Haters vs. Critics

One of the more difficult things about adopting a left-leaning but essentially reformist stance on K-12 education is that you end up arguing with teachers unions a lot, not because you're anti-union, but because teachers unions are the most influential and vocal representatives of the existing education establishment that you're trying to reform. There's a world of difference between criticizing the policy positions that teachers unions adopt and hating the idea of unions generally. I think The Quick and the Ed can be fairly described as having a healthy amount of the former and absolutely none of the latter.

Even so, I'm regularly challenged to pre- or re-establish my pro-labor credentials as the price of questioning the wisdom of some standard union position or NEA talking point. It's tedious, particularly for someone who spent his whole career before coming to Ed Sector working for Democratic politicians and non-profits that advocate for low-income children. But then people like these idiots come along with their "Ten Worst Union Protected Teachers" contests and other sundry insulting tactics, ensuring that my tedium will continue into the foreseeable future.

Reasonable people understand the distinction (although with too many caveats, c'mon); people who are pretty much just as unhinged as their critics don't. As AFTie John notes, the vlog in question hilariously blames teachers unions for promoting standardized tests and accountability, which is kind of like complaining about the AARP's nefarious plan to privatize Social Security.