Happy Labor Day (U.S.)*

[gordonzola]

So in my Weather Underground post, a good conversation got going about trashing vs. criticizing of the Left by the Left. Since it’s Labor Day weekend in this country, what do you folks think?. What’s the Left’s biggest problem right now?

Too much infighting? Too many wingnuts with "responsibility"? Failure to support the correct tenets of scientific socialism? Nader? The fact that no one is following the sectarian party you belong to? Lack of any coherence or relevance whatsoever?

This isn’t a poll, so write about whatever you want. Hell, it doesn't even have to be the biggest problem, it can just be your biggest peeve. Don’t post your unpublished manifestos though, please. No right-wing trolls either.

(I include anarchists on the Left, btw, so answer accordingly)

*I tend to recognize May 1st as Labor Day myself, but this is a convenient excuse.

Comments

[goodbadgirl.livejournal.com]

My pops who is 76 still works a full time job as a security guard. For most of his life he's worked more than one - often more than two full-time jobs. Recently, Vassar convinced their younger security staff to vote to disband their union - my father was the only one who voted against them. He said: "Look, you're being fooled. I've been a union man all of my life and I don't care what you say I'm voting for the union. If we don't stick together as workers we have less power. So I don't care what you do but I'm voting for the union."

My father is republican. Has been a republican all of his life. Here, a supremely "liberal" institution -the same folks who bring you the 'Homo Hop' for upwards of 32k a year- are openly screwing their workers. What possible reason would my father have to trust people on the left? (For the record his union was a piece of shit who did little to protect them and much to prevent them from accessing their medical benefits.)

Of course we all know he has no reason to trust the right but they like to screw him over in sneakier, less overt way.

Sorry this is so long g. I don't know what our problem is - but I'm fairly sure an enormous part of the solution is reaching out to people like my dad in meaningful ways.

The secret has always been the workers - in my opinion the left fails to inspire them.