The LTC Strike

Those tyrants. Those imbeciles! Those fat, donut-eating, coffee drinking slobs who drive the city buses have finally settled. And what did they settle for? That's a good question. Since it hasn't been in the news as much as it should be, I imagine they agreed to something different than what they went on strike for. With all of that, the question remains, why did you go on strike if you ended up short? It's like sliding into home base when you're still four feet short of the mound. Then you look like a complete moron for the attempt, and an even bigger moron/asshole for the finality of the "steal". You heard me right. The Steal was where it all began. These pricks thinking they had the ability to go on strike for something. Whatever that something was, it wasn't worth going on strike for because if it was, they would have gotten it. Wouldn't they? Of course.

Here's the real reason the London City Transit Commission decided to stop striking: it was simply getting too cold out there for them to continue their little game. They thought they would have the city at their knees, but we stayed strong. They thought their bitching and moaning would be heard by Christmas, but it was them who were at their knees. Praying while on frozen broom sticks that never melt. At the end, even their strike wasn't good enough for them. They buckled, they cried, they screamed. The whole thing was a joke, and it left the people in London with a very bad taste in their mouth.

I can't understand, in the current economic situation, how anyone would go on strike. I personally am not affected by the poor economy, but it is clear and evident that thousands (yes, THOUSANDS) of families in Ontario and Canada are below poverty level. There are families right now applying for low-rate jobs and making a quarter of what they were making two years ago simply because factories and organizations are being forced to either introduce mass lay-offs, or close all together.

So naturally someone who makes well over twenty dollars an hour whose job it is to simply drive a bus on a carefully organized route should go on strike. That is a slap in the face of every mother and father who are desperately seeking employment, and getting around the city by the best and most economically viable means necessary. If the people of London truly supported the bus strike, then there would not have been offers online for free rides on Kijiji to those who needed them. Why take the bus in the first place if you can get the ride for free? It was amazing to see the good will of our city.

I see a few options that the LTC can move on with in order to right the wrong of this completely unnecessary strike. To save the face of city bus drivers, the first thing in order is to admit that the strike was a farce. If they admit that they acted like children, then they might be able to grow up to respectful adults. Second, cut the bus fare down 75 cents. If it is cheaper to take the bus, more people will take it, and see that there is an aplogy for the inconvenience this whole mess caused. Parents who are out of jobs that would have picked up the bus driving responsibilities for half the wage will be able to afford taking the bus again. For the money everyone must have spent on taxis over the last two months, a cut in bus fare is not too much to ask. Third, before we even implement the cut in bus fares, the month of January should see a fare-free bus operating schedule. This will bring everyone back on board to taking the bus in the first place. Getting on the bus would be faster, and there would be less reason to say hello or acknowledge the same animals that decided to take the public transit system away from us temporarily in the first place.

Shame on the LTC. Shame on the union that exists for such unnecessary strikes to happen in the first place. In a city such as London, where the public transit system is so vital to our economy and well being, a strike never should have happened. City workers should feel humble and honoured to service the people who ultimately pay for their dinners and roofs over their head. It is our taxes that give them their pay cheque. The fact that the bus drivers of London, Ontario are also tax paying citizens should be enough of a wake up call that their strike was completely unnecessary, and the exact opposite of a just cause.