Former British army general Walter Walker put it best way back in 1981 when he said, "Britain has invented a new missile. It's called the civil servant - it doesn't work and it can't be fired."

A bit harsh? Perhaps.

But it was brought to mind at the conclusion of two lengthy, costly and smelly civil service strikes, one in Windsor, settled a little while back, and one in Toronto, settled late last week.

There was a time, not that long ago, when taking a job in the public "service" actually meant being hired first and foremost to "serve" the taxpaying Despite the bravado of pro-union Toronto Mayor David Miller - and much of the city's NDP counsellors - the two striking unions ended up getting everything they wanted.

Or, as the old country song went, the unions got the gold mine; the taxpayers got the shaft.

At a time when Toronto in particular, and Ontario in general, were among the hardest hit areas in the country during the ongoing recession, the public service unions had absolutely no qualms about using their power to hold the country's biggest city to ransom in their insatiable desire to feather their own cozy nests.

At a time when private sector unions - witness the auto unions - faced reality and accepted large cutbacks in pay and benefits in order to preserve as many jobs as possible, the public service unions in Toronto went full-speed ahead in demanding not only pay hikes - which they got - but in keeping their gold-plated sick pay plan, which allows employs to bank up to 18 sick days a year and receive up to six months pay for them upon retirement.

Few, if any, private sector employees enjoy such a perq. And Miller had vowed to put an end to it on the grounds that - in his own words - the city just can't afford such luxuries any more.

Well, guess what? A funny thing happened during nearly six weeks of striking - with Miller and his fellow travelers doing everything they could to facilitate the union - and the mayor even had the gall to announce that the controversial sick pay banking system was history.

In fact, all the deal does is assure that new employees won't get it. But all those 30,000 striking workers will get it as long as they are on the public payroll.

Your correspondent has always believed - and the Windsor and Toronto strikes reinforce the believe - that public servants should not be allowed to strike, period.

It's one thing for private sector unions to strike. It's one legitimate weapon they have to use against their employers.

But the difference between private and public is that when private sector unions strike the public a)- has not been paying their wages and b)- is not being held to ransom and c)-has other alternatives to get the service involved.

If, let's say, Ford goes on strike and their cars aren't available, well then, you can buy a Chrysler or a Honda.

But if the city goes on strike, you can't hire a garbage collector or grass cutter or bureaucrat to provide the service you pay taxes to enjoy. It's a monopoly situation. And it shouldn't be legal. What's more, because it's a monopoly, and because public servants know it is virtually impossible to be fired - and they don't have to worry about being competitive or their "company" going broke - most publicly supplied services are less efficient than private services.

Not all. But most.

In Etobicoke, for example, a part of Toronto, they do have private garbage collection. Their employees earn less and are more efficient, saving taxpayers there an estimated 20 percent compared to the rest of Toronto which is dependent upon the public garbage collectors.

Yet during the strike, Miller and his pals consistently looked the other way as striking union thugs interfered with Toronto citizens at designated garbage dump spots, while at the same time sending bylaw officers out to charge people who got frustrated by the forced wait times or were idling their car while waiting in the line to pass the unionimposed pickets.

Public servants always go on about how much they care about their public - whether it's teachers going on strike, or nurses, or garbage collectors, you name it - but when it comes down to it, they don't hesitate to use their monopoly powers to hold their public to ransom until their demands are met.

It's time we smartened up and banned ALL public sector strikes.