A historic glance displays the struggles of the working class for a safe work environment, living wages and the right to have a voice in the process. From day one, the wealthy pointed at the unions as the cause for financial imbalances, and in the early days used violence and murder to intimidate the workers into compliance.
Today they blame teachers, government employees and senior citizens’ benefits, an unwarranted attack on the current working class and those who have already contributed a lifetime of labor and taxes, while the GEs and IBMs avoid contributing any taxes to the American system, and send American jobs and taxes to nations that offer sweat shop wages. They have selfishly abandoned the American dream for the same corporate American greed that triggered the current crises.
As the city of Monroe becomes a Wal-Mart town, it’s most apparent as the base employment opportunities in east county are in fast food and retail — jobs that don’t offer any medical or retirement benefits and don’t pay their employees enough so they can buy their own.
The economy can’t recover if consumer purchasing power doesn’t improve with real wages. That won’t change until corporations drop their old-school, master-slave mentality.
Todd Fredrickson
Monroe
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