Reviews

I can't believe it took me so long to watch this beautifully shot, beautifully acted, and beautifully written biting comedy. Alec Guinness's Ealing Films are an international cinematic treasure.

This one is about a scientist, Guinness, who invents a supposedly indestructible dirt repelling fabric. He makes one suit out of it and convinces one textile manufacturer to produce a line of clothes using his new invention. Trouble arises however when everyone but Guinness figures out that if you made indestructible dirt repelling clothes then you'd run labor out of work and management would go bankrupt because after everyone had one suit of clothes they'd never need another.

It's almost quaint to see how they portrayed union labor so sympathetically in this film. It's a good snapshot of where the labor movement was in post war Britain but it's almost too hard to believe that workers ever had that much power over big business. It's also hard to believe that there was so much textile work in England.

This film is very good and it's a beautiful black and white film to boot. The whites really pop out, especially Guinness's white suit. A scene that really stands out for me is the one where the mill owner's daughter negotiates her price to seduce Guinness out of taking his invention public, she and the other mill owners quickly figure out that they may be asking her to talk to Guinness but what they're really asking is for her to whore her self out so they can keep their positions of power and dominance. It's a powerful scene. Another great scene is the one where the mill owners and the union's works committee have finally caught Guinness after chasing him through the streets. He stands before them like a lamb being taken to the slaughter and when they discover his fabric isn't what he claimed, their laughter is like knives in to his psyche. It's brilliant I tell you.

This film should be required viewing for anyone who claims to like films as an art form.

These two films are the prequel to the hit series Doc Martin. They tell the story of how the good doctor came to Cornwall and how he became accepted. These films are very different from the Doc Martin series that came after them. In these the character of Doc Martin is likeable and very easy going, there none of the uptight arrogance that comes later. In fact, these films are very sweet and they read very much like a Cornish Northern Exposure. And that's not a bad thing but the producers rightly figured out that if they kept Doc Martin a nice easy going guy then there would not be much room for character development and if they'd kept him sweet and likeable, these two films probably would have been it for the series. Wisely, they chose to make him gruff, distant, and barely likable so that they have plenty of space to explore him and his interactions with the quirky citizens of his small adopted coastal Cornwall village.

I liked these movies but I like what came after them a whole lot more.

Grandpa was a union man

That's my maternal grandfather. His name was William Wells. I just found out he worked to bring the union to Ford Motor Company plants in Detroit in the 1930's. I had no idea he did that. I could not be prouder to his blood flowing in my body, to share his genes.

Growing up I was scared of him. He was a cranky old man by the time I hit the scene. He tolerated me and I secretly loved being around him even though he frightened me a little. If he was around today I'd thank him profusely for helping unionize autoworkers. But he'd probably tell me to sit down and be quiet while he was trying to enjoy his TV time. He wasn't big on expressing emotion but I'd give him a hug anyway.

Today Wisconsin, tomorrow the whole country!

Hello everyone, I'm Crossing Guard Pete Hansen and I'm here to tell you why those Commie teachers unions in Wisconsin need to be busted before their lies and filth are spread to the other states. There are many businesses and corporations here in Wisconsin that haven't gotten a tax break yet but if we stop those fat cat teachers from getting a raise through their union then we can give that money to the people who really deserve it, the captains of industry and finance. From my vantage point in the school crossing that I patrol every day I see those fat cat teachers drive up in their fancy used cars that are filled with boxes of macaroni and cheese, the kind with the cheese in the pouch, not the kind with the powdered cheese, which is the kind I have to buy. I see them laughing and pointing at me as they walk by in their fancy Dan K Mart fashions. I can't afford to buy clothes at K Mart or Wal Mart or the 7-11. I have to make due with what I can scavenge out of the dumpsters near the zoo. There ain't no crossing guards union to protect me, so there shouldn't be no teachers union to protect them leeches who only work 9 months of the year.

Also, I heard they been teaching kids all about the homosexual lifestyle and taking them to gay re-education camps out side of Milwaukee like this one:
I'm not in favor of that at all. I don't want no kids of mine getting mixed up with the Roman Catholic priests and evangelical ministers who run them camps. No sirree, no way.

I hear them teachers also are teaching black and brown kids and I'm against that. Those colored kids need to be working, not getting schooled. Next thing you know them educated blacks will want to vote and shit and that can only be bad news for the rest of us parents of skinheads.
And lastly, I know they're teaching evolution and animal husbandry in schools today so if we break the unions then they'll have to teach girls home ec and stuff like that. And the boys will learn trades like cheese mining, cheese maintenance, and how to cut the cheese. We don't need kids learning about how we evolved from dino-monkeys from Uranus, and anyways all that stuff contradicts what it says in my Bible.

If we bust the unions in Wisconsin then we can move on to Illinois, Iowa, and the other 48 states!

How long will we need unions?

We'll only need unions as long as there are corporations and conservatives who run and profit from them.

Pssst, wanna see a union thug?

He's in a union and he loves it. He says his union is good because it helps him and others like him. And yet, he doesn't want teachers to be able to be in unions. He hates their union, he says it makes them greedy violent parasites on the body politic.

So remember everyone, unions are good for rich white men like Bill O and the fat drug addict Rush Limbaugh but they're bad for teachers. Hey Bill, hypocrite much?

Freedom of speech is useless if we don't use it

I've organized a impromptu grass roots pro working people/pro teacher demonstration here in Johnson City for tomorrow afternoon. I made the following signs to use there:

This is the one I'll be carrying.

I made these two for other people to use if they showed up without a sign.

A reporter from our local corporate owned conservative news rag called me up and practically accused me of being a union stooge. He had a hard time believing that a private citizen like me would organize a pro union/pro worker demonstration to show our support for working people.

If you're in the area we'll be demonstrating in front of First Tennessee Bank on North Roan Street from noon to 2:00 PM. Come on out and use your freedom of speech to support workers and labor!

Attention local to me peeps!

We're going to be holding a pro teacher/pro union/pro working people demonstration this Saturday from noon to 2:00 PM. It will be held on the public sidewalk in front of First Tennessee bank at 1919 North Roan Street. Please bring pro teacher, pro union, pro labor, pro working people signs and let's show our friends and neighbors in east Tennessee that we support public employees and working people.

A word of warning though, do not park in the First Tennessee parking lot or they might call the cops to have you towed. Also do not walk or set anything on First Tennessee property or they will call the cops. Park in the huge parking lot next to First Tennessee and please confine the demonstration to the public sidewalk. We want a big turnout for this non violent protest that is in support of working people.

Bring your friends, neighbors, and family, let's show the world not all of us in east Tennessee are right wing teabaggers!

They've seen the union and the damage done

Ordinary citizens of the USA speak out about how unions have damaged their lives:

"When I joined the pipe fitters union I totally thought 'pipe fitting' had something to do with kinky sex. And when I got busted for soliciting boy prostitutes, they wouldn't come to my defense and now I have to ionize my penis several times a day and I have to live in a trailer park full of old people. Fuck unions!"

"Ever since my daddy was forced to join the union he works more than he used to and the allowance I used to get now goes to pay his union dues. If there was no union he'd be home more and I'd have more money to buy crystal meth with. Union, my ass."

"My union makes me keep my rack covered at all times, which is a shame because I got a nice rack. Gravity hasn't hit me too bad as of yet, if you catch my drift."

"I wanted to go digital but my union wouldn't let me."

"When those Commie unions took over my factories and made me give my workers things like lunch breaks and safety equipment, my profits have tumbled. I used to make 5.4 million dollars in profit, now I have to scrape by on 5.3 million. The other billionaires laugh at me."

"I like to shoot things and I like eggs. That's all I got to say."

"Woof."

"I wait here day after day for Jesus Christ to swoop down and form a sexual union with me. I dream of making the beast with two backs with my savior. Wait, shit, did I just say that out loud?"

With friends like these, Jesus doesn't need any more enemies

I flipped past Fox Propaganda channel and I heard Gomer Huckabee deriding public employees in Wisconsin. He claimed that for every dollar a Wisconsin teacher puts in their retirement account, the state of Wisconsin must pay in fifty seven. Now if that were true, teachers would be flocking to Wisconsin and or the state would have gone bankrupt many years ago.

So, obviously the man is lying. And you'd think he'd know better than to lie, after all he used to be a preacher and I'm pretty sure his god told him, "Thou shall not bear false witness." But I could be wrong, it's been a long time since I read the bible Gomer claims to believe in.

Or maybe he's just another lying sack of Republican shit.

Yeah, that's probably it.

God hates labor unions

How I'm feeling today

Fight the power!
Make those who have more pay more!
Don't believe the hype. The real reasons we're in this totally made up 'fiscal crisis' is because we cut taxes and we're fighting two coffer draining wars for oil/empire.

End the war, bring our troops home, raise taxes on the wealthy and business. Stop the war on working people. Get corporate money out of our political system. And fire every incumbent except for Dennis Kucinich and Bernie Saunders.

The new normal

Click on each image, then click it again to enlarge it so you can read it properly.

Ironic

The teabaggers who say they want their country back want to return the USA to the 1950's because that's when white people ruled supreme and most all white folks had decent jobs, nice homes, cars, and were sending their kids to college in record numbers.
But what the teabaggers forget is that during the 1950's union membership was at it's peak in our country and that most white folks were able to get out of poverty and obtain those nice houses, new cars, and money for their kids college because they were union members. The radical right teabaggers love to complain about unions but it was unions who helped them get where they are today. And they refuse to make the connection to the fact that since unions have been on the wane, so have their wages and benefits.

It's irony in action.

It's time for another round of 'The Blame Game!'

This week's 'Blame Game!' question is: Who is to blame for the loss of manufacturing jobs in the USA?

First up is Zelda P. Crabby-twat,
"I blame the unions. Who the hell do they think they are asking for more money and benefits for their members? They ought to be ashamed for the way they've treated big business. It's like they want corporations to share profits with them or something. It's disgusting what they've done."

Donald T. Pantymight wants to weigh in,
"I blame technology, the internet, and the growth on my groin, the one that looks like the Jonas brothers, not the one that speaks to me late at night."

Ogg the caveman says,
"I blame the liberals who keep me dependent on government cheese, peanut butter, and powdered milk. Damn you Nancy Pelosi!"

Stacey Von Unctuous wanted to blame something but I refused to let her as long as she insisted on dressing so ridiculous.
And finally, Rev. Oral Syntax blamed the usual suspects,
"I blame atheists, Negroes, Chileans, the gayists, Unitarians, oh wait, I already said atheists didn't I, west coast hippies, vegans, fans of Bollywood films, devil worshipers, Communists, pointy headed intellectuals, insomniacs, sports lovers, infiltrators, masturbators, instigators, the Florida Gators, hip waiters, race traitors, and the Spice Girls. It's all in the Bible, look it up if you don't believe me."

"Don't blame us," said the guilty men

When I first heard about this article in the Washington Post the other day, I honestly thought it was a joke. I really thought that someone from The Onion had snuck into the Post offices and wrote that article as a gag, a sick joke. But to my surprise and to my chagrin, it wasn't a joke, the CEO's of some of America's biggest corporations were blaming American workers for the lack of an economic recovery.

According to the article, "They (the CEO's) blame their profound caution on their view that U.S. consumers are destined to disappoint for many years. As a result, they say, the economy is unlikely to see the kind of almost unbroken prosperity of the quarter-century that preceded the financial crisis."

That's a pretty funny statement isn't it? They blame us for disappointing them. For not buying enough, for not making them enough profit, for not being good little consumers who spend all our money on their shit and services.

Hey, CEO's, here's a news flash for you: We can't buy the products you make or use the services you sell if we don't have any money. See guys, you cut wages, benefits, and jobs to make your bottom line look good to Wall Street. And as a result of all that your short term profits rose and your stock price went up but after you cut all the wages, benefits, and jobs, nobody had any money left to buy anything because they had no discretionary income left. The money they used to spend on buying the latest greatest version of microwaves, cars, or whatever now goes to paying the light bill, the mortgage, and it buys groceries and clothes.

In your mad rush to maximize shareholder value you minimized your employees. Instead of taking care of the people who built your companies and who paid your salaries, you shafted them by moving their jobs China. You downsized and laid off the very people you want to buy your products. If people have no money, no jobs, no hope because American business has failed them, how do you expect them to buy your products? If people can't make ends meet on what little you pay them now, how can they be expected to buy more so that your company can make more money?

Your economic model makes no sense. You can't ship jobs to China and expect the Americans you put on the unemployment line to buy what the Chinese now make. You can't expect people who have nothing to keep buying your products. You can't keep taking with both hands and then expect those you took everything from to bail you out.

So, the fact that we have no economic recovery in this country isn't our fault, we've done everything you've asked. We worked hard, we paid our taxes, we built your shit, we bought your shit, we took your shit, and then you shit on us. So dear CEO's, the fault lies with you and your insane expectations and your nonsensical Milton Friedman-esque economic theories. We here outside of your cloistered boardrooms did what we were supposed to do, and we continue to do it, it's you who changed the rules and rigged the game. It's you who lied and who disappoint. It's you who are causing economic stagnation. We swallowed your lies for years, especially the lie that if you work hard enough then great things will happen. The smart ones among us know that millions of us work hard every day and all they get for it is a handful of shit courtesy of your big heartless soulless corporate culture that prizes shareholder profits over everything.

I can't wait for this economic house of cards to collapse and for your corporations to fall. Maybe out of their ashes will rise a fairer system that puts people before profits and has safeguards against big corporate bullies. You know, kind of like the stuff the late great FDR enacted in the aftermath of the Great Depression. Mr. and Mrs. CEO, the time of reckoning will soon be at hand and it's not going to be pretty or fun for any of you.

Hey comrades!

HappyMay Day!

Most of you have been good workers and comrades this past year so here's your reward:

Some Crunky!

Yo ho ho and a bottle of bile

My friend Joseph F. sent me this picture. It pretty much sums up the attitude of the Reich wing towards labor unions and towards the working classes in general.

For those of you who might be too young to remember and to those of you who forgot or who buy into the lies of the Reich wing and the corporate media, it was unions who got you that 8 hour work day and those vacation days, it was unions who made the corporations make your work place safer, it was unions that brought so many people out of poverty, it was unions that made this country great.

On the other hand it was Reich wingers and multi national corporations who rolled back the gains unions made for all of us. They defanged OSHA and MSHA, they are the ones who keep telling you and me that we can't have national not for profit single payer health care for all in this country. It's them who say that you can't have a raise while the CEO's get bonuses for not giving you a raise or for laying you off.

One more thing, which Presidential candidate is a card carrying union member?

I'll give you a hint. He's the only Presidential candidate I've gotten to see and shake hands with in person.

He's also a vegan.

He's also got a beautiful red headed British born wife.

Give up?

Why it's Dennis Kucinich of course!

Dennis is the only Presidential who knows what it's like to be dirt poor and to have to work for a living. He's the only one who is one of us. He's not some effete Yale educated snob who got everything handed to him because of his rich family.

The choice is yours, you can either vote for the union busters or you can vote for the one man who is a union member who will stand by us working folks.