"I'm not much different from Andrew Cuomo. I probably agree with him on 98% of the issues."
-- Chris Christie (R), quoted by the Glen Falls Chronicle, in a conversation with a union organizer.
Cuomo and Christe are so alike, they're like blood brothers.
Like Bruce and Miami Steve.
They're both beholden to Wall Street, they both have cut taxes on wealthy people in order to increase the cost of living on working people, they both hate unions, they both hate teachers, they both want to privatize the school system, they both like frackers (although Cuomo is having to dance a little more lightly than Christie on that, make no mistake, Cuomo likes frackers), they both have presidential ambitions, they're both bullies, they're both thin-skinned whenever anybody gives it back to them, and they're both ego maniacs.
So I agree, Christie and Cuomo are 98% alike.
Which is why I don't understand why the UFT would decide that Andrew Cuomo should be the independent arbitrator between NYC teachers and Mayor Bloomberg on the teacher evaluation issue.
Unfortunately for NYC teachers, Michael Mulgrew and the UFT braintrust (such as it is) do not agree.
Giving Andrew Cuomo the power to impose teacher evaluations is like giving Chris Christie the power to impose teacher evaluations.
That's the reality.
And it will end badly for NYC teachers.
The UFT leadership with their perks and double pensions and jobs that keep them out of classrooms most of the time, really don't care about that.
All they care about is maintaining their power and their privileges at the expense of the rank and file.
That's why they pursue these polices - ones they know doubt see as politically expedient ones - and shrug off the consequences.
But we who work every day in NYC public school classrooms will be living with these consequences for a long time to come.
Remember that when you're getting ready to vote in the UFT elections.
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