There was encouraging news last week in the effort to rein in government spending and the huge deficits our nation faces.

In Wisconsin, the voters rejected a union-backed recall of the governor who instituted reforms necessary to address billion dollar deficits caused by decades of unrealistic deals made with public unions. Even more surprisingly, in California, voters in San Diego and San Jose voted overwhelmingly to reduce the public union contracts that were bankrupting those cities. In San Jose, the changes passed 70 percent to 30 percent after the Democratic mayor called the overhaul of public pensions "his highest priority."

It seems obvious to me taxpayers won't continue to support benefits for government workers that are far more generous than those the taxpayers themselves receive. The 2011 Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics figures show in the private sector, workers average $8.53 per hour in benefits and pensions. For government employees, that number is $14.31 per hour. That's right; taxpayers receive less than 60 percent of the pensions and benefits when compared to their counterparts in government.

The public employee unions have negotiated unsustainable contracts that are far more generous than those received by the taxpayers who must pay the bill. History shows us that this should have been foreseen.

Before the first public union was created in 1959, George Meany, president of the AFL-CIO, and Franklin D. Roosevelt, one of our most liberal presidents, both warned against public unions. George Meany stated that, "It is impossible to bargain collectively with the government." FDR said that when government unions strike, they strike against taxpayers and this is "unthinkable and intolerable." So it was not that long ago that even liberals recognized that this was a bad idea.

When politicians negotiate with government workers, there is no incentive to insist on deals that make sense. Politicians figure they can just raise taxes on the citizens or, more commonly, just ignore the problems that won't surface for decades. After all, they will be long gone when the results of their bad deals must be faced. Unfortunately, we are now living in the time when those bad deals must be addressed.

Another point that needs to be repeated is that jobs, prosperity and wealth are created by businesses - not by the government. All government does is take the fruits of people's hard work through taxes, funnel that money through the government bureaucracy - wasting a large portion of it - and then passing out what is left to those who the current politicians in power feel are worthy.

If more government is the answer, we should be living through unsurpassed boom times, since government spending has exploded the past 10 years. Is the answer to our problem really just more government? Our model of limited government and free enterprise has produced the freest, richest country in history, and has been the envy of the world for a century. How some can argue we should change what has been successful and try what has been less successful everywhere else, is beyond me.

Here in Idaho, this battle continues with three union-sponsored ballot measures coming this fall to overturn the recent reforms made by Idaho lawmakers. If places like California and Wisconsin have supported changes to union contracts the public is no longer willing to support, I'm optimistic that here in fiscally responsible Idaho, voters too will reject the union-led recalls.

With the federal government now $16 trillion in debt, and state and local governments also drowning in unfunded obligations, we got a bit of good news last week that our nation desperately needed. It is up to us, the taxpayers, to be vigilant and remind the government they work for us and are not our masters.

It is also up to us to decide what the government does and how much we are willing to pay them to do it.

Eric McGilp is a semi-retired IT professional, who now fills his days raising organic grass-fed beef, blueberries and heirloom fruits and vegetables on a 130-acre ranch.

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Source: Associated Press