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"Solidarity forever..." (was Re: A sobering encounter (So now what?))
Subject:"Solidarity forever..." (was Re: A sobering encounter (So now what?)) From:"Richard G. Combs" <richard -dot- combs -at- voyanttech -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Tue, 3 Dec 2002 14:38:30 -0700
Keith Cronin's anonymous correspondent wrote:
> Oh, please. Talk about naive. This, go-it-alone, self-made man meritocracy
nonsense has been everyone's excuse to avoid facing the truth about an
employer-dominated workplace since serfdom was in fashion. The truth is,
it's simple economics. A union is the working stiff's only defense against
the power of an entire *industry*. <snip>
The haunting strains of "Joe Hill" ran through my mind as I wondered what
Keith had said to trigger this bitter response. Reviewing Keith's most
recent post, I'm guessing it must have been:
> Again I say, if you want the marketplace to value the contributions of
tech writers, start as an army of one - start by making the marketplace
value YOU. And if we ALL do that, we CAN influence the marketplace.
>
I guess Mr./Ms. "working stiff" either (A) doesn't think individual tech
writers can make themselves valuable in the marketplace or (B) doesn't think
a large number of tech writers doing so will have a cumulative positive
effect on the profession.
Psychotherapist Nathaniel Branden once uttered a marvelous tongue-in-cheek
comment about behaviorism: (I'm paraphrasing) When a man tells me either
that he doesn't think or that it doesn't matter whether he thinks or not,
I'm inclined to take his word for it.
Along those lines, I'd say this about Keith's pen pal in the Wobblies
T-shirt: When a man tells me either that he can't make himself valuable in
the marketplace or that it doesn't matter to his profession whether he does
so or not, I'm inclined to take his word for it.
;-)
Richard
------
Richard G. Combs
Senior Technical Writer
Voyant Technologies, Inc.
richardDOTcombs AT voyanttechDOTcom
303-223-5111
------
rgcombs AT freeDASHmarketDOTnet
303-777-0436
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