The history of the labor movement keeps running through my head as I read this thread. I also can't help but contrast worker conditions and protections in West Virginia, where labor unions have been strong to those in North Carolina where I now live, and where workers have few protections. It is, and always has been a "right to work' state. The rise of the labor movement in this country was the result of the big industrialists treating most of the labor force as nothing but a commodity. The rise of the great middle class after World War II was largely the result of the unions securing living wages and improved working conditions for millions of blue collar workers. The 'great capitalists' largely were content to treat the labor force like dirt until they were forced to change. And societal responsibility to the individual as being supportive of the collective good was a national value that developed out of the labor movement.
    The pendulum swings. The unions became big businesses themselves, and many union leaders were just as currupt as many corporate leaders. And the world changed. Third world countries on their way up the capitalist economy ladder became able to effectively compete with the American and European labor forces. Their workers and their environments weren't and aren't afforded the same protections, so they can work and produce 'on the cheap.' Globalization caught the labor movement unprepared. Instead of trying to encourage decent labor practices abroad, they relied on protectionism and shot themselves in the foot. It would have been in the enlightened best interests of the labor movement to have encouraged and supported workers abroad to organize as their industries grew.
    Now the unions have lost much of their power and effectiveness as technology and cheap overseas labor have reduced our own labor force.
    And the 'great capitalists' of today--the huge multinational corportations and their CEO's, once again view the common man as a disposable commodity. They again have pretty much full control of our national government. And you see what is happening.
   
Janie