Monday, February 28, 2011

EconomicsUSA: Labor Unions: Alternative union poses questions Christians don't want to face




I read an over-titled blog entry that purported to offer "An Alternative Theory of Unions" when the text hasn't even risen to the status of hypothesis yet, let alone a genuine theory.  Be that as it may, I recommend you go to the  blog site for Paul Graham  where a May 2007 blog entry "An Alternative Theory of Unions" to check out what one sincere person was thinking four years ago.  But I must say I liked the logo image Graham heads his webpage with:



You'll notice it's an entirely male vision of who the American worker is.  That's not true of the union that I regard as a genuine in American worklife, the Christian Labour Association - USA.

CLAC-USA (Feb28,2k11)


Is the Christian Labor Association  a real Union?

The Christian Labor Association is a bona fide trade union recognized by the United States Government through the National Labor Relations Board.

Where is the CLA - I haven't heard of them?

The CLA is comprised of members located throughout the United States. Although there are larger unions, you will feel the support from union members across the country working in building construction, highway and heavy construction, transportation, manufacturing, dairy, and the poultry industries.

What about the reference to "Christian" ?

Christian Principles are in our founding and guiding philosophy, the CLA is not a church or a church-based organization. We accept and represent members of all faiths.

Will my dues support politicians or political activity?

No. But did you know that some unions support certain political parties or agendas. We believe that you should have the right to make up your own mind about what political party to support.

What type of benefits does the CLA-USA offer?

Our members are provided access to health insurance, life insurance, dental, vision, income replacement insurance and defined benefit and defined contribution retirement benefits.

Now the above text from CLA's FAQ page is not a theory.  Rather, it introduces you to the union by seizing on questions heard over and over by staff and members at the very mention of its name, which is historically significant, as it was adopted in 1931 at the union's founding.  Maybe you have the same questions off the cuff upon hearing about CLA-USA for the first time.

But there are plenty of Christian philosophical ideas regarding working and workers and workers organizations, a Christian philosophy of labor and labor unions that are in accord with the Christian Principles of labor organization and service to workers who choose a way of being represented that guided by a moral vision of work relations (there are labor unions guided by a vision in other countries like Canada and the Netherlands).  The thing is that CLA-USA is not a theory institution.  Theorizing alternatively in regard to labor and labor organization is something primarliy to be done by intellectuals, not least of all intellectuals who are supporters of CLA-USA, a small union that constitutes the only Christian union in American society.  As we said, it's been around since 1931, is recognized by the US government and states in which it operates, and is certified by the National Labor Relations Board.

With President Barack Obama's devotion to the secularistic unions that dominate those Americans who are organized into unions in their workplaces, and the President's current stacking of the National Labor Relations Board, we can expect a drive to illegitimatize CLA-USA and in effect snuff it out.  CLA says of its founding 8 decades ago, "'The main difference between the new union and the older established ones was philosophical. But it's a huge important difference, one that all workers should be aware of."
It's vitally important today too.  But CLA has to grow in America.  Click up their site to email them today.  Email CLA-USA to ask what you can do to help them grow.

PoliticsYemen: Revolution: Tens of thousands demonstrate, demands rise, poverty elination top demand


I support the Yemeni Revolution as a Christian geostrategic political stance
for public justice in the sphere of governance.  I do fear a radical Islamist
take-over of the country in that instance, but the present situation is so bad
that the initiatives of the Yemeni people require our support of them at
this time. We shoud pray for all concerned in that country. -- Politicarp

BBC News (Feb27,2k11)



Yemen: Tens of thousands



call on president to leave



Demonstrations were led by opposition members and youth activists




An anti-government rally in Sanaa, 27 January


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Tens of thousands of Yemenis have demonstrated in the capital Sanaa, calling on Ali Abdullah Saleh, president for 30 years, to step down.



This comes after mass protests in Egypt and a popular uprising in Tunisia that ousted its long-time leader.
Yemeni opposition members and youth activists gathered in four parts of the city, including Sanaa University, chanting anti-government slogans.
They also called for economic reforms and an end to corruption.
Yemenis complain of mounting poverty among a growing young population and frustration with a lack of political freedoms.
The country has also been plagued by a range of security issues, including a separatist movement in the south and an uprising of Shia Houthi rebels in the north.
There are fears that Yemen is becoming a leading al-Qaeda haven, with the high numbers of unemployed youths seen as potential recruits for Islamist militant groups.
'Time for change'
Protesters gathered in several locations of the city on Thursday morning, chanting that it was "time for change", and referring to the popular uprising in Tunisia that ousted President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali earlier this month.

Opposition MP Abdulmalik al-Qasuss,
from the al-Islah (Reform) party, echoed
the demands of the protesters when he
addressed them.







"We gather today to demand the departure of President Saleh and his corrupt government," he was quoted as saying by AFP news agency.
Counter-protests have also been staged by the party of President Saleh, the General People's Congress.
Government supporter Saleh al-Mrani said the dissident protesters were a threat to the country's stability.
"We are against whoever wants to trouble the country's interests. All Yemeni people are against that, and we will prevent any kind of disturbance," he said.
President Saleh, a Western ally, became leader of North Yemen in 1978, and has ruled the Republic of Yemen since the north and south merged in 1990. He was last re-elected in 2006.
Yemenis are angry over parliament's attempts to relax the rules on presidential term limits, sparking opposition concerns that Mr Saleh might try to appoint himself president for life.
Mr Saleh is also accused of wanting to hand power to his eldest son, Ahmed, who heads the elite presidential guard, but he has denied the claims.


"We are a republic. We reject bequeathing [the presidency]," he said in a televised address on Sunday.
The editor-in-chief of the Yemen Post newspaper, Hakim al-Masmari, told the BBC World Service that Yemenis were no longer prepared to put up with widespread poverty.

He said the protests were likely to continue because people felt that "all chances of a dialogue with the ruling party are vanishing".
'Tunisia-inspired'
There have been a series of smaller protests in the lead-up to Thursday's mass demonstrations.

Economic and social problems

  • Poorest country in the Middle East with 40% of Yemenis living on less than $2 (£1.25) a day
  • More than two-thirds of the population under the age of 24
  • Illiteracy stands at over 50%, unemployment at 35%
  • Dwindling oil reserves and falling oil revenues; little inward investment
  • Acute water shortage
  • Weak central government
On Saturday, hundreds of Sanaa University students held competing protests on campus, with some calling for President Saleh to step down and others for him to remain in office.
Over the weekend, Yemeni authorities arrested a prominent rights activist, Tawakul Karman, accusing her of organising the anti-government protests. Her arrest sparked further protests in Sanaa.
After her release from prison on Monday, she told CNN that there was a revolution taking place in her country inspired by Tunisia's so-called Jasmine Revolution.
Protests in Tunisia ended 23 years of President Ben Ali's rule and ignited unrest elsewhere in the region, including Algeria and Egypt.

Middle East social indicators

Countrypop. (m)median agejobless (%)below poverty line (%)internet users (m)
SOURCE: CIA WORLD FACTBOOK

-- BBC materials posted by Politicarp
Algeria
34.5
27.1
9.9
23
4.7
Egypt
80.5
24
9.6
20
20
Jordan
6.4
21.8
13.4
14.2
1.6
Lebanon
4.09
29.4
na
28
1
Libya
6.4
24.2
30
33
0.35
Morocco
31.6
26.5
9.8
15
13.2
Saudi Arabia
25.7
24.9
10.8
na
9.6
Syria
22.1
21.5
8.3
11.9
4.4
Tunisia
10.5
29.7
14
3.8
3.5
W Bank & Gaza
2.5
20.9
16.5
46
1.3
Yemen
23.4
17.89
35
45.2
2.2