It's extremely easy for Americans to gloss over the fact that until significant work reforms culminating in the Sherman anti-trust act, it was not unheard of (o

It's extremely easy for Americans to gloss over the fact that until significant work reforms culminating in the Sherman anti-trust act, it was not unheard of (or, crazily enough, illegal) for super-companies like Standard Oil to enlist the US army in literal massacres with body counts over 100 when unions lead strikes. Being a union leader in the so-called "Gilded Age" of Rockafeller put you in alliance with other anti-government actors of varying quality as a matter of survival. As the government subsequently became more receptive to guaranteeing some degree of workers rights and benefits and limiting the power of super-billionaires, the necessity of allying with these elements fell apart in messy way.