Thousands of dockworkers protest war in Iraq

Bravo, dockworkers:

Yesterday, more than 25,000 dockworkers in 29 West Coast ports stayed off the job in order to protest the Iraq war, according to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. “Longshore workers are standing down on the job and standing up for America,” Bob McEllrath, the union’s president, said in a statement. “We’re supporting the troops and telling politicians in Washington that it’s time to end the war in Iraq.”

The organized labor working for peace. I hope this is a sign of things to come.

Comments

[Cass]

How dare those latte-sippers besmirch the glorious tradition of Obedience Day!

http://wonkette.com/386089/happy-may-day-loyalty-day-commiesfascists

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

A stevedore hopped up on triple skinny lattes is a force to be reckoned with!

[mudkitty]

There's a news black out, out here.

[Melissa Lebo]

Lindsay-- We read this originally on Reuters and have looked for the story elsewhere. It seems to be nowhere ! We didn't hear it mentioned on CNN, which we watched way too much last night. I didn't see in LA Times or SF Gate. What's up?
I think it is a wonderful sign of hope... as is the refusal of African dock workers to unload weapons from a Chinese ship that were headed toward Zimbabwe !

[Melissa Lebo]

I take it back-- here it is today in NYTIMES.http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/02/us/01cnd-port.html?hp

[Chowderhead]

One of the main reasons that Clifford Clark and the so-called wise men turned against the War in Vietnam was when Clark's contacts in business began to believe that the war was hurting the economy. U.S. ports are a choke point for U.S. commerce - that's why these longshoreman unions are so powerful. - A shut down like this causes problems for companies like Wall Mart that depend on imports via West Coast Ports

[voxy]

In many locales we citizens joined in this in support of the longshore workers.
Instead they called it an 'immigrant rights' rally.
Another sign of how the MSM and the right have spun the movements.
Because, in all honesty, it WAS NOT an immigrant rights rally. It was an impeachment/end the war rally.
Promoted by various groups who joined the longshoremen.
I've been kinda incensed about this so thanks for the coverage.
I noticed early on that every time an impeachment/end the war demo went on that the immigrant rights protesters would make an appearance. This is at least the fifth time ... I liken this to charlie crist gov. of florida having all his rich friends come up to tallahassee (the capitol of floriduh) and hold up obviously pricey and professionally designed signs to BEG for property tax cuts. Which is how charlie and his acolyte RUBIO ushered in both gambling and placing a not wanted by the citizens SALES tax increase on the ballot come november. Now, understand that will pass whether anyone votes for it OR NOT.
I say all of this in the spirit of INFORMATION.
I am a proud immigrant of immigrant parents and grand parents. We are ALL immigrants when it comes right down to it.
I support human rights.
The immigrants and the farmworkers I see protesting in Florida are ANYTHING BUT. They are plants by the Republican party to spin the movement for peace and impeachment as something else.
I want more people to catch on.

[Dr. Psycho]

A "sign of things to come".

well, I hope so, but my hope is a small and skittish creature these days.

I'm reminded of the last days of the USSR, when a group of striking miners took over the mine and started running it as a co-op. I read of it in an anarchist magazine which headlined it, "Russian Workers Seize Control of the Means of Production".

Oh, well....

[greensmile]

while we are mentioning genitalia, it seems appropriate to applaud labor having rediscovered its balls.

[Greensmile]

Think "Gdansk", Bush and his frat boys probably should be thinking of that about now. Wouldn't it be a sweet irony if the US equivalent of solidarnosc helped take down the Bush that is the fruit of Regan's legacy when it was Reagan who was given credit in the US for changes that Solidarnosc had much more to do with?

[Greensmile]

Think "Gdansk", Bush and his frat boys probably should be thinking of that about now. Wouldn't it be a sweet irony if the US equivalent of solidarnosc helped take down the Bush that is the fruit of Regan's legacy when it was Reagan who was given credit in the US for changes that Solidarnosc had much more to do with?