Tag Archives: labor

Respect the Daily Kos Guild, engage with the union

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Friends and kindred spirits wandering by this site probably have heard of DailyKos, the ur-parent blog of the US progressive sphere. Just last year, DKos (as the place is often known) celebrated the site’s 20th anniversary. Personally, I’ve been a member there for 18 of those years. I’m not entirely sure who makes up “Daily Kos Management” (DKM) these days, but a number of the workers at the site are represented by the Daily Kos Guild (DKG), a Pacific Media Workers Guild member and certified as the bargaining unit of represented staff. DKM recently announced layoffs that would affect more … Continue reading →

Best reads

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This week, try these three. Harold Myerson at the American Prospect, on a new labor alliance in California. L.A. Story, The Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy: a new model for American liberalism? From reporters at the Arkansas Times, working with InsideClimate News, The path of the Pegasus pipeline in Arkansas, Exxon’s pipeline cuts across the watersheds that provide drinking water for 770,000 Arkansans. And James Fallows at the Atlantic presents an analysis of the situation in Syria, Your Labor Day Syria Reader, Part 2: William Polk. An in-depth, step-by-step account of how we got here and what might … Continue reading →

Tax the Rich

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This is the best thing I’ve seen in ages. Beautiful composition, I keep watching it over and over. A time lapse compilation of the ongoing protests in Madison, Wisconsin. Edit to add: Over at Balloon Juice, garage mahal from Wisconsin gave me a link to this set of panoramic 360-degree pictures from inside the Capitol building and from the rallies. View them in high-def and full screen if you can. They are extraordinary.

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Union solidarity rally

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Last Saturday, all over the country, people gathered in solidarity with the union protesters in Wisconsin. Denver had a nice turnout, 2-3,000 people came together at the capitol building. It was a gorgeous, sunny day, and the crowd was raucous and high-spirited. We had a great time, and hope the folks in Madison know that we stand behind them, completely. The top picture is from MoveOn’s flickr page, which has many pictures from rallies all over the country. The bottom picture is mine.

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Rallies Saturday in support of Wisconsin Unions

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MoveOn is organizing rallies in all 50 states tomorrow (Saturday) at noon. We’ll be going to the rally in Denver (west side steps of the Capitol building). Find your nearest rally at the link. I’m sure you’ve seen this shocking footage of last night’s very late and extremely rushed vote in the Wisconsin Assembly. Republicans got their majority vote and then shut down voting before the Democrats even had a chance to finish voting themselves. The Dems say they will follow up to see whether this action was even legal. I hope they do pursue it, because this incredible action … Continue reading →

A massive failure of the private sector

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Over at Salon, Andrew Leonard interviews Joseph McCartin, a Georgetown University professor who writes on the history of the labor movement. The whole interview is worth reading, but this portion really struck me for its clarity on the economic situation we find ourselves in these days. …an even more important factor is basically a 20- or 30-year period of failure in the private sector. What we are really looking at here is a private sector that for quite a long time now has not generated a lot of rising income for the great majority. It has not generated stable benefits … Continue reading →