In the upcoming Racine Fourth of July parade, Wisconsin firefighter Matt Gorniak wants to enter his parade float honoring firefighters and cops killed on Sept. 11, 2001. One problem — Gorniak has availed himself of a little-used contract provision that allows him to opt out of membership in the firefighters’ union. Thus, the union has set out to punish him for his transgression, voting to boycott his float. According to Dan Bice of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
The same float — a re-enactment of the famous photo of three firefighters raising the American flag amid the rubble of the World Trade Center — created a rush of emotions as it passed through three parade routes in Milwaukee County back in 2002. Crowds spontaneously rose to their feet, offering thunderous applause.
With the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks coming up later this year, Gorniak and his church’s youth group decided to revive the float in Racine’s upcoming Independence Day parade, one of the biggest in the area.
Unexpectedly, the request set off a debate among the leaders of the Racine firefighters union.
The problem: Gorniak had recently invoked a little-used provision in his union contract and opted out of membership in the Wisconsin State Firefighters Association.
Members of the executive board of the Racine firefighters union ultimately decided not to support or march with his float.
This week, the head of the union declined to discuss the decision.
“I really don’t have much of a comment on that,” said Craig Ford, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 321.
Other union leaders were also tight-lipped.
“I don’t feel it’s appropriate for me to make a comment,” said Mike DeGarmo, the union treasurer.
One Racine firefighter is disgusted by the union leadership’s decision.
Mike Gabbey, a veteran firefighter who also resigned from the union earlier this year, said most of his colleagues don’t even know what is going on with the parade float. But Gabbey predicted a huge backlash once word gets out.
“I’ve got to think most of the guys would agree with me: This has nothing to do with politics,” Gabbey said.
Gorniak has said his float will be in the parade, with or without support from his fellow firefighters.
typical union thuggery. All union members should be ashamed of their institution.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"“I’ve got to think most of the guys would agree with me: This has nothing to do with politics,” Gabbey said."
Oh dude, this has EVERYTHING to do with politics, because unions are ALL about politics.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"this" = the float not the Union actions
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseSad that they put loyalty to the union ahead of loyalty to fellow fire fighters who died on that fatefull day.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThis is one more union's public declaration that it's primary concern is doing what's best for union management, not what's best for its members or the community they are paid to serve. And it's proof that union management will take advantage of card check - or any similar regulation put in place by union-friendly Obama bureaucrats - to intimidate workers who don't want to be union members.
The Indiana Teachers Union made a similar declaration today when it sued the state (and taxpayers) to prevent any education funds from being diverted from the public schools where they work to private schools that low income students would like to attend, but can't afford to attend. Apparently, the only poor children these educators care about are the poor children who attend the schools where they work.
Indiana public school teachers believe it's acceptable for me and thousands of other Hoosiers who don't have children in the public school system to contribute tax dollars to public education, but it's unconstitutional to share a small portion of those tax dollars with children who want to attend private school, but can't afford to do so.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI love Indiana but I HATE unions. In my hometown of Anderson, IN, there used to be 65,000 union UAW workers who would strike almost every year for more. Now there are ZERO union UAW workers in Anderson. Yet they refuse to give a inch. Unions are an anachronism and are clearly a serious threat to our country.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAnd at the Ground Zero memorial, a handful of leftist intellectuals and academics and apologists for the terrorists have ruled out any authentic artifacts of the WTC that testifies to the attacks.
The flag raising that this float depicts? The memorial jury ruled out any depiction or acknowledgement of it - and will deny that the values it expressed are deserving of our honor or defense and sacrifice.
The design was chosen so no one will blame anybody for anything or exonerate America.
It will not recongize the victims as "innocent" or the terorists as "guilty."
It will not include the terms FDNY, NYPD and PAPD or the words "firefighter" and "police officer."
Nothing that we all remember and commemorated 9/11 by, the steel remnants of the towers, the damaged WTC Sphere - will be part of the memorial. The crushed fire trucks and the flyers of the missing will be hidden underground and out of sight - "in order" these self-involved intellectuals said, "to protect the integrity of the design."
The intent of this design - why it was chosen - is to eradicate all trace and memory of 9/11 and replace it with a monument to narcissism and moral ambiguity; values precious to the jury but absent 9/11.
On 9/11 my brother, Capt. William F. Burke, Jr., Eng. Co. 21 FDNY gave his life. I served on the family advisory committee on the memorial and the museum center to the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. Please see External Link
for more info. Contact me at savethesphere@gmail.com
Mike Burke
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHow could this happen? I am constantly told that liberals, and union leadership is definitely liberal, are much more tolerant than uber-partisan, racist, homo-phobe conservatives.
Of course, I am also constantly told that Islam is a religion of peace.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI can only imagine what would happen to a teacher in a similar situation who wanted to have a float showing a teacher in front of a blackboard actually teaching mathematics, as opposed to showing some 'new math' drivel. Oh wait, not a problem, the teacher's union members wouldn't know what they were looking at ;)
And yes, the Union's decision is disgusting. However, there is a silver lining; it will add another straw to the camel's back.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseSawdin, you are right. Do the union brass realize how foolish and petty they will look as the float goes past?
Can't remember the exact quote, but something like, "when your opponent is committing suicide, don't interfere."
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThis is yet another in an ever increasing list of examples of why public servants, specifically police, firefighters and EMS, should never, EVER be unionized. We have seen countless examples of actions or veiled threats by so called 'public servants' within their communities for non-supporters of unions.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe moment union politics trumps community, shared values, and the common good that is the moment they become an enemy of the people and should be treated accordingly. With any luck the community at large will go after the union and hold them in the contempt they so clearly deserve.
So not supporting a parade float is the same as "trying to block" it, as your headline states. And not supporting your own firefighters union is the best way to honor the heroic firefighters of 9/11. OK, got it.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe fact that you actually think thata supporting a union is actually a good way to show support for anything and anyone is just one more piece of evidence for how far unionists have fallen.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou are right, the story as written does not even imply the firefighter's union is seeking to block the float. Point to you. Now, can we both agree that the action is pointless, petty, and disgusting?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou're right - there's no "block."
And while I agree with you re: the union's actions, you won't get agreement from the commenter in question.
But you already knew that.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYOU miss the whole point. Supporting a public sector union of ANY kind, for ANY reason is only perpetuating the myth that union workers are somehow superior to non-union workers. They should ALL be disbanded and the employees required to re-apply for their jobs based solely on merit, not on who they are related to or how long long they've been nursing on the public teat!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThis is really quite simple to take care of. Everyone call local firehouses in Racine. Keep the phones ringing all day and night. You can simply ask if you can help with Mr. Gorniak's tribute to the fallen heros.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHow about this? Let's ask the Uniformed Firefighter's Association of New York (their union) what they think? Since this is about them and their sacrifice, wouldn't it be most appropriate to get their input? Like one comment said, let's get rid of public employee unions (like New Yorks, of course), so we can see how far we can lower the bar in pay and professionalism in the public service. As long as everyone is OK with the level of service that will be provided when firefighters, cops and EMTs making minimum wage show up to save your life or property, that's fine.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI was a firefigther paramedic for 20 years. I am now retired and after working under the union system for that amount of time I will tell you a thing or two about what they really stand for! Unions do nothing but obstruct progress hide the bad apples with the good ones and blow the legal fund on people who should have been canned decades ago. I have worked along with some the greatest people in the world and some the worst! Just by being unionized doesn't me you are bring the bar of standards any higher. What unionization really does, is it promotes a perpetual state mediocrity. Case in point: fireman A mops the floors cleans the truck does the station duties while fireman B sits in the day room and watches TV. The problem I have is Fireman B for some reason always got the same raise I got no matter how bad an employee he was! I have at least 50 examples I can tell you about unions and what they really do. This whole thing with the float is black balling this guy because he refuses to part of the rank and file of beating drums and telling everyone how unfair it is that we get free healthcare, pension, work 2 days a week, and make 70K a year along with 6 weeks paid vacation a floating holiday safety day and 12 paid holidays. Is this job dangerous sure it is you knew that going into it didn't you? Your choice your decision. And by the way 70% of the entire country is made up of volunteers.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThanks for your insightful comments. Much appreciated!
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