[Jewelry making - Article 00160] - Re: [Orchid] Should Goldsmiths unionize/organize

[GaPawn]

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~Rant Alert~ 

>     I sense them wanting to feel themselves as exalted above the 
>     great mass of "slaves" or  however it is they think of ordinary
>     people. This is a manifestation  of the deeply ingrained "winners
>     vs. losers" attitude so prevalent - especially in the  US. 

    //pulls out his slightly rusty soap-box 

    Truthfully, I consider myself a pretty durn average bench jeweler
    who cares  about his customers and obsesses about the quality of his
    work. Never, have I ever, considered myself (ahem) an "exalted"
    individual. I *do*, however, consider myself ambitious and
    desirous of leading a life that has  as few entities dictating how I
    live that life, as possible. I do NOT understand how people who
    choose to stand on their own two feet are automatically considered
    to have a "winners vs. losers" attitude, whatever that  means. In my
    world there are successful individuals who work hard to succeed,
    never quit, and accept failure as simply another challenge to 
    overcome. Unmotivated individuals, on the other hand, look for the
    easy way out, seldom apply themselves, and desire protection from
    the real world. I have no concept of "winners vs. losers." Life is
    not a *game* at which we can either win or lose. 

    I find it interesting that the pro-union side of this debate
    unilaterally  agree that entrepreneur=bad and union=good. None of
    the pro-union voices have commented on the dues that are collected
    which are used/misused by a hierarchy whose highest priorities
    generally revolve around what is good for the hierarchy, and for
    the consolidation of power for said  hierarchy. Somewhere towards
    the bottom of that list of priorities the  welfare of the members
    generally comes into play, but usually only because the  members are
    recognized, vaguely, as the geese that lay the golden eggs. 
    Inevitably, "power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts
    absolutely." But  then I'm sure that there has never ever been a
    corrupt union official. Nor has a union ever priced themselves out
    of business... or something. 

    I don't want to *have* to strike if 51% of the membership (in a
    *fair* election) vote to strike. I don't want to be told how, when,
    and where I have to work, by union officials that want the "best"
    for the majority. I want to be able to turn my back on the
    unscrupulous employer by finding another place of employment. I
    cannot turn my back on an unscrupulous union if they "own" all the 
    jobs in a given city or region. An employer I can escape, a union I 
    cannot. 

>         And if they fail, for whatever reason, I think they'd feel a 
>     lot better being treated as though they have some generally
>     accepted right to live at a dignified level rather than to be a
>     charity case. 

    If I fail I have only myself to blame, as only I own my destiny. I
    am  not a helpless automaton, living my life only for the sole
    benefit of an  entrepreneur. Nor would I choose to live it for the
    benefit of a union official. And NO, I do NOT have a "right to live
    at a dignified level." I only have a  "right" to live at the level
    at which I am able to *provide* for myself and my family. If I had
    a "right" to live at a certain dignified level no matter how  poorly
    I performed, why should I bother to perform at all? Nor do I feel I
    have any right or desire for any charity, of any sort. Who is it
    that hands out these  aforementioned rights? And who is it that
    should be forced to take food out of their own children's mouths so
    that I can be afforded these rights? A person that desires
    cradle-to-grave security deserves no more than whatever leftovers 
    society cares to toss in their general direction. 

    I simply want to be left alone, to earn a living the best way that I
     possibly can, with as little outside interference as possible, from
    ANY entity. The old ways of self-reliance and self-sufficiency
    still live on in some  few of us. I have made it thus far solely
    upon my own abilities, and am quite satisfied with my rather less
    than stellar life to date. Since this  life is not a game, I am
    neither a winner nor a loser, I am simply a motivated survivor. 

    Please don't do me any favors by protecting me "for my own good." 

    //climbs back off his now polished and shiny soap-box..... 

    Steve (who has said all he has to say on this subject) Stempinski

Steve's Place
Jewelry Repair
While-U-Watch
706-342-7296

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