “our” parks? Is it not the case that all of these old volunteers are doing jobs that are more rightfully done by union workers? […]

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