> So what, exactly, (other than to endorse Gore) is the AFL-CIO
> for? It sounds like a big, fat, purposeless bureaucracy.
No, no, they have an organizing budget, researchers, press people, political experts, etc. It's far from perfect, but there's a crying need for unions in this country, even somewhat apolitical ones. The grad union here at the University of Oregon, the GTFF, had lots of problems in the early 90s, but since the structure was there, activists could take the thing and radicalize it in later years. Same is true for unions on the state, national and now multinational level. This is why the Right hates unions, even the most depoliticized kinds.
-- Dennis