Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1947-12-12
Whats
New?

felt oh, so sorry for ourselves
because our weekly paycheck
wouldn't support us and our
families in the manner to
which we have been accus.
toned. What have we done
about it? Nothing. We just
moaned.
A 10-year-old sch oolboy
would realize that wage in
creases alone do not solve the
problem faced by the wage
Garner of 1947. The 1872 cents
and 11B cents obtained by
CIO unions since VI Day are
but drop in the bucket toward
meeting the skyrocketing cost
of living.
Big business has been on
Roman holiday for seven years.
Wartime profits were stupen.
dous, postwar profits many
times greater. There are more
governmental antitrust suits
pending today than ever in the
history of our country. It's
snatch and grab it," and may
the little man take the hind
most.
Protected by the likes of
Taft, Ball, Ramey, Clare Hoff-
man and other union-busting,
consumer-soaking representa-
tives of the people," monopo-
lies have gone hog wild, their
audacity unbridled. All that is
lacking right now is a man
power commission to tie us to
our jobs permanently.
OUR OWN FAULT
How much sympathy do we
deserve, really?
/ say none" There are
three channels of escape from
the rotten state of affairs we
are in today. We have used
none of the three. Whose fault
is that?
We voted not at all, or for
our enemies.
We either did not organize,
or lacked interest in union af-
fairs.
We failed miserably on the
consumer front
Can we be beaten into the
union, into voting for decent
representatives, into organic.
ing our buying power?
The answer is mo" AS Ber-
tram Fowler points out in his
excellent book, "The Co.opera-
tive Challenge" membership
in any democratic society en-
tails the personal responsible
ity Of each individual member,
and this responsibility must be
increased In ratio to the growth
and expansion of the society"
We have defeated ourselves
in these past seven years by
our refusal to accept a personal
responsibility. We have been
wrong in our thinking because
we began on wrong basis. We
have taken the position that
the job at hand belonged not
to us but TO a lot of other peo.
pie, Or perhaps to a small
group. Or to a leader
1t is this thinking that char
acteriZed the failure of many
an AFL union. 1t is the refusal
to accept the responsibility of
educating and expanding that
weakened the European Con-
sumner Cooperative movement
In Germany and which allowed
Adolf Hitler to rise to power.
IT'S OUR MOVE!
High prices are the direct
result of our refusal to take
the initiative in organizing our
buying power into Consumer
Co-operatives. Instead of in
vesting a few dollars or a few
hundred into a Supermarket
which we, ourselves, would
own and operate, we have
handed over our wages to the
Atlantic a. Pacific Tea Som
pany and Standard Brands,
Inc.
In our monumental ignor.
ance we have placed our saw
ings in the more respected"
banks with marble halls and
walls, where we draw from
one TO two percent interest per
annum. The credit union, our.
own bank, democratic organ
ization, isn't safe" enough or
fancy enough to suit us.
We'd rather give our money
away in the next Wall Street
crash than draw three or four
percent doing business with
our friends and for ourselves.
So while we pay 60 cents for
a lb. of wieners, 75c for dozen
eggs, and 90 cents for a pound
of butter, we go right on be-
lieving what the monopoly
spokesman and the literary
prostitutes of the kept press
tell us about economic, unions,
politics, taxes, and legislation.
1t is high time for an
awakening. II we want steak
instead of sympathy Wen beat
a path TO the Cooperative door
and pronto. Wen attend our
union meetings, paying more
attention TO principles than
politics. Wen get set for the
'48 elections above all else,
and concentrate on the inn