PeterS

I was listening to the news today two union officials, one with steel and the other transportation, were both glowing with praise for our fearless leader. I have to say, while I have trouble stomaching the POS that we elected president, I have to say his embrace of unions is appreciated. I have long felt that unions were the backbone of this country and as the unions went so did the middle class of this country. If Trump can get infrastructure projects going--even against republican's willingness to fund them--then he won't need my vote--he will win reelection in a landslide. In all seriousness, it's time that a republican stepped across the isle and sided with unions and if Trump can help unions grow then without question it's a great move for the future...

ACP45 Loc: Rhode Island

[quote=PeterS]I was listening to the news today two union officials, one with steel and the other transportation, were both glowing with praise for our fearless leader. I have to say, while I have trouble stomaching the POS that we elected president, I have to say his embrace of unions is appreciated.

I am pleased to read your post. You are fair enough to compliment Trump on an action that he has taken that is beneficial to our economy, it's citizens, and the nation. I have mixed feelings on Unions in general. Their purpose is admirable, but like most bureaucracies, the devil is in the details. When the teacher's union protects demonstratively bad teachers, or the police union does the same for a bad cop, that is not good for society. When they employ archaic work rules to needlessly pad employees pay, that is not good for society. Having said that, the strongest and healthiest societies are ones in which ALL members of that society can fairly and justly share in the economic fruits of their labor.

In the past, CEO's of large corporations might have enjoyed a salary 8 or 9 times that of it's lowest paid worker. Today, that number may be 400 or 500 times that of it's lowest paid worker. It is a sad commentary today that both husband and wife need to work full time jobs to maintain a decent family lifestyle. Years ago, a wife had the ability if she wished to stay at home, raise the children, and prepare and enjoy a home cooked meal with the family. I think our society was stronger, and I know our children benefited more by the love, time, and attention they received from a nurturing mother at home. Very few families have the ability to make that same choice today.

I hope that Trump is successful in bringing more highly paid jobs back to the US. We need to reverse the trend in the loss of manufacturing jobs, and begin a serious attempt at improving the infrastructure of our nation.

PeterS

[quote=ACP45]

Fair enough, my wife is a teacher and administrations can fire any teacher their first three years without cause and with cause up to the point of tenure--which can be denied if they desire to get rid of a teacher. My point is that it's in the hands of administrators to weed out the bad teachers--and they have time to do it. If administrators don't do their jobs don't blame unions for doing what they are paid to do.

As for what CEO's are paid we had a paradigm change during the 80's where corporate greed, and greed in general, because acceptable. In 1980 the average CEO made 80K a year and the average worker $8 an hour. That's a 10% difference and today it can't even be calculated. But understand, we are the ones who allowed it to happen. In the 1970's it wouldn't even occur to a business owner to not give their employees raises. Today people can go years without a raise and no one says a word about it. People have become so accustom to CEO's and Business owners being 'deserving' of what they earn where the worker, where all the real productivity lays, sits quietly while they earn what ever management decides they deserve.

That why unions are so important. They force wages up when otherwise they are stagnant and when wages go up for one sector others will follow. If you were to sit down and plot wage growth you can see where, with the decline in unions, there is a decline in overall wages. It's the destruction of unions in this country that led to the decline in the middle class. You can't lose a job paying 30 dollars an hour or more and replace it with minimum wage and think you are going to remain in the middle class. If Trump can add jobs that pays half way decently and are union I will be all for him...

Liberty Tree

While all of this may be good it is going to require the willingness of the American people to pay more for the goods they purchase.

pafret Loc: Northeast

Your math is a little off Pete, that's a 79 percent difference in 1980 however your point is valid about lack of pay raises for workers while executives cart their compensation away in wheel barrows. The problem with unions is that they rapidly become as abusive as capital and the worker suffers just as much. There is no denying history, they were a necessary evil and they did more for workers than capital ever did. Consider in our present economic malaise while the 1 % are recording bonanza incomes the real income for middle and lower class workers has declined over the last ten years.

I.R. Wayright

"In all seriousness, it's time that a republican stepped across the isle and sided with unions and if Trump can help unions grow then without question it's a great move for the future..."

Huh? Republicans haven't stepped across the aisle into the swamp. If anything, the unions finally realized which side of their bread had the butter on it. I'd like to know what took them so long to wake up. We're not going to make America great again unless all of us prosper. It's just too bad we didn't have a responsible and sensible president like Trump a couple decades ago. We might not be in the hole we are in now. Why don't you get ahead of the curve now and switch parties? Try it, you'll like it.

lpnmajor Loc: Arkansas

You've missed a critical point. Trump like to get rivals fired up and squabbling with each other, he does it with his WH staff as well. He undoubtedly told industry leaders that he would be tough on Unions as well, setting the stage for future showdowns between union and corporations, then he can swoop in, mediate a truce - and be a hero.

Trump probably told automakers that he would give them substantial tax breaks and exemptions, if they invested more money in the USA ( good ), then once they do, he will renege on those promises (bad) and still claim to be a hero - raising car prices substantially (bad). Two bads don't make a good.

Trumps riches, other then the millions his Daddy gave him way back when, were generated by shenanigans and subterfuge, as well as a liberal use of bankruptcy law. His style makes him a provocateur, causing chaos and strife, allowing him to swoop in and take advantage. Nothing has changed just because he's President.

PeterS

Oh I doubt they will notice it. They think inflation out of control as it is. That it really becomes so shouldn't really matter....

PeterS

There is always going to be infighting but with the political naivety that they all have it will probably be worse than normal. My whole point it that he seems to be courting the right areas--at least for someone like me. As I said, unions built the middle class of this country. If Trump is going to reinvest with union jobs I'm 100% behind him--though I still think his hair a joke...

PeterS

Well, I guess I've been in that alternate universe too long. Last I checked conservative were staunchly against unions to the point they were happy in their demise. If I'm mistaken than that's a happy mistake. And I started out as a conservative and was one most of my life--there is still too much creepiness on that side of the fence for me to go back.

nwtk2007 Loc: Texas

[quote=ACP45]

Unions are like attorney's. They help to keep the wheels of "justice" from rolling all over people.

nwtk2007 Loc: Texas

Unions are born of freedom. I'm not sure being against freedom would be a conservative ideal. The part of "conservatism" which opposes unions is the part that supports the rich over all else. It's more republican than conservative.

Big Bass

While I like your sentiment, you are wrong. I think you will find that it was the unions who crossed the aisle, not Trump. They have realized he is for the worker, as he promised throughout his campaign.

Weasel Loc: In the Great State Of Indiana!!

pafret Loc: Northeast

Yes indeed Pollyanna and the IS the best of all possible worlds!