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Andy & The Unions, Again And Again

By Alexander Russo — January 29, 2007 1 min read
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I frankly don’t get what Eduwonk Andy gets out of banging so hard and long (and at times unreasonably) on the teachers unions, especially the AFT, as he seems to be doing again these days (with what little time he seems to have for blogging).

His latest play, citing the support of other noneducation bloggers, might seem at first to be a sign of self-importance or a way of “settling” an argument, but it doesn’t really have that effect -- who cares what Alterman says -- and has some of the feel of bringing in the calvary (or your big brother). This is far from the first time Andy and the Union have gone at it: The AFT Blog & Eduwonk: Fire At Will!

And it’s not the first time, either, that I’ve made the case that Andy making a permanent enemy out of the teachers unions doesn’t do him personally -- or the Ed Sector -- any long term good, politically or practically: Ed Sector, The Unions, & Eduwonk

Some might guess that Andy is sacrificing himself against the union barricades to create some sort of brave new education paradigm. But I find that hard to imagine. Others might say he’s simply playing to his Republican supporters, which is a possibility -- Republicans sort of like Andy the way that Democrats sort of like Mike Petrilli (who may well be a Democrat underneath it all).

But I suspect that it’s simple fiestiness on Andy’s part that keeps this going, not any grand plan or tactical maneuvering. Which is fine, of course -- if you’re a pajama-clad blogger, or an Italian soccer player. And we all know where that ends up: Head Butt!

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