Have the Wisconsin wage slaves figured out that forming a band of brothers and sisters is better than listening to Fox News and electing people who want to destroy their financial way of life? If so, maybe this would be the reason union membership is up in Wisconsin. After Wisconsin workers saw the third largest decline in the nation in 2012, it is now seeing the seventh largest gains in membership from 11.25 percent to 12.34. This surprised even the unions because many believed corruptness of the state’s governor and his Koch-backed minion had essentially destroyed the unions in Wisconsin.
Does this also mean that the wage slaves have figured out that taking the high ground to do battle is the way to win, which is putting pressure on the anti-union elected officials and electing people who believe in the cause and will not worry about losing their next election to the anti-union GOP opponents? If there is no candidate who fits that explanation, then put your money and energy into building a larger band of brothers and sisters into an army of educated fighters for all workers, whether union or not. If we win this fight, we all win, even the lowest paid workers.
The Wisconsin unions changed how they did business by organizing instead of lobbying. These union leaders saw that lobbying is just shoving money into the pockets of politicians, who then vote against them using the excuse they had to vote the way their constituents wanted them to. What they were really saying is that union members aren’t their constituents, but big money is.
Stop looking down on the ‘have nots,’ and instead, give them a hand up, support the $15 to $16 an hour minimum wage for there is a very large body of people there who should be include in the band of brothers and sisters. Don’t forget there is a wage inequality war going on and the wage slaves must use all resources available to them to win, and keeps the offense moving forward for higher wages and to protect what little we have left.
Maybe what is happening in Wisconsin is a start that will motivate wage slaves in other states to take a stand against GOP tyranny and try to take the high ground (Art of War) and move out of the low swamp ground. If Wisconsin can do it, any state can do it. Remember the state’s governor went after public employees shortly after getting elected after he promised he wouldn’t. Don’t trust politicians just because they say what you want to hear, and for righteous sake don’t vote for them or contribute to their campaigns and ensure your unions don’t either. This is a fight for our livelihoods. Don’t think that because a candidate has a “D” after their name they support you; Blue Dog Democrats are just as bad as Republicans. So keep your money and your union’s money out of politics and use it to fight back against the oppression.
The survival of American democracy requires the existence of a flourishing union work force. In a survey, 68 percent of Americans approve of labor unions. So, as an old sheet metal organizer, I say we need to go all out in organizing while the soldering iron is hot, to use a sheet metal workers tool. We should organize all workers no matter where or what kind of work they do. All workers have the right to belong to a union and all should support each other. If you, in your work place, do not know how to form a union, then do what Napoleon’s military adopted adage, ‘Jump into the battle and then figure it out.’ One of the best ways to organize is worker to worker and plan it out over a meal or coffee and talk to other union workers to see what would work best for you and also what unions are winning at this time. Just go for it. When things are in disarray, like the shit show in Washington, D.C., they might not even know what you are doing until it is too late for them to push back aga...
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