The Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC)--the state's teacher union--has a reputation as an attack dog, having its way in the state's public schools.

George Lightbourn, of the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, says that's an outdated image: "The reality is that WEAC retains little of the confrontational union that ran the show in the halls of the Capitol in Madison and in school board rooms throughout Wisconsin. The reality is that the WEAC of today looks much less a Rottweiler and much more a Poodle."

On the other hand, some things haven't changed: "it is likely that ducks will learn calculus before even the new WEAC backs away from their opposition to parental choice." In other words, the union has changed its image and even its tactics, but not its goals.

The conclusion: "the rise of the new WEAC could possibly change the face of Wisconsin politics and government in ways that no one can predict. A perceptive yard sign for today might read: Fear the Poodle."