There's Strong, and Then There's Union Strong

[Gita]

 

Marge picked me up in her Windstar, the back seat crammed full of handmade signs.

"I bet there's no parking," she said, circling the Capitol twice, "but Jeanie said if we get tickets, just turn them in at the next meeting and the union'll pay them."

The steps, halls and rotunda were packed with teachers, civil servants and retirees from every corner of  Wisconsin. Jeanie jostled her way toward us, her face flushed with enjoyment and her coat covered in colorful protest buttons, some dating back to old civil rights and peace marches.

"Those Republican sons-of-guns might be able to cow the Democrats, but nobody fucks with us aging hippy baby boomers and wins," she grinned.

 "Hell, nobody puts on a goddam demonstration better than our generation!"

 

[Edward Dean]

 @ Gita; .....When a thirty-something union boy gets (small) crowned with the title of C.EO.  he buys all all the bullshit to run with the big boys. If you and Grey think LSD is good sh** try a POWER bar!

I think 'Willy' said this too many times and in too many ways; "We get too smart too late"!:)

[Gita]

Edward -- do NOT get me started on the Koch brothers. Really. You don't want to do that.

As for drinking the Reagan kool-Aid, no one I know was duped bythe smirkster.

[Jeanette Cheezum]

Our generation rocks! So does your story.

[Stephen Torelli]

Collectively, the NYC unions... from teachers to dock workers and transportation... are strong, however, the current political leaders are chipping away. Interesting!

[Edward Dean]

Thanks for the timely subject Gita but I fervently wish your last line was true. Most of us drank the Reagan kool aide in the 80's and are back to square one in fighting for collective rights our parents had won in the 30's. 

If the 'Koch (Bircher) brothers' win this one, we'll be auctioning off our Constitutional rights on E Bay.

[Bob Clay]

As 'Rocker' of the 60's who remembers shouting the slogan 'Authority is Arse' then almost going under when the heavy artillery of Thatcherism bludgeoned all hope senseless in the eighties, this was an enjoyable reminder that 'we aint dead yet'.

And for some reason this also reminded me of a BBC TV interview during the  Tehran hostage crisis when a typically silver spoon mouthed BBC reporter was trying to gauge US public opinion, and stopped a beautiful angelic looking girl in a New York street to ask her what the US should do about Iran holding hostages, to which she replied 'Nuke the fuckers', which had me belly laughing for half an hour (and I'll give the BBC their due, they aired it as it was).

People in the streets can be truly elegant. :0)

[Brittany]

The tone of this is perfect! What a great nod to democracy G :)

[Teresa]

Love the Windstar reference.  As long as she doesn't have stick figure kids and soccer balls on the back window, I can hang with Marge.

[Angela]

I am a tail-end boomer, so was too young for a lot of the action - but I sure enjoyed watching those guys really shake things up.  My big contribution to the spirit of protest was a raggy pair of jeans with an ecology patch sewn on the butt.

[bolton carley]

great conversational tone, gita, and it seems completely legit, complete with picture.  well done.