Center for Union Lies
(Photo: Peering into obscurity, where does one circle end and the other begin? You tell me.)
A couple of days ago, the right-wing wonks at the inaptly monickered “Center for Union Facts”, an arch-conservative national front group fighting tooth and nail to put down America’s workers and remove any and all union protections that enable America’s middle class to organize for a better life, took me to task for supporting the Employee Free Choice Act. Me, a modest, little Chicago blogger. When the national opposition sees fit to criticize the little guy on the merits of the argument (and I’m not the only little guy to get the treatment by far, for one, read Prison Ship’s post on the same topic), that’s pretty stunning evidence that the argument holds water in my book.
Today, the scallywags over at CUL (er, I mean CUF) are having a cow that I’ve been helping to organize my fellow bloggers about the Employee Free Choice Act. They honed in on a quote from Bernie O’Hare, a blogger who supports the Act on his Lehigh Valley Ramblings Blog:
“He discloses he’s doing this for the AFL-CIO”.
And then CUF goes on to say (ok, regular readers, pull out your chuckle bags here):
“Why was Chicago Carless hiding this from his readers?”
OK, kids, let’s review. Seven Days at Minimum Wage? Employee Free Choice Act blogged about in February? Last year’s Chicago big-box wage debate? Can you say ACORN? AFL-CIO? Anyone out there in Chicago not know that I find local organizing for employee empowerment to be the bees knees, and the AFL-CIO to be one of the most important workers’ rights organizations in America?
I didn’t think so.
You’re a little late to the party, oh muckraking CUFfers, but that’s OK. On and off the dime, I have helped out America’s Labor movement on the blogosphere and will continue to do so as long as I have a pulpit. And if anyone comes to me and asks me to participate in an outreach project, it’s because my reputation as a committed Progressive precedes me, not because I’m shilling.
Speaking of shilling, exactly who is paying your bills, dear CUFfers? Hmm?
Does anyone else hear crickets right now, or is it just me? If you do, that’s because Rick Berman, CUF head honcho and lobbyist for the alcohol and tobacco industries (can you see where this is headed?), refuses to disclose the source of CUF funds.
it’s a typical right-wing strategy: accuse the opposition of doing exactly what you’re doing yourself.
And that, folks, is as ironic a punch line as you’ll likely ever read on Carless.
Other posts you might like from Chicago Carless:
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This summer, when I jumped head-first into Chicago's big-box wage debate, I repeatedly said that the best way to promote a wage increase was at the state level. Little did I suspect that, three months later, I would be selected for the national publicity team of a week-long, ACORN/AFL-CIO sponsored Internet campaign to rai...
When CTA Doomsday eliminated 20% of Chicago bus service in February, labor leaders expected a public outcry from stranded transit riders to help save the jobs of 1,100 bus union workers. Instead, riders took the cutbacks in stride--because any rider with a smart phone can instantly find out exactly when the next bus is comi...
You must be doing something right! But it says something about how much union-busting money they must have that they can afford to sit around reading local bloggers for, gasp!, evidence that they support workers rights.
Thanks for the words of encouragement, Ann. Re: the money they have laying around, that’s my thinking entirely. Don’t they have anything better to do with their time? You know, like eating babies or drinking the blood of virgins (or whatever else it is that arch-conservatives find amusing)?
Mike,
Sorry if my post caused you any trouble. But I don’t know how that outfit, which refuses to diclose the source of its funding, can slam you when you were honest with me.
Oh no, Bernie. No trouble at all, I’m happy you covered the Employee Free Choice Act! The only trouble–at all–is that groups like CUF refuse to listen to reason.