If only the American working class had the chutzpah the illegals have.

[Deja Q]

They all took a day off in an attempt to show the country they are important.

Okey doke.

They're back to work and school today... but the repercussions? None.

I doubt that's why America's in-built working class would never do such a thing.

Should I now change my attitude and be for offshoring and offpeopling.

Hell, if nobody's in America for America anymore, why play the same worthless game of "we deserve respect and not exploitation"?

Illegals are out for themselves... corporations are out for themselves. Lawmakers, lawbreakers, let us denounce them all. (Won't do anything in the end; reaction works only when a significant chunk of the people stop what they are doing for more than just one day... and people have their kids to feed and mortgages to pay.)

Like I've said. We have them exactly where they want us.

[Saturday]

1. I hear you. n/t

[JDPriestly]

2. Good point.

[ShortnFiery]

3. I have great faith in the American Working Class ...

They haven't felt the pain enough. When they wake up, it will be awesome. This Administration and Republican Led Congress is in such a hurry to make the rich richer and the poor poorer, the time will come SOONER rather than later.

At that time, We'll All Be Considered "Little Brown People" by The Power Brokers in The Corporate World = The Working and Middle classes against the Investor and Ruling classes. Bring it on! :P

[malaise]

4. Bingo

That's one of my reasons for supporting the protests. It will wake up the rest of the country. My other reason for supporting the protests is that were it not for policies promoted by the IMF, World Bank, GATT, WTO, etc. (all emanating from the big rich countries and led by Washington), people would stay home.

When the US government supports dictators who do the bidding for transnational corporations, when the US goverment supports dictators who have destroyed our labour movements, when the US government promotes policies that lead to devaluation, privatization and minimalist government (destruction of education, health, transport services) and critically to the destruction of the indigenous agricultural and manufacturing sectors across the globe, when the US government promotes policies that have destroyed jobs for working people across the globe, did they not understand that people would migrate by any means necessary to provide for their children.

Put simply, we have a global pandemic fuelled by policies designed to support the transnational corporations. This makes the 'bird flu' look like chicken feed. The chicken hawks fugged up; the chickens are coming home to roost and I am having a damn good laugh.
Edit - Gr.

[vi5]

5. What I want to know about the protests is...

Were there people/groups there with "Free Mumia" signs? Or anti-Death Penalty Signs? Or American Communist Party signs? Or Pro Marijuana Legalization signs? Or other signs completely unrelated to the subject of illegal immigration? Or did the media just not show that aspect of it like they tended to do with the war protests? I don't want to get into a debate over the merits of any of those things. I just think that other protests have been more easily painted with the brush of not being focused on the issue at hand. Not sure if that is a result of the media not choosing to portray that on this issue or if it legitimately was more focused and without the side issues having nothing to do with the subject at hand.

[Deja Q]

6. Dunno, but that happens everywhere in any fringe demonstration.

They feel they make a point. Except it's the wrong point and that it's not relevant.

And it's silly.

Hell, even in gay pride parades, the PETA and pot people are there looking as out of place as ever.

[vi5]

7. I know but the thing is...

That the media put those people front and center when they determine that the subject of the protest is not worthy of taking seriously. I noticed that wasn't the case with this one.

[Deja Q]

11. The media is also said to be pro-Bush.

Bush wants "reform". But hardly for the reasons we on the Left want.

Even unions like AFSCME have said "We support this... blah blah blah... all working families should have proper wages... blah blah blah..." They can support Bush too, but we're still seeing wages go down...

[Acebass]

15. I like the way you think!...n/t

[Captain Hilts]

10. VERY good question Vi5...

I, too, was looking for signs in reference to other causes.

It's maddening how liberal protests seem constitutionally incapable of being "on point" as the organized say. No matter what the cause you'll see some form of Communist/Socialist banner, then the placards with Che on them. I didn't even see a 'Che' sign in any of the coverage I saw yesterday.

Perhaps they were focused. If so, hats off to them.

[AllieB]

8. Bread and Circuses

As long as working-class and middle-class Americans are fed a steady diet of reality TV and rags-to-riches stories, they'll always be more interested in buying that plasma TV on credit and putting themselves in debt than protesting against the status quo.

[Captain Hilts]

9. A lot of Working Class believes "If you work hard, you can make it."

A surprising percentage have bought into that. Mostly white, young men actually.

I was a pollster. It was maddening reading this stuff.

[dusty64]

12. I said something similar

to my partner this morning. My morning rag had headlines of the walkout and I thought these people many who are not even citizens have more of a clue of what democracy is supposed to be than the average American. If the middle and working class rose up and had a boycott, walkout, and shutdown and demanded ENOUGH of this corrupt corporate government our nightmare would be OVER in a matter of days. Sad that the People do not realize the power at their fingertips and all it would take is a fairly small effort, hopefully maybe the actions taken my some the last few days will give them a clue.

[Squeech]

13. I came here for an argument

and I'm not perceiving one.

Are you saying that yesterday's job action was pointless? I disagree, I think just for the media attention alone it accomplished something significant: it demonstrated to white America just how much we take brown America for granted. (Steve Gilliard, one of the leading bloggers of black America, posted something that was very nearly the equivalent of jealousy, that his people haven't accomplished anything comparable since the days of Martin Luther King.)

Regarding the idea that nobody in America is for America, I think that's been the case for a very long time. Identity politics is the rule, and it's just more explicit now. The great triumph of the Repukes is the absolute discrediting of the common good; nowadays competition trumps cooperation in any arena you can name, and all games are zero sum. Except if that's the case, then workers should recognize that their only recourse is labor solidarity, because employers recognize nothing else. So the American people don't even believe what we profess-- but again, what else is new?

I'm not posting just to jerk your chain, I really don't see what you mean here, unless it's just outrage fatigue.

[Triana]

14. They have us over the proverbial barrel.....

...we also have taxation without representation. WHO is representing us in gov't?

N O B O D Y.

But we're taxed to Hell and back - for WHAT?

War....is that it?

Stop paying taxes and they'll come after you, nevermind that it's unconstitional that we're taxed by them with NO REPRESENTATION.

We're screwed.

[Acebass]

16. But we don't have to put up with it...