[lbo-talk] Unions: Resuscitate or pull the plug?

[JBrown72073 at cs.com]

>So the question is whether it is really worth to reform unions whose
>reformability to date is less than impressive (to say the least), or cut
>the losses, let the thing  finally die in the next few years, and concentrate
>on alternative strategies that promise a wider impact on the working class,
>like universal health care, living wage laws, labor law enforcement, etc.?
> 
>It is not that I am advocating pulling the plug on the unions, but I would
>at least like to know why this would be a bad idea, and continuing
>resuscitation of the unions is our only hope?
>
>Wojtek

What does 'pulling the plug on unions' even mean?  Does this mean unionism? 
Since 'unions' is not one undifferentiated mass.

Union dues are one of the few organized pots of money that is not rich 
people's money funnelled through corporate and family foundations, corporations, 
etc.  Union pension funds are another source of political power.  If you want to 
instead fight for universal health care, living wage laws or labor law 
enforcement, how are you going to fund that?  Cookie sales?  And since our wages will 
go down upon the demise of our unions, we won't have a lot left over to give 
you, even if we could be organized to do so (which also takes money.)

Jenny Brown