By Walter E. Bader.
Politicians, political appointees, bureaucrats, labor leaders, the MSM media elite, and others have the inclination and resources to self-congratulate and fawn over one another for whatever reasons they do those things. Meanwhile, the real people who live their lives, work hard, raise families, and make valuable contributions to their community simply do not care about rubber chicken affairs, political banquets or awards ceremonies. Yet, these people, individually and collectively, work hard and most definitely affect people’s lives at the most basic and important levels.
Therefore, I nominate the Average Worker who lives or works in our community. (I cast all ten votes for the Average Worker.)
Who is more important and has more of an influence on our lives (and on whether we will live or die) than the medical doctor, nurse, EMT or paramedic, police officer, the high power lineman?
Who has more influence on our children and the quality of this County’s future workforce than the teacher, teacher aide, librarian, or parent?
Who is most important when we are building or repairing our houses than the carpenter, plumber, electrician, or other skilled craftsman or laborer?
Who is more important in building our infrastructure than the construction worker, engineer, safety worker, or equipment operator?
We tend to take for granted the hospice worker, trash collector, mortician, street sweeper, highway maintenance worker until we need them. When we do, it is often a personal emergency or matter of public health and safety.
Congress takes recesses, the state legislature meets for only 90 days each year and the County Council meets in legislative session about once a week and takes long breaks. County managers take off on vacations and get County holidays off. Meanwhile the community depends on the Average Worker being on the job and cannot wait two weeks for a trash pickup, police response, fire truck or ambulance, water main break repair, or emergency surgery.
I think we are all more influenced by the competence and dedication of the average worker than we are by others who may make the list.
Walter E. Bader is the Immediate Past President of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 35.