Monday, June 23, 2014

thread post, 1/18/2014

Really? You don't think workers have a right to strike? --- average workers who even with two jobs can't make enough to pay for basic needs? (living wage). I don't think it's a question of willingness to work hard or be courteous in the service industry. Customer service, after all, is a required skill for most income levels. Anyway, you make a good point that such jobs can be good temporary employment... so is the military's basic training, but I wouldn't want to be a grunt all my life.
Choice, yeah, we all would like to believe that at any moment we could just alter circumstances for the better when life is challenging. Truth be acknowledged, some of us make choices which limit us to insufficient means to sustenance; while others may make choices which count on these former others getting stuck in that very unfortunate limitation. That is sad; but I don't look down my nose at all who make bad choices, only those whose conspicuously gainful choices by nature oppress others. And requiring charitable assistance, by the way, from a third party like the church, family or government (remember, our taxes pay subsidies to businesses too, not just food stamp money) should not be the solution nor sanctify the oppression by forfeiture of basic human rights. 
You mention legality as a justification for striking. I think maybe we have a different sense of this standard. I believe justice requires an ethical commitment to fairness not just between individuals, or equals by any contractual definition, but above all between powerful entities and the meek.  This is where democracy and free enterprise fail --- shamefully, yes, even Our Supreme Court has failed recently by equating corporations with individual natural persons ( see Citizens United v. the FEC ).

Anyway, hope you can look past the personal take on this and see where I'm coming from.

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