>Doug Henwood dhenwood at panix.com, Fri Feb 25 09:07:21 PST 2005
>>DSR wrote:
>>
>>>America is choking off the need by Leftists to understand where
>>>common ground can be found, e.g., Yoshie's citations regarding
>>>similar economic concerns among evangelicals and leftists.
>>
>>A lot of which may be reflecting the opinions of black evangelicals -
>
>See "Table 7: Republican Identification By Income and Religion,
>Whites Only" on page 54 (McCarty, Poole, and Rosenthal,
><http://www.cbrss.harvard.edu/events/encounters/papers/MPRchapter3.pdf>).
Which shows nothing about the effects of black evangelicals on answers to economic questions. It shows, unsurprisingly, that Republican identification rises with income, and that born-againers are more likely to be Reps than non-b.a.'ers at any income level.
>All in all, as far as current levels of trust and distrust in
>various social and political institutions are concerned, Americans
>and Europeans are remarkably similar. Instead of complaining that
>Americans are more backward than Europeans -- an opinion that is not
>likely to win over more Americans to left-wing politics -- US
>leftists should think about how to build on the strengths that do
>exist in American social and cultural conditions.
Those strengths don't extend to class consciousness. The conclusion to the NYT story on the Wal-Mart union vote in Colorado <http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/26/politics/26walmart.html?pagewanted=print&position=>:
>Dan Wright, a technician in the tire and lube shop, voted against
>the union, he said, because he felt he could go straight to
>management with problems.
>
>"My grandfather said that during World War II, unions were helpful -
>they had their place," Mr. Wright said. "But I don't feel I need
>one. This company treats me well. It's fair to its people."
>
>Alicia Sylvia, a single mother of 10-year-old twins, was a big union
>booster at the outset.
>
>"Compared to other stores, we don't even make what cashiers make,"
>said Ms. Sylvia, who earns just under $9 an hour writing up service
>orders as cars arrive at the garage and says she cannot afford
>Wal-Mart's health insurance. In Colorado, full-time unionized
>supermarket cashiers generally earn $15.66 an hour after two years.
>
>"We should make more, since we work on vehicles and can get burned,
>and we have to stand out in the cold and heat," she said. "If you're
>working 10-hour days in the rain and getting your pants wet and
>freezing all day, it's not fun."
>
>She acknowledged that the antiunion videos had helped turn her
>against unionizing.
>
>"I really wish Wal-Mart would become better," she said. "But even if
>we get a union, it will be a long battle. Wal-Mart doesn't have to
>agree to anything. The message we got was, 'You're a small bunch of
>guys, and you can stand out there and strike, and we're going to
>replace you.' They'll never agree to a contract, out of pure
>stubbornness. I'm so confused."
>
>Cody Fields, who earns $8.10 an hour after two years, said that he
>had originally backed the union "because we need a change" but that
>the videos had been effective. "It's just a bunch of brainwashing,"
>Mr. Fields said, "but it kind of worked."
>