> Nathan asks where the money's going to come from. Eight
> of the top ten political givers since 1989 are unions,
> who've given a total of $200 million, most of it to Dems.
I'm guessing that you already know that direct political contributions come only from PAC funds. PAC money -- which is precious and difficult to collect in large amounts -- is appropriate to use for that purpose. Your argument on these grounds is therefore disingenuous, although it is also cheap and easy, which is what we've unfortunately come to expect from you in the course of this discussion.
There is also election-related money that comes directly from union treasuries and from strike funds, but that is not direct political contributions. You made that point in earlier messages, and to some extent you had a point there, if you were not so disingenuous in that case as well. You surely do not believe -- as others on this list do -- that unions should refrain from defeating our enemies at the polls. Unions should do that, and to the extent that they play that game, they should also play to win. In other contexts, you understand this, but here you are bringing up the political money because it is cheap and easy and most likely to draw a cheer from the clueless ultralefts, which appears to be your aim. It draws a yawn from anyone who is serious, and you should be ashamed of yourself since it is so obviously a glib and stupid polemical trick that is unworthy of your more serious work.
Throughout this discussion, you have not responded to my own repeated questions about what the strategy should look like, and you have sought to disparage winnable short-term demands in the name of what you believe the movement's formal position should be. This is because you do not have a serious purpose in this discussion, only a point-scoring one. At some level you know this, which is why you are probably very irritated with me right now (assuming you've actually read this entire message, which is a big assumption given your track record as of late). But there you go.
- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com
Tell no lies, claim no easy victories