Why the Catholic Church's Full Teaching On Unions Should Be Followed

In the last few months there has been a lot of screaming every time talk of putting limits on unions has come up. Among the socialist, leftist, Catholic in Name Only gang you hear the refrain about how the Catholic Church approves of unions. & while that is true as far as it goes, what they fail to mention is that, while saying people have the right to form or join a union if they want, that the Catholic Church also puts out some guidlines on what is or isn't proper behavior for the unions.

Paragraphs 305-305 of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church (taken mostly from Laborem Exercens) list these guidlines. 1 of those guidelines found in Par 306 says that unions "must overcome the temptation of believing that all workers should be union-members". In short, they are not to force people into joining them who don't want to. Fortunately Iowa has an open shop law to prevent this from happenning. But not every state has these laws to protect the workers from union thuggery being used to bully them into joining the union. & in Michigan the law goes even one step further. It has being used by the SEIU to force a Michigan couple to join. The couple cares for their 2 adult children with cerebral palsy at home rather that putting them in an institution. The Michigan law defines them as "home health care workers" & that they must join the union.

Now, the SEIU is using that law to make them join. They are taking the money that the family needs to care for the children & using it to enrich their coffers. Remember this is the same SEIU that has been known to use thuggery to silence those that opposed ObamaCare. (Obama's SEIU Blueshirts, & They Call Us Violent) & you can be sure that some of that money will go to cement their unholy ties with Obama & the Democratic party, another violation of Catholic teaching. "Unions do not, however, have the character of “political parties” struggling for power, and they should not be forced to submit to the decisions of political parties nor be too closely linked to them. “In such a situation they easily lose contact with their specific role, which is to secure the just rights of workers within the framework of the common good of the whole of society; instead they become an instrument used for other purposes”. (par 307 emphasis mine)

Yes, I totally uphold what the Catholic Church says about people who want to having the right to join a union. But I also uphold the rest of what the Catholic Church teaches as well, that unions cannot force people to join either. & what is happenning in Michigan is clearly a violation of Catholic Church teaching & is thus totally wrong. All these parents want to do is give their children the loving care they deserve. They are capable of doing it in the best environment possible, their home. So they should be applauded, not punished for doing so.

 If the SEIU (or any other union) can get away with this then what next, forcing every stay at home parent to join?  It could happen. After all, before now how many people ever thought that a law would be passed creating this situation? Yet, it has. So, who is to stop them from taking that next step should they want to?

In the end, this is an attack on the family. The latest in many attacks we have seen with the attempts to redefine marriage etc. This is not about the right to join a union, it is about the rights of parents to raise & care for their children. It is about having a healthy society where the God given rights to life, liberty & the pusuit of happiness are recongized by the government. Not a government that sees itself as the source of our rights as we have seen time after time in socialist political systems. (& may I remeind you that the Catholic Church condemns socialism.)

While abortion is the most important issue today, issues like this are related. The 2012 election is important. We must work to get candidates nominated that will uphold the rights of all human beings. & then we must work to get them elected. If not, well, the last few years under Obama & teh Dems shows us the disaterous way we are heading. & it isn't towards freedom, but into a new dictatorship like we saw in the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, Fasict Italia & elsewhere. & we know how disasterous they were.

Source:SEIU Loots Parents Who Care for Disabled Children