Yes, somehow the word “union” has been made into some sort of horrible, dark word with “socialist” overtones by the Tea Party Republicans. A union implies unity. Unity means working together for a perceived good cause. That good towards which people are working together becomes the Common Good, hence “community.” There is NOTHING wrong with working together for a good cause — it’s the best way. It’s what has made any actual human progress happen. I know people who are into union-bashing, because it’s fashionable, and because “news” “outlets” like Fox News are into it, but if you look around, and see that we have a five-day working week, vacation time, family leave, medical compensation, healthcare, good roads, good schools, good public utilities, etc., it’s always been done by people who work hard, and who are represented by strong unions. Of course, like ANYTHING else in the world, there are good versions of unions, and imperfect versions. That is not a reason to scrap unions. That’s like saying, “So-and-so is a bad mother and a woman, therefore all women are bad mothers.”