"Union Thuggery"? Who knew?

Philadelphia union members indicted in '12 Quaker house arson | Fox News:
 (February 20, 2014)

Ten Philadelphia union members have been indicted for allegedly using illegal means of coercion, including the torching of a Quaker meeting house, to force local contractors to use organized labor. The federal indictment, which was unsealed Tuesday, accuses members of Ironworkers Local 401 of several crimes, including racketeering and arson. Other alleged crimes include incidents in which union members allegedly threatened or assaulted contractors and damaged construction equipment and job sites.

“While unions have the right to legally advocate on behalf of their members, my office will not tolerate the conduct of those who use violence to further union goals,” U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger said in a press release. “Union officials and members who commit arson, destroy property, use threats of physical harm, and engage in other acts of violence to extort victims on behalf of their union need to be criminally prosecuted."

I can hear the screaming from here.  "Unions are Brother helping Brother!"

Okay, I get that.

But Brother, if any part of these charges are true ... there's no "Brother helping Brother" involved in torching a church!  Can anybody recall the torching of Southern Baptist churches in the Deep South?

Anybody?

Scabs?
There's the rub; the question of Big Labor vs Big Business is not entirely in the past, but at this point, and under these conditions, who's the "SCAB" here?  Is it the man who just wants to feed his family, and takes over the job which a Union member abandoned ... willingly?

Everybody knows that the UAW destroyed Detroit.   There comes a time when the balance shifts from Union Righteousness to Free Market Enterprise, and it looks like the balance has shifted.

Working at a no-future, mind-killing job?  Think you should be paid more money because you are WILLING to work on an Assembly Line, where there is no 'intellectual stimulation'?   Fine, I can understand that.

But when you come into a job with no skills, and seem to accept that this is the best it will ever get for you, I'm wondering why you don't channel the American Spirit and learn new skills on your own time.

A Computer Programmer who is earning ... oh, say, $26.50 an hour has invested in improving himself.  Maybe he will go to night school and learn more technical skills.  He can go as far as his determination to be a better man will take him.

A sheet-metal man can learn cad-cam.  He can do something more for himself, and for his family.  That's the way to improve your lot, and to provide for your family, and to make yourself proud of your achievement.

Burning a church?  Are you PROUD of yourself?  Shame on you, and shame on the Brothers and the culture which convinces you that YOU are Making America Better.

Remember the SEIU riots of a few years ago?  Service Members International Union Brothers, beating up on people.  Now, THAT is an image to cherish.

This is why I have not joined a Union since 1965, when I was working in a lumber mill during summer vacation from high school, and then from College.  Not saying that I am the best example of a "Self-Made Man", just saying that it's not that hard to improve yourself.

Okay, so you have to give up beer.   It's not a path without its down-side, but anybody can do it, if they want to be more than a freakin' "Union Thug"!

If "The Union" is such a wonderful thing, it shouldn't require members to intimidate "The Opposition" (independent contractors).  Want to prove that you're worth the money?  Do more, be better, and prove yourself to be responsible employees.    Don't go beating people up; that's not Union, that's Barbarian.

Why do employers hire scabs?  It's because the Scabs are just like you, 50 years ago.  They want to work.  They're not all political, and 'gooney'; they just need a paycheck.  They want to feed their kids, and maybe buy their wife a pretty dress.  Is that too much to ask?

Why aren't they Union?  Maybe they're standing off to the side, watching Union Goons beating up on people and burning churches, and think:  "Hey, I don't want to be part of that!"

Union People, go back to your history.  Think 1930-1950, when you established the right to form a union.  And then think about today, when people are trying the right to work!

Shame on those of your Brothers who think they need to protect their status quo by violence.

You know what?  I think that YOU are the "goons" of the 21st Century.

What do you think of that?





Are you "Union Proud"? 

Remember Detroit!