The State Of The Unions
With Labor Day approaching, here are some thoughts about American labor:
American labor and health care: For years this country has relied upon "employer provided" health insurance. As such, the insurance has been far from universal; that is, it has never come close to covering every American. When I was a kid, and contrary to some, that was not just after the Civil War (it was during the Spanish-American War, so there! "Remember the Maine!"), there were not all that many Americans covered by employer insurance. The number and percentage has certainly grown over the decades, but that didn't help those NOT covered during that same time period; many of whom I'm sure, now departed, suffered some very terrible illnesses or injuries, often leading to their deaths. Please folks, THINK! If you have insurance, what would you do if you DID NOT have it? If you lost your job (or your business) and the insurance that goes with it, what would you and your family do?
When President Bush (George W.) was in office, business people were complaining about having to compete against foreign companies where health care was government provided, not employer based. I guess I was wrong, but I thought business people wanted to move away from employer provided insurance. When this whole plan keeping employer provided insurance developed in Congress last year, I have to admit, I was stunned. The plan that eventually became law is far from perfect, but it is a start, "if," and that's a big "IF," additions and changes are made. When politicians get themselves into a position where "we just need to pass a damn bill" takes over, this is not the way to do major (if any) legislation.
I have tremendous respect for unions. I didn't say I always agree with unions on every issue, after all, this is America, and you don't have to agree with unions all of the time either to be generally supportive, but I've heard so much anti-union talk in recent years, it is scary. Many of the unions of this country put aside their own beliefs about health care and supported the congressional plan that became law. It was not the plan they really wanted, and I very much agree with them, but they worked their hearts out and spent lots of money that could have been used elsewhere to get this legislation. If you have been struggling to stay afloat and you've been complaining about your pay or benefits over the years, just stop and think where you would be if we didn't have unions. They set the standards many years ago, even for non-union employees. Part of the reason for the country's decline is that unions have also been in decline, and this has put the squeeze on the middle class. Unions didn't come about because a bunch of workers were just sitting around wondering what to do with their spare time. They didn't just suddenly come up with an idea to bedevil business people. They formed unions to try to make their lives better, and to make things fairer, after suffering some terrible working conditions for little pay. Forming unions didn't come cheaply either, as it cost lives, blood, and broken bones. American labor, and labor EVERYWHERE, deserve our salute!
WORD HISTORY:
Labor-This is the American spelling, but in Britain it is "labour." This is a fairly common word, but at present, I cannot find a link to an Indo European root, and for one reason, that's because the original Latin source is uncertain. Latin had "labor," possibly (this is the uncertain part) from the Latin verb "labere," which meant "to slip, to totter, to stagger." The idea for labor would then be "totter/stagger under a burden or work." Old French, a Latin-based language, continued with "labour," meaning "exertion, work, " and in conjunction, "plowing," and English then seems to have borrowed the word by 1300, also continuing with the French spelling. The verb form came to English at about the same time from French "labourer," which was from Latin "laborare." The verb form in some of the Latin-based languages (French, Portuguese, Spanish) kept the meaning "to plow," rather than the more general meaning "work." The "plowing" meaning was not taken on in English. "Labor," the noun form used for "working class," comes from usage during the 1830s. Its use as a part in childbirth is from the late 1500s. "Labor Day" is from New York City usage in 1882.
American labor and health care: For years this country has relied upon "employer provided" health insurance. As such, the insurance has been far from universal; that is, it has never come close to covering every American. When I was a kid, and contrary to some, that was not just after the Civil War (it was during the Spanish-American War, so there! "Remember the Maine!"), there were not all that many Americans covered by employer insurance. The number and percentage has certainly grown over the decades, but that didn't help those NOT covered during that same time period; many of whom I'm sure, now departed, suffered some very terrible illnesses or injuries, often leading to their deaths. Please folks, THINK! If you have insurance, what would you do if you DID NOT have it? If you lost your job (or your business) and the insurance that goes with it, what would you and your family do?
When President Bush (George W.) was in office, business people were complaining about having to compete against foreign companies where health care was government provided, not employer based. I guess I was wrong, but I thought business people wanted to move away from employer provided insurance. When this whole plan keeping employer provided insurance developed in Congress last year, I have to admit, I was stunned. The plan that eventually became law is far from perfect, but it is a start, "if," and that's a big "IF," additions and changes are made. When politicians get themselves into a position where "we just need to pass a damn bill" takes over, this is not the way to do major (if any) legislation.
I have tremendous respect for unions. I didn't say I always agree with unions on every issue, after all, this is America, and you don't have to agree with unions all of the time either to be generally supportive, but I've heard so much anti-union talk in recent years, it is scary. Many of the unions of this country put aside their own beliefs about health care and supported the congressional plan that became law. It was not the plan they really wanted, and I very much agree with them, but they worked their hearts out and spent lots of money that could have been used elsewhere to get this legislation. If you have been struggling to stay afloat and you've been complaining about your pay or benefits over the years, just stop and think where you would be if we didn't have unions. They set the standards many years ago, even for non-union employees. Part of the reason for the country's decline is that unions have also been in decline, and this has put the squeeze on the middle class. Unions didn't come about because a bunch of workers were just sitting around wondering what to do with their spare time. They didn't just suddenly come up with an idea to bedevil business people. They formed unions to try to make their lives better, and to make things fairer, after suffering some terrible working conditions for little pay. Forming unions didn't come cheaply either, as it cost lives, blood, and broken bones. American labor, and labor EVERYWHERE, deserve our salute!
WORD HISTORY:
Labor-This is the American spelling, but in Britain it is "labour." This is a fairly common word, but at present, I cannot find a link to an Indo European root, and for one reason, that's because the original Latin source is uncertain. Latin had "labor," possibly (this is the uncertain part) from the Latin verb "labere," which meant "to slip, to totter, to stagger." The idea for labor would then be "totter/stagger under a burden or work." Old French, a Latin-based language, continued with "labour," meaning "exertion, work, " and in conjunction, "plowing," and English then seems to have borrowed the word by 1300, also continuing with the French spelling. The verb form came to English at about the same time from French "labourer," which was from Latin "laborare." The verb form in some of the Latin-based languages (French, Portuguese, Spanish) kept the meaning "to plow," rather than the more general meaning "work." The "plowing" meaning was not taken on in English. "Labor," the noun form used for "working class," comes from usage during the 1830s. Its use as a part in childbirth is from the late 1500s. "Labor Day" is from New York City usage in 1882.
Labels: English, etymology, French, health care, Latin, President Obama, unions
posted by Randy at 11:57 AM
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