In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt won the presidency during the Great Depression. People were looking for bold leadership and that’s what’s happening now. Roosevelt’s New Deal was a package of reforms to rescue capitalism from collapse and thwart rising labor militancy from growing into independent working class political action.
The Have Nots now have a long needed leader in Bernie Sanders, who has devoted his entire life for the betterment of the working class so it perplexes me as to why union members would support Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. Though we can’t blame Clinton for her husband’s policies, such as NAFTA, mainly because she has enough baggage of her own.
Unlike her opponent Sanders, Clinton supported the Iraq invasion, Wall Street bailout, authorizing the Patriot Act twice in 2001 and 2006, supports TPP, which is considered worse than NAFTA, offshore drilling that is killing our oceans, and Foreign U.S. Military intervention that is bankrupting our economy. Her top donors include Walmart, Big Banks, Monsanto, Goldman Sachs and lobbying firms. Together, the Clinton, instituted mass incarceration of our black male population, which assisted in the rise of killer cops. Clinton had to return money donated to her campaign by the private prison industry.
Now, I know each should have their own voice, but at least have an informed voice and sometimes they must realize their leaders are dumb as a post. Remember when Bill Clinton signed NAFTA, the unions were mad as hell until Clinton invited the leaders of the unions to dinner at the White House. Once he was done blowing smoke up their collective asses, the union leaders thanked him.
The unions are falling for the old smoke again, only this time it is Hillary Clinton and Trump blowing the smoke. Sanders is our only hope for workers and the 99 percent here and the world over.
Look at what is going on right now: tiered wage system, steel workers fighting Technologies Inc, 2,200 workers represented by Unite Steel Workers Local 7139-5. The company wants to cut wages for new hires, which splits the union. California workers at the Olivet International Co. replaces full-time workers with temp workers. The Greek oligarchies are still sticking it to the Greek workers. The government is forcing farmers to live on $2,250 a year.
These things are happening now when capitalism’s profits are soaring. It looks like 2016 will be a make or break year for the U.S. and the world.
So, it’s up to you, the voter, to decide the fate of this country. Do you want more of the same or are you ready for change and a share of the pie? Vote for Sanders and let us hope Elizabeth Warren comes out to help with the other Sanders' supporters.
Yes, they are coming for us. Workers need to have one another’s backs because no one else will. Neither the broader labor movement nor the Democratic party are prepared to meet the urgency of this moment. So it’s going to fall upon the rest of us to mount a real resistance against Trump’s authoritarian takeover. We’re going to have to get our hands dirty. I don’t care if you have a good, well-paying union job and you are in the middle class now—if you see a worker being dragged out of his workplace regardless of how skilled the job and potentially taken to another country, you should be ready to be there for that worker. When I.C.E. shows up, gather around and shame them into leaving. It has worked in other places. America is sleep walking into authoritarianism, and if there’s anyone out there who is a member of a labor union that is safe—at this point— and doesn’t think this applies to them. Understand that they just haven’t gotten to you yet. They’re coming for all of us. There are ...
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