Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Class Warfare

I know, it's not a pretty term, and it's been thrown around with some abandon, especially during the last presidential campaign. "Class War" is, in case you didn't know, is a code word phrase used by the wingnuttery rightwing to denote Communism. Or its little brother, Socialism. Obama is still being excoriated for his so-called "socialist" views and ideals (a Google search for "obama socialist policies" gets you 1, 430,000 hits!).

But Class War is exactly what the US Chamber of Commerce is engaged in when it comes to the Employee Free Choice Act. Somehow I managed to get on their national mailing list (best guess, probably because I'm on record as the owner of a "small business" in the state of Washington), but I'm glad that I did. It gives me a lot of insight into what they are up to.

In the last couple of days I've received emails from a couple of big-time honchos at The Chamber:

Things are really heating up in Congress.
First, U.S. Chamber President Tom Donohue appeared on This Week with George Stephanopolous to voice the Chamber's positive vision for getting the economy moving again.
Tom's positive economic outlook was brightened even further when his fellow This Week guest, Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), announced with regard to Big Labor's dangerous "Card Check" bill, "I'm not sure that we have the votes [needed]."
That bill might be introduced as early as today - and Big Labor is desperate.
They're so desperate that they even unleashed their protesters to picket outside the U.S. Chamber of Commerce headquarters.
Big Labor's back is up against the wall - and now they're trying to intimidate the U.S. Chamber into dropping our support for their dangerous bill?
So fitting - since its "Card Check" would rob American workers of the secret ballot and allow Union organizers to force them into Union membership using coercion and intimidation.
Don't let Big Labor intimidate Americans into passing the "Card Check" bill - click here to TAKE ACTION. [-- Bill Miller, VP for Political Affairs]
...
Bill was right. The misnamed-Employee Free Choice Act (aka. Card Check) was introduced in the House and Senate yesterday.
As Randel Johnson, U.S. Chamber Vice President said in our press release, "We are pleased this legislation has finally been introduced so we can put a stake through its heart."
We need your help right now to stop Card Check. Click here to join the Chamber and support the fight. This is our #1 priority. [-- Gretchen Deo, Executive Director]
Okay, fair enough. Let's fight back and make the passage of this legislation, so important to "Big Labor" but even more so to "small labor", our #1 priority.

Contact your people in Congress and tell them that you support the Employee Free Choice Act. Don't let these anti-labor anti-worker pigs get away with putting "a stake through its heart".

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