Another victory for tyrannical despots. Another defeat for democracy.What am I referring to? On March 1, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill cleverly misnamed the “Employee Free Choice Act of 2007.”

The act boils down to this: All that is needed to “unionize” is to present a petition signed by a majority of employees who aren’t represented by a union, and they’re unionized.

No election. No voting. No secret ballots. “Poof!” The employees of So & So unit are now members of Local XXX of Such & Such Union.

Rhode Island’s own “Congressmen for Life” Jim Langevin and Patrick Kennedy voted for this!

What’s next? I’m sure lifetime politicians such as Langevin and Kennedy savor the notion that they could do away with involving themselves in something as trivial as elections and secret ballots. Get a simple majority of voters to openly sign a petition for them to remain in Congress, skip the election, and they’re certified the victor. Why waste time and effort with elections and secret ballots?

The cornerstone of our democracy in the United States, up until now, has been the freedom to vote in an election on a secret ballot. Yet these self-styled “Democrats” voted against our democracy. They should change the name of their party to Despotcrats.

James Madison, the fears you and others wrote about in the Federalist Papers are coming true.

WILLIAM J. GREENAWAY

Cranston

I was extremely disappointed to learn that Democratic Mayor Michael T. Napolitano has fired the city’s longtime labor lawyer, Vincent F. Ragosta Jr., under the guise of a financial saving.

Mr. Ragosta is the preeminent management side labor lawyer in the state and has negotiated labor contracts and litigated employment issues for numerous municipalities and even the state. In fact, he has been hired by Democrat and Republican administrations alike. One preeminent legal publication, Martindale Hubbell, has recognized his accomplishments by giving him its highest rating based upon his legal ability and high ethical standard.