Might I suggest that a HUGE loss in these modern flush times, in the U.S.A at least, is the loss of the EIGHT HOUR DAY !!! Labor fought for it so very hard and long and so many were beaten and bitten and died for it. The bomb went off at Chicago's HAY MARKET just to secure it "for us all?" ! How the hell, in the last decade or so, did we allow it to get away from us? Where is "time and a half" for overtime? Where is the right to decline overtime if we'd rather have the valuable free time with our families or whatever??

To me the decline began when Raegan busted the air traffic controllers union when they were on strike. It was a bunch of folks who were actually white-collar trying their hand at a blue-collar task---a serious strike. They didn't have the cajones for it. Raegan knew they were wimps and hit 'em hard. That victory gave him momentum to go after a real blue-collar giant union---the U.S. postal employees and their strike. Now bosses routinely ask people to work 16 hour days. What has happened to the value of time to relax --- time to enjoy the money they say everyone is now earning? I'm on disability now and am out of the loop. Yeah, money is out there, but when cars cost $30,000.00 how can anyone afford to drive --let alone buy a house. Mick or someone---please enlighten me what the hell's gone down here?

Art Thieme