Capitalism: A Love Story - Michael Moore's solution: bring back Unions

[Myra Bronstein]

According to the LA Times: "Capitalism" is not just Moore's latest documentary, it is, as the filmmaker himself has said, "the movie I've been making for the past 20 years."

"Everything I want to say is in this film.'' (http://tinyurl.com/yal6plc)

So when Michael Moore is doing an interview to promote the movie and the central ideas, to promote everything he wants to say, and is asked "How do you change this system? What's your solution" to the undemocratic economy, here is his reply:

"Well, people have to obviously get involved politically. We have to get money out of our politics. People have to think about unionizing. That actually worked, for my father, grandfather. It created the middle class."

The toady interviewer then came back with (actually interrupted with) the exact reply toadies are programmed to make, one I've heard almost every time I talk about unions: "But unions also can abuse their privilege." To which MM responded, and this is delicious:

"The everyday workers of this country right now, one out of eight mortgages right now is in delinquency or foreclosure. There's a forclosure filing once every seven and a half seconds. The jobless rate goes up. And I'm talking to employees back stage here who aren't like, they don't get to be real employees here so they don't get the benefits. So they're, like, freelancers. I said: 'God you were here two years ago and you were a freelancer then. What are you doing here?' Right back stage here at ABC. He says: 'Well we call ourselves permalancers now.' You know, that's because, they don't get to share in the basic benefits that an employee used to have who worked here. What's wrong with that? What is wrong with just giving people the basic things for their hard work?"

He shut that toady up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY1pcoBWp...dded#t=262

The propaganda is going to be fierce against this one. MM is truly hitting on the core issue--The War on Workers and Labor Unions.

I can't say it enough: The War on Workers and Labor Unions is not just one problem among many, it's The Core problem.

I can't ask it enough? What is the first thing Hitler did when he came to power? And why did he do it?

This is the core issue: the determination of The Capitalist/The Corporatist/The Industrialist to break the back/the budget/the will/the spirit--and most important--the solidarity--of the working class.

http://www.capitalismalovestory.com/

http://www.michaelmoore.com/


On edit: Analysis of Moore's skillful rhetoric here: http://www.deeppoliticsforum.com/forums/...#post11503

I genuflect in his general direction.

[Magda Hassan]

I genuflect in his general direction.

We have an icon for that! :adore:


:adore: And I too genuflect in his general direction. It is most important what he is trying to do.

[Myra Bronstein]

I genuflect in his general direction.

We have an icon for that! :adore:


:adore: And I too genuflect in his general direction. It is most important what he is trying to do.

The genuflect icon! I clean forgot about it. There are so few opportunities to use it...

[Magda Hassan]

Having watched Michael Moore's movie I thought I would add to this thread. It is a good movie and I do recommend people see it. Especially Americans. They really need to see it. It is a movie right from the heart of Michael Moore. Impassioned. Urgent.

The nuns and priests of his childhood have had a big and positive influence in his life and his search for social justice stems from that early education and inspiration. Capitalism is a sin. He points out in his inimitable way how the rich and the right have hijacked the teachings of Jesus to support their own position. There are some very strong and unambiguous word from the priest he interviews.

There is no place in the Constitution in which the words capitalism, free market or free enterprise are mentioned but it does have words like creating a better 'union' and promoting the general 'welfare' just like that other 'ism'.

He explores a factory workplace that is run on democratic principles just like the nation (is supposed to be). MM wonders why for the average American's supposed love of democracy they are so willing to subject themselves to a dictatorship in in their working hours. For more on this see Avi Lewis and Naomi Klein's 'The Take'.

One of the interesting things he shows in a long forgotten America. How it used to be. Most alive now have never known it. Other will have forgotten it. The very wealthy were once taxed at 90% and they still lived like kings and queens. Working class families had 4 weeks paid vacations and could afford to take them. Michael Moore's father had bought and paid for the family house by the time Michael had finished kindergarten. He had enough money to send all his children to Catholic schools on top of that. And all this from a GM factory worker because it was a unionised industry.

Also long forgotten but implemented in some of the post war reconstructed nations was FDR's second bill of rights which would have guaranteed all Americans a job, support for farmers markets, housing, education, health and a pension. It never saw the light of day after his death. What a different US we would have seen! And it's not too late to do it now.

On MM's web site he has all the links to documentation for the claims in the movie. Well worth exploring. http://www.michaelmoore.com/books-films/...love-story

Unions are definitely key to getting out of this mess. CommUnity more so. If your workplace is not covered by a union there is the IWW http://www.iww.org/ which covers all workers of any industry whether you work part time or full time or are trained or not.

The ruling classes are organised and work together and democracy and an organised working class is their greatest fear. No one to clean their toilets, die in their wars, look after their children and cook their meals and they are completely helpless. They say as much themselves in an extraordinary document, extraordinary because it was put in writing and leaked http://blogs.wsj.com/wealth/2007/01/08/plutonomics/ Remember they are just 1% of the population. We wont even notice they are not there. :flute: