Its just not right..

[_Jersey Girl]

What think ye of teacher unions?

[_moksha]

I agree but I think their time is past.

I think you are right. If they would only be willing to go back to sweatshops that paid enough to barely cover living in squalid conditions and work around 70 hours a week and have their children toil along side them, we could return to the age of the Robber Barons and have the beautiful few live in opulent luxury.

[_moksha]

It looks as though you are right about their time being past. I did, however, join my academics union.

None of this foolish public education in our brave new oligarchy. There of course would be academics to teach the children of the gentry at places like Harvard, but not on that other stuff. Back to the farms and the mills for these idle teachers.

[_Trevor]

I think you are right. If they would only be willing to go back to sweatshops that paid enough to barely cover living in squalid conditions and work around 70 hours a week and have their children toil along side them, we could return to the age of the Robber Barons and have the beautiful few live in opulent luxury.

We are headed there anyway. And the unions can do exactly nothing about it. This is what the global economy has accomplished.

[_Trevor]

None of this foolish public education in our brave new oligarchy. There of course would be academics to teach the children of the gentry at places like Harvard, but not on that other stuff. Back to the farms and the mills for these idle teachers.

Well, after all, the plebeians can learn about Jesus from their mommies at home, right? Who needs all of that higher reasoning crap when all you are suited for is manual labor anyway? There is, of course, nothing brave or new about this oligarchy.

[_Gazelam]

Here in Vegas, it is a union town. The labor here is organized, and we get good pay and good benefits from the Hotels. I don't work for the hotels myself, but I assist in building them. Sort of the same thing.

Do you think those casiono owners are hard up for cash? We have a steady bussiness plan for the next ten years for the continuous building of these hotels. I don't think Ceasars Palace has ever not been under construction.

And seriously, How hard up do you think the heads of Hersheys are? What would you guess is the average monthy income of these corporate heads? You think its difficult for them to dish out $1,100 dollars a week to their employees? And that's a generous number, they probably don't even make that.

So now they are going to move on down to mexico and pay their emplotees a whopping ten dollars an hour, if that. Since their employees are taking a pay cut, think the management will? Or do you think that hes gonna get a nice fat bonus for enginering this increase on the bottom line?

And I have to wonder, what type of insurance plan will be made available to the Mexican workers?

I know that without my insurance plan I get through my Union my wife could not afford her MS perscription since it costs $1,000 a month, and her condition would probably go untreated.

[_Mercury]

I blame the unions.

I blame Nehor...and NAFTA.

[_asbestosman]

And seriously, How hard up do you think the heads of Hersheys are? What would you guess is the average monthy income of these corporate heads? You think its difficult for them to dish out $1,100 dollars a week to their employees? And that's a generous number, they probably don't even make that./

It's not just the heads of Hershey's, but also the shareholders. Greedy capitolism is what drives this sort of thing, and that is not limited to CEOs or whatnot. It extends to middle-class americans who invest in stock which is driven by the bottom line instead of how their fellow-Americans are able to feed their families.

Anyhow, some math:
$1000 / week = $50,000 / year
3,300 workers * $50,000 / year = $165,000,000 / year



Now, just for me to throw some gasoline on this fire, let me ask this: if the church has billions of dollars, why do general authorities get medical and other benefits while the general membership does not? With billions of dollars in assets, couldn't the church afford to give us member medical care?

[_asbestosman]

I blame the unions.

I blame Nehor...and NAFTA.

I'd blame God for sending us to a world where He knows the greed of men will cause these situations to occur, but I think I'll blame Satan instead since Satan makes a great whipping boy.