E D I T O R I A L

Peak Performance
Leaders of the NSW trade union movement gathered this week to consider the role of their peak council in an increasingly deregulated labour market.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: Labor Law
NSW Attorney General Bob Debus expands on how he's bought a Labor agenda to the justice system

Unions: Critical Conditions
Jim Marr looks at one man's story to expose the workers compensdation rorts that are rife in the building industry

Bad Boss: Shifting The Load
Barminco, the biggest mine operator in Tasmania, has put its name forward for a Tony after being labeled the �boss from hell�.

History: Peeking Out
As unions push for workplace privacy, Neale Towart argues that its not just employers who might be peeking.

Safety: Flying High
Blaming the individual worker has always been at the heart of calls for random drug and alcohol testing, Neal Towart reports.

Corporate: Salaries High, Performance Low
As part of Labor Council's inquiry into executive pay, Bosswatch's Chris Owen has compiled this overview.

International: War on the US Wharves
Thousands of US dockworkers held rallies this week up and down America�s West Coast as well as in Hawaii, as the Bush Administration threatened to break one of America�s most powerful unions by using troopers as strike breakers.

Review: And the Signs Said...
Philip Farruggio argues the new horror flick 'The Signs' has a subtext that should resonate with working families.

Poetry: Tony Don't Preach
Melbourne car park attendant and LHMU delegate Tony Duras rewrote the Madonna and Kelly Osbourne hit Papa Don�t Preach.

Satire: Latham Dumps Rodney Rude as Speech Writer
ALP front-bencher, Mark Latham has fired speech writer Rodney Rude after calling the Prime Minister an 'arse-licker'.

N E W S

Qantas Dressed Down Over Uniform Backflip

Virgin Threatens Delegate Over Net Use

Email Protection Hits Firewall

Yarra Gets Rowdy Welcome Home

Cole Snubs Injured Worker

Victorian System Needs Reform: AIRC

First NEST Payout to Workers

Qld Public Sector Battle Heats Up

Community Workers Eye Canberra Show Down

Lift Techs Face Redundancy Lock Out

Council Workers Win Picnic Day Fight

School Support Staff Demand Recongition

Black Chicks Talk At Refuge Fundraiser

Colombian Left MP Applying For Asylum

Activist Notebook

C O L U M N S

Politics
Colour By Numbers
Labor council secretary John Robertson argues that the 60-40 debate ignores the real changes necessary in the ALP.

The Soapbox
Peas in a Pod
ACTU President Sharan Burrow gives her take on the new fetish for Public-Private Partnerships

The Locker Room
Go Dogs Go
As a student of form, Phil Doyle discovers that the Greyhounds are coming up in class and are all the better for recent racing.

Bosswatch
Rayland And Other Adventures
More evidence emerges in the HIH Royal Commission of the joys of life at the Top End of Town.

Human Rights
Tampa Day
Monday 26th August is no celebration, but the first anniversary of a National Shame should be recognised, writes Amanda Tattersall.

L E T T E R S

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And the Signs Said...

******************

Just went to view the new "summer blockbuster movie" "Signs". To me, M. Night Shyamalan, the director who brought us the excellent film "Sixth Sense" has created, in all candor, a replica of the standard 1950s sci-fi B movie.

Film critiques aside, "Signs" does offer a parody to what's presently threatening the majority of U.S. families: "Elites". Since these super rich are so far removed from the other 99 percent, they are truly "alien" to us. The aliens in the film, sneaking around using crop signs to signal their ships, reminds one of how the "1 percent" top dogs in our economy operate. As in the film, our "aliens" also have to reveal their "signs" to us--if we dare open our eyes to look.

During the 2001 California "energy Crisis" Vice President Cheney was placed in charge of the committee to "save California's consumer" (for whom?). Their premier recommendation: "build some Nuclear plants" - strange advice for an earthquake prone state, no? Not really, when you hear the name Brown and Root Co. (based in Texas) as the biggest builder of nuclear plants. Guess who they're a subsidiary of? Halliburton Corp. (presently under dark dark clouds of fiscal impropriety). Guess who was the former CFO of good ole (boy) Halliburton? I give you Claude Rains from Casablanca to exclaim: "I'm shocked to find out it was Dick Cheney!"

Lets move to suggestion #2 from this "humanitarian" energy committee. They stated we needed to drill for oil in the Arctic Wildlife Reserve--yet California does not burn oil in its power plants! Guess what committee member gave his okay for this Alaskan drilling scenario? None other than good ole Don Evans, Bush's Secretary of Commerce. What was Don's private sector job before he "volunteered" to serve America? Claude: "I'm shocked to find out he was CEO of Tom Brown, Inc., a billion dollar oil and gas corporation!"

In 1998 Bush Sr. lobbied on behalf of Mirage Casino Corp. (great name hah?) to have Argentina's President Carlos Menem grant them a gambling license. Soon after his efforts, Mirage Corp. "donated" $449,000 to the Republican Party (just in time to help with Jr's "run for the oval"). Poppa Bush also wrote to the Kuwait oil minister, lobbying on behalf of Chevron Oil Corp.-- they in turn donated $657,000 to the Repubs. Senior Strub was retained to speak to the Global Crossing Corp. board (now under dark clouds of impropriety) and earned himself $13 million in stock - the company soon after kicked in approximately one million to the "party of Lincoln". Boy, those "crop signs" are all over the place.

Finally, the Income Study Project has found that from 1983-97, 1 percent of Americans owned 85.5 percent of our wealth. During that period, U.S. personal income zoomed-- yet 4 out of 5 families received a 0percent increase! As far as the stock market: that same 1 percent of our population owns $2.9 trillion of the $3.5 trillion invested in U.S. stocks and bonds. Is this because our working folk are not productive? Well, since 1983 U.S. workers produce more per hour (up 17 percent) while earning less in real wages (down 3.1 percent).

Near the end of "Signs" the family under alien siege are huddled together, securing themselves in the basement. Outside the locked and bolted door we can hear the aliens scampering about, banging and thinking of ways to get at the frightened family.

The film does have a happy ending. Can we say the same for the 99 percent of us?

Philip Farruggio, son of a longshoreman, is "Blue Collar Brooklyn" born, raised and educated (Brooklyn College, Class of '74). A former progressive talk show host, Philip runs a mfg. rep. business and writes for many publications. He lives in Port Orange, FL. You can contact Mr. Farruggio at e-mail: [email protected].

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Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005