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The Cold War propaganda machine messed with a couple of generations' minds. Thatcher aside, I think maybe such propaganda was not as severe in the UK? You guys
by LarryDarrell 5y ago
The Cold War propaganda machine messed with a couple of generations' minds. Thatcher aside, I think maybe such propaganda was not as severe in the UK? You guys did have the community building exercise of rebuilding after the war, where in the US we immediately built the suburbs and began our decent into a Cowboy Individualist fever dream.
Here you'll hear the same things over and over:
"My (friend) was working at (someplace) and had to wait (2 hours | half a day) for a Union Electrician to plug in an electrical cord!" (Who cares! You got a free break! Enjoy the time slacking!)
"Unions are corrupt!" (Ignoring the difference of scale of corruption in the corporate world vs a union)
"I am paid because of my productivity! I am a Super-Worker! I resent the people who simply punch the clock at their CAREER." (Here you have wage slaves who were given a salary+perks and have been swindled into thinking that they have common ground with the Capitalist Class. Dividing workers into hierarchical groups is a old and great way to insure against any movement towards solidarity.)
and on and on... but in the US, every argument against any form of worker solidarity you'll see the complete absence of consideration of the abuses and priorities of the Capitalist Class. It's never workers vs ownership over here. It's workers versus the narcissistic individual "Top-Performer" (self-described).
- mechanical_bear 5y ago“ Who cares! You got a free break! Enjoy the time slacking!” This is exactly the mentality that demonstrates everything wrong with unions.
- LarryDarrell 5y agoI remember re-covering the roof of an apartment building for a slumlord I worked for in college. We ran out of tar, so I had to wait an hour while the boss went to get some more. Sitting for awhile in the shade of the roof access entrance was glorious. We were supposed to drag our exhausted, aching bodies to the basement to "tidy". We didn't because that was absurd. Now I sit on my ass all day long and write code. I make enough now that I'm in the class of worker that's allowed to slack and pretend I don't. Sometimes I slack and post to Hacker News in the middle of the day. No union needed!