Strike Halts New York Subways and Buses

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/20/nyregion/nyregionspecial3/20cnd-strike.html?hp&ex=1135141200&en=76117d48a59c9e0c&ei=5094&partner=homepage

i guess it's strategic on behalf of the union to strike one week before christmas when everyone would be doing their last minute holiday shopping.

personally i'm not pro- or anti-union but in this case (not because i'm feeling incovenienced) i feel that the union's demands are quite unreasonable. essentially it seems as they want a cut of the momentary surplus that the MTA finds itself with. what they are asking are for permanent increases in wages and improvements in their health care. commonsense will tell you that this will leave the MTA in serious future debt as this year's surplus is transient and is most likely not recurring.

ironically, i think everyone will lose out with the strike. the loss of tax revenue, cost of increased police patrol, loss revenue to businesses, etc will surely outweigh the MTA's surplus. happy holidays, huh?