#twu corruption

[sublimeobservationarcade]

Australians Are Really Dumb

Australians are really dumb if you go by their behaviour over the last 20 years. They have bought the whole anti-union narrative spruiked by conservative politicians like John Howard, Tony Abbott, Scott Morrison and their ilk. These guys demonised and attempted to criminalise unionists and their ALP mates. The whole anti-Bill Shorten campaign painted Bill as some union crook – for which there was no real evidence. Despite this voters bought it hook, line and sinker. Now, we are where we find ourselves with record low wage growth over decades. Unions stripped of power by laws. Labour hire companies ripping off workers. Workers with bugger all rights. Big companies lording it over little workers with no bargaining power.

Shabby Australians Deserve Qantas

Qantas has finally been pulled up by the High Court of Australia – after the unions took them on and fought their appeal against the wrongful dismissal of 1, 700 baggage handlers during the Covid pandemic. Australians didn’t stand up to Qantas, the Coalition government backed them with billions of tax payer’s money, whilst Virgin went down the gurgler. Australians have become pretty shabby people, sitting back and watching workers being shafted by Corporate Australia and not saying boo.

Alan Joyce has been an absolute disgrace, as Qantas CEO for years and years. Under his leadership this once great company has become a vampire for shareholders. Sucking the life out of long serving staff and treating its customers like shit. “ "It now stands their actions against these Qantas families as the largest sacking in Australian corporate history that has been found to be illegal," Transport Workers' Union national secretary, Michael Kaine said in the minutes after the landmark verdict was handed down. "These workers have been put through hell. Their families have been put through hell. Their lives have been dislocated, some of them forever … that's the consequence of this illegal decision.” - (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-14/qantas-workers-high-court-illegally-sacked-twu-compensation-bill/102848854)

Qantas flying off with your money

Joyce Took Australia On A Joy Ride At Our Expense

Australians are only just waking up to the litany of unfair and low life actions taken by the airline’s management and board. Joyce has walked away with $24 million in bonuses, after destroying the culture and reputation of a once mighty business and brand. Australians and Qantas shareholders should hang their heads in shame really. We all sat back and watched the destruction of people’s lives and livelihoods. What for? All for money, of course. We have very few standards of morality left in this nation, especially after a decade of Coalition governments under the guise of liars like Morrison and leering scumbags like Abbott.

Dirty Deeds Done In Australia Think about Robodebt and the disgraceful and unlawful scheme of these same jokers. Vulnerable people, wrongly accused of owing thousands of dollars, killed themselves. Ponder on the billions of dollars going to companies like PwC and KPMG, who have been taking the Australian people for a very expensive ride. These are Coalition initiatives and trends massaged and mined for every penny possible. Insider mates getting all the plumb jobs and big government contracts without the normal scrutiny that the public service would be under. Opaque transparency in shady town. Stuart Robert and Alan Tudge have scarpered already to avoid taking any responsibility. Marise Payne has likewise ducked out of the building, just in case people are actually held accountable. I would not hold your breath, however. Australia is a white collar crime and corruption Mecca. Only poor and powerless people get prosecuted and go to prison.

Neoliberal champions who led us where we find ourselves - ripped off by our own economy! Governments Need To Get Back In The Game Of Building Things Will Australians awake from their slumber and pay attention to WTF is going on? Neoliberalism still haunts the halls of power and politics, despite having delivered zero results for the majority of us. The ALP needs to get its head out of its arse and stop playing it safe. The ALP still sucks on the teat of neoliberalist economic beliefs. The housing crisis is a direct result of government neglect in this regard. The market will not take care of everything – that is complete bullshit. Pull your finger out Albo! The housing fund is a cocka-doodle crock of monetary madness. We need governments to get back in the game of building infrastructure – like houses where the working poor can live. It is an emergency and the market is not going to magic up a shit load of social housing.

Richard Goyder Must Go Goyder must go, as he has been the enabler in the whole Alan Joyce disaster. Qantas has been accused by the ACCC of selling seats to 10, 000 customers, which had already been cancelled. This could cost the airline a fine of $250 million. Australian must get back to holding Corporate Australia accountable for its actions. The LNP anything goes days are over. Australians would be best served to remember who has led this trashing of our standards. John Howard used to boast about making us all shareholders. Well, the vast majority of Australians are not shareholders but we have been screwed by Corporate Australia. High prices and rising inflation have been caused by a profit-price-spiral. Record profits have been announced by Qantas and the banks. The duopolies and oligopolies means that they can set the prices in most markets. The ACCC has failed us in terms of protecting competition. Our governments have been asleep at the wheel or looking the other way on the back of grift and graft. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQKnazRIEc8 Australians Are Not What They Used To Be Australians are only really arcing up right now because airfares are really expensive. Self-centred shabby Aussies did bugger all when Joyce was sacking airline staff left, right and centre. Neoliberal economics has pervaded the leadership of our nation and gutted things like mateship and social justice. People are just out for what they can get. Scumbags are the new normal downunder. You know unions have done a lot for this country over the journey. Apart from protecting the basic rights of workers, they have been involved in preserving things like our historical buildings, anti-apartheid campaigns against South Africa, fighting for equal pay for Australian women, and getting equal pay for Indigenous workers on cattle stations. “In January 1965 the North Australian Workers’ Union lodged an application with the Arbitration Commission to delete the provision of the award covering workers at cattle stations that prevented Indigenous workers from gaining equal rights. A campaign of public pressure in support of the claim for wage equality was launched across the country. The Cattle Producers Council submitted a series of racist arguments to the Commission, degrading the contribution of Indigenous workers to the industry.  In March 1966 the commission handed down its decision in favour of equal wages – but in a racist insult to Indigenous workers, deferred this equality until December 1968. Indigenous pastoral workers took action, demanding equality immediately. “ - (https://www.actu.org.au/about-the-actu/history-of-australian-unions) If you have ever lived or spent some time in regional Australia you will well know the heightened level of racism in these communities. Not everyone, of course, but far more blatant expressions of racism than in the city are frequently voiced. You have to ask yourself why is Queensland, especially in the regional parts so racist and anti-union? A history of blackbirding – the indented servitude or enslavement of First Nations people – exists there. The current folk are the descendants of such people. The Lutheran German migrants and other European migrants are well known to be anti-union on the basis of their experiences in their old countries. They hand these attitudes down to their progeny for better or worse. Interestingly the polls predict that Queensland and Tasmania will be bastions for the No vote in the October referendum on the voice to parliament for Indigenous Australians. Two states where massacres of First Nations people were prominent in our history. Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of Money Matters: Navigating Credit, Debt, and Financial Freedom. ©WordsForWeb

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[natequarter]

Ten Rules For Writing Tudor Fiction:

Henry VII should be depicted as a cruel miser who ruined the nobility with his Evil Taxes. Ignore any evidence that his marriage to Elizabeth of York was mutually loving and respectful; he should treat her with the utmost contempt, and she should be a passive victim. (Implications of incest are optional, but remember: if it's Henry VII and his mother, this is always bad; if it's Elizabeth of York and her uncle, this is clearly twu wuv.) If you simply wish to skip Henry VII's reign entirely, ignore all of the above. Twenty-four years, after all, is not a very long time.

Henry VIII should show signs of inherent evil and hold aspirations of becoming king from a young age. This is understandable, because Arthur should be portrayed as a frequently ill weakling. The loss of his mother should be a devastating blow to the young Henry. The loss of his father, however, should be treated as Henry finally escaping the influence of an abusive tyrant.

If possible, avoid mention of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon's marriage or any possibility that it was at any point loving. Twenty-four years, after all, is not a very long time—see Rule 1. Make sure to foreshadow their daughter burning heretics for good measure.

Any and all accusations made against Anne Boleyn should be accepted at face value. Ditto Katherine Howard. If you can infantilise and sexualise Katherine Howard at the same time, then even better.

At some point Henry VIII should go from being youthful, athletic, and handsome, and thus honourable, to fat, disgusting, and disabled, in other words evil. See Rule 2.

Protestantism is actually what the English population wanted all along, and medieval Catholicism is an entirely corrupt institution, except for Thomas More, who is a saint. Literally. Ignore any possibility that Protestants could also behave immorally—only Catholics are greedy hypocrites, and only Protestants can provide enlightenment or educate women. Except, again, for Thomas More.

Nobody wants to read a novel about Edward VI. If you must insist on mentioning him, make sure to focus on Thomas Seymour and sexualise his abuse of Elizabeth I. Don't forget that Edward was a sickly child and that John Dudley, much like his father and sons, was the source of all evil in the Tudor era. Also, make sure to portray Lady Jane Grey as viciously abused by her parents. That bit's vital.

Nobody wants to read a novel about Mary I either. Her efforts to restore Catholicism should be portrayed as wildly unpopular and doomed to failure. Make sure to skip most of her reign except for the unpopularity of her marriage to Philip, her failure as a woman, and her burning of heretics, unless you wish to be revisionist, in which case the horrific executions of hundreds of innocent people should be construed as feminist.

Now you can focus on Robert Dudley and Elizabeth I! Woohoo! This is the good bit, and all anyone cares about. Protestantism has finally been restored, for the good of England. Make sure to give them a torrid love affair (the earl of Essex works as an alternative once Robert Dudley is dead). Illegitimate children are also acceptable, no matter how unrealistic. Also make sure to throw in some patriotism and point out the embarrassing failures of Mary, Queen of Scots and the Spanish Armada. (See Rule 8 for more on Philip II.)

Shakespeare. Yep, Shakespeare. Make sure to chuck him in there somewhere. It's not Tudor England without Shakespeare, even though he's only relevant for a fraction of the period. Shakespeare, guys! What more do you need to know?

why does every period of history come with its own set of Outlandish Stereotypes which are exaggerated to extents you wouldn't believe possible in the historical fiction set in that era? why can't we have nice things

[ao3feed-spirk]

Dawnbreaker:Despair's Counterattack

read it on the AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/40201755

by Leyenar_The_Avenger

(Or:How Jaylah Went From Twisted Anti-Hero To Actual "Good Girl")

A strange woman wearing a green ring, a warrior from Earth's past and a seemingly sentient sphere...Sounds pretty weird, right? But this band of misfits came together for a reason, and the heroic crew of the Enterprise are soon about to learn that.

The woman, Jaylah, is the sole survivor of the space pirate clan Sitrian, the second-born daughter of its leader. Her family and her clan were wiped out years ago, by an evil man named Krall who she slew using her ring which, apparently, the universe bestowed upon her. She fueled it with the void in her soul, overcharging the ring with her corrupt willpower and avenged her family.

Afterwards, she embarked on a space adventure, meeting her two companions in the process. Now she has taken it upon herself to right all the wrongs in this universe...as its first Green Lantern!

When strange new villains arise, and sinister scoundrels poison the mind of the meek...only one person can save the day, and you will know her name.

Words: 2077, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of Dawnbreaker:The Legend Of Jaylah

Fandoms: Green Lantern - All Media Types, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies), Star Trek/Green Lantern: The Spectrum War, Star Trek/Green Lantern: Stranger Worlds, Independence Day (Movies)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/F, Gen, M/M

Characters: Jaylah (Star Trek), Khan Noonien Singh | John Harrison, USS Vengeance, Crew of the Starship Enterprise, Thaal Sinestro, Hal Jordan (Green Lantern), Diana (Wonder Woman), Carol Ferris, USS Enterprise, Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, John Stewart (DCU), Kilowog (DCU), Aya (Green Lantern), Ganthet (DCU), Sayd (DCU), Original Characters, Elizabeth Dehner, and the cast of thousands, Green Lantern Jaylah (Star Trek) - Character

Relationships: Jaylah & Khan Noonien Singh, Jaylah (Star Trek)/Romulan Commander (Star Trek TOS: Enterprise Incident), Jaylah & Kalara (Star Trek), Hal Jordan/Thaal Sinestro, Khan Noonien Singh/USS Vengeance, James T. Kirk/Spock, Carol Ferris/Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, Carol Marcus/Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Nyota Uhura/Original Male Character, Kilowog (DCU)/Original Female Character(s), Guy Gardner/Original Female Character(s), Ganthet/Sayd (DCU), Christine Chapel/Gary Mitchell, Alexander Marcus & Gary Mitchell, Gaila/Keenser (Star Trek: Alternate Original Series), Ganthet (DCU) & Jaylah (Star Trek) & Sayd (DCU), Janice Rand/Kyle Rayner, Thaal Sinestro & USS Vengeance, Mirror James T. Kirk/Mirror Spock, Alexander Marcus/Khan Noonien Singh, Jaylah/Alexander Marcus, Leila Kalomi/Thaal Sinestro, John Stewart/Katma Tui, Jaylah (Star Trek) & Everyone, Jaylah & USS Vengeance, Kalara (Star Trek)/Rain Lao

Additional Tags: Green Lantern Jaylah (Star Trek), Parallax Sinestro, Movie: Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013), Not Star Trek Beyond Compliant, Pansexual Hal Jordan, Bisexual James T. Kirk, Gay Spock (Star Trek), Protective Jaylah (Star Trek), Christopher Pike Lives, Twu Wuv, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Hope vs. Despair, The Author Regrets Nothing, Past Spock/Nyota Uhura, Big Damn Heroes, Out of Character, Amanda Grayson Lives, Bane makes a cameo with the piiiiitttttt, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Crack, Justice

read it on the AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/40201755

[bookworms-united]

Today I read...

The One Decent Thing by Eliot Grayson

4/5 stars

Well, i was plesantly surprised by this one, which i know isn’t really saying much. it’s just... i’d read another book by this author (the alpha’s warlock- and yeah i probably should’ve guessed by the title, sue me) and it wasn’t bad exactly just very superficial and with very little character development, but also kind of fun, so that’s what i expected this book to be. so when it exceeded my expectations you can’t blame me for being surprised. 

so what’s this about? i would summarize it as this: unnecesary angst. it’s just.. Aidan, one of the mcs, goes to prison because he’s accused of kidnapping the other guy, sebastian, even tho he obviously DIDN’T do it, because of corruption and Sebastian’s shit parents. so he goes to jail, spends four years there, and when he gets out seb’s waiting for him because he feels guilty for what happened to him. he takes him home, they become roomates and they fall in luuuurve. 

so yeah, it’s a solid plot. it’s somewhat believable, despite the fact that aidan went to prison when he literally did nothing wrong; everything is better explained towards the end of the book. the relationship had a nice development; there’s an attraction from the beginning but they don’t acually don’t do anything about it until they’re well into the story. there’s a depiction of anxiety, though i can’t vouch for how well it was done (at least they never claimed twu wuv was the answer to everything and the mc does mention therapy). the narrative flowed smoothly; it was told in dual fist person pov and there was a distiction between both characters so it was easy to keep track of the story and who’s perspective it was being told from. both guys are idiots tho, that’s why i said unnecesary angst; they make it with their own stupidity (there’s a lot of “oh i don’t deserve you” and “wow i have an inmeasurable need to protect you - also you’re very pretty, what could that be?”). so there’s a lot of guilt and a savior complex involved, but they do get their shit together in the end. 

overall i think it’s a simple and fun read. i mean, i didn’t particularly hate anything and it kept me entertained; what more do you want?

[rotschild]

Kenobi’s story pt. 1

In the picture: the Kenobi family on Stewjon with baby Obi-Wan.

Stewjon was a planet of opportunities, liberties, nobility and contradiction.

Green pastures and lush hills characterized much of the planet’s surface, and Stewjon was widely known in the galaxy for its valiant and hardworking inhabitants.

In the rural village of Celsor, a little religious community of people who worked with their hands peacefully coexisted with a small yet generous ruling class.

Ilse Galdor, baron Galdor’s daughter, was just barely a woman when she married her first and only crush, Olly Kenobi. Olly was a simple peasant boy, a vigorous guy who worked two to three jobs at a time. Both had completed their compulsory education, but had decided to go no further after that, opting to remain in the countryside instead of relocating to the city.

Ilse’s father did not approve of his daughter’s decision. He knew she had potential with the languages, as well as with the sword, and sought for his daughter a political career, but the girl desired nothing more than to become a wife and farmer.

Olly followed his religious congregation’s every tenet, and Ilse adapted rather smoothly to the stricture of the community’s lifestyle, perhaps hoping to find refuge in their highly structured formula for a happy life, not wanting to end up divorced like her own parents. The baron her father was a sad, lonely ruler who carried many burdens on his prematurely aged shoulders; her mother had cloistered herself in a monastery after the divorce, abandoning her only daughter Ilse in order to pursue a mystical path.

As a result, Ilse dreaded loneliness, and wished nothing of the sort for her own future.

As her mother had thought wise abandoning her child to pursue spirituality, Ilse chose to direct her own spirituality towards raising children. She happily wore large skirts, frumpy dresses and braided her hair hoping to please Olly and his congregation. On top of being the keeper of her home, she grew the vegetable garden, bred rabbits, doves and chicken, sheared woolly cattle, sewed and knitted clothes for the family, made butter and cheese and baked bread for her neighbors. Twice a week, she attended religious functions with the rest of the congregation, where she was constantly reminded of her womanly role. She had accepted not wearing pants and not working outside the house, and always consulted with Olly before buying anything (not that there was much to buy in the countryside surrounding Celsor, besides groceries and farming equipment).

On her first wedding anniversary, at just 19 years of age, Ilse gave birth to her first child, a son named Olos like his father. On that occasion, her estranged father visited her, bringing the gift of a crown for the baby, a reminder of their legacy and the duty he still hoped his daughter would decide to take up.

Sixteen months later another son joined the Kenobi family, Eti-Twu. Followed by Noe-Kal, Ace-Tri and finally a girl, Beckre, in the next six years. The larger the little family grew, the more Ilse and Olly struggled financially, the more fanatical Olly became. He became obsessed with controlling his children’s education, not wishing them to be exposed to “things of the world” that may corrupt their souls, thus falling out even further with Ilse’s father, from whom he refused to accept any help, for fear of “tainting” his family’s purity.

Although it would take long to admit openly, Ilse began to suffer from this tightening of marital leash. However, while this happened, she was too busy managing the farm, raising and homeschooling a growing number of small children with no outside help and running a number of small home businesses to make ends meet. Despite being modest about her many talents and introverted, the industrious and witty Ilse was well-liked by the community for her lively mind and for her ability to innovate. As the years went by, she really didn’t believe Olly to be the best of partners, as he was a man of few words, few interests and few ideas, but kept these thoughts to herself, praying about her issues.

At age 33, Ilse had 11 children and was pregnant again, when a terrible blight hit Stewjon’s crops, resulting in the greatest famine the planet had seen in centuries.

Olos, Eti-Twu, Noe-Kal, Ace-Tri, Beckre, Givi-Sieb, Boise-Ivy, Erald, Ilde, Tor-Tau and Baroald struggled greatly due to hunger and the resulting illnesses. Ilse could barely put food on their table, and couldn’t do anything but watch helplessly as she saw Tor-Tau legs be crippled by rickets, Beckre catch typhoid fever after eating contaminated food, Baroald, Ilde and Erald’s stomachs swell up from hunger and emaciated teens Olos and Eti-Twu steal grains from the chicken coop to feed themselves. Livestock died, and Olly, the one who had initially insisted on a large family, lamented that they couldn’t possibly afford a 12th child, so he suggested that Ilse put him up for adoption.

Ilse really didn’t want Obi-Wan, her 12th child and 8th son, to feel like she felt when her mother abandoned her, but she didn’t want him to starve either, so, when he turned 6 months, she temporarily put him and second-youngest Baroald in the care of a “reputable” congregation lady who lived in a nearby town and whose husband was a trader who could score some imported food every now and then.

This lady turned out to be greedy and not as spiritual as she let on. Her husband wasn’t earning as much as he used to, and she really missed her lavish lifestyle and fancy nights out.

One day, a handful of Jedi from Coruscant ended up visiting that side of Stewjon, seeking to bring relief to the victims of the famine. As soon as they sensed him, the Jedi showed great interest in Obi-Wan.

Once realized that the infant was, indeed, a Force-sensitive, the congregation lady whom Ilse had trusted to keep her sons safe, didn’t hesitate selling Obi-Wan to the Jedi, demanding money in return. Without asking many questions despite visible corrupted intentions, the Jedi agreed to the woman’s terms, handing her money in exchange for the Force-sensitive tot.

The lady subsequently lied, telling Ilse that her baby had died, faking a mock funeral to support her claim. Ilse was so torn by pain and regret that she divorced Olly, forsook skirts and took back the reins of her baronial properties, making amends with her father and moving in her large childhood mansion with her remaining 11 children.

Ilse became a powerful woman after her 33rd year, however she didn’t find out about the kidnapping of her youngest son until the congregation lady whom she had trusted years before confessed her sins on her deathbed. By then, Ilse was 69 years old, and as she turned the Holo-news on right in the beginning of the Clone Wars she finally saw her son, General Kenobi. Contacting him was in her plans, as she had never wished such a life of sacrifice for him. Her late father, however, would’ve been proud. She reasoned that, at least, the Jedi way had taught him what she wished somebody would have taught her, when her mother abandoned her.

[556membersunited]

As reported in the Dallas News, rank and file members of 556 are perplexed at being contacted directly by Labor Management representatives of Southwest Airlines.

Transport Workers Union Local 556 is the official bargaining agent of the Flight Attendants of Southwest Airlines. Contractually, Southwest Airlines cannot negotiate directly with the Flight Attendants of Southwest Airlines. Contacting union members directly during negotiations is a violation of the contract and any good union President knows to assure union members that every member is represented by those elected to negotiate on behalf of the members of TWU Local 556.

Rank and file union members are e skeptical of those negotiating on their behalf and it is fair to say rank and file members have every right to be skeptical.

In July of 2015, the membership of TWU 556 voted down a tentative agreement proposal down by a staggering 87%. And 556 negotiators would not step down.

Typically when a tentative agreement fails union leaders take steps to protect the interest of of a union and assures that the collective interest of the union remains protected. Not at TWU 556. And not during the summer of 2015.

Rank and file members orchestrated many efforts in preserving their rights as unionized workers. Facebook pages dedicated to removing union officers and officials were met with resistance by the very leadership that was supposed to protect the interest of TWU 556. In fact, disgraced former union President Audrey Stone spent union funds on a paid "digital media team" that rank and file members referred to as the "Digital Media Team Mafia."

And indeed, the Digital Media Team operated like a mafia. When speaking out against the Audrey Stone regime, innocent rank and file members found themselves surrounded and mobbed by union officers and officials on the union dime. Facebook hackings of those opposed to the increasingly corrupt leadership of TWU 556 were not uncommon. Law enforcement and government agencies were contacted multiple times. Union meetings were attended in droves by rank and file members demanding the resignations of President Stone and her supporters. Letters to union officials were sent by the drove to union offices and never responded to by the officers tasked with holding President Stone accountable for failing the members of TWU 556 on such an unprecedented level never did remove President Stone by board removal as outlined in the bylaws governing TWU 556

By the fall of 2015, the membership TWU 556 became increasingly disenchanted with the majority of TWU 556 not standing up to President Stone and her supporters. Many rank ans file members circulated a recall petition that eventually garnered over 8,500 signatures and $50,000 in fees dedicated to the legal battles rank and file members were now forced to fight as a means of preserving their very livelihood now jeopardized by the very leaders that claimed to represent the interest of TWU 556.

By 2016, rank and file members realized the extent of union corruption when vocal rank and file members were fired from their jobs as flight attendants- at President Stone's request.

2016 soon became 2017. Undeterred, many rank and file members did all they could to stand up to what many referred to as "the union bullies of TWU 556. Rank and file members faced continued ridicule and harassment from the 556 Executive Board members and the Digital Media Team paid to carry out the wishes of the TWU 556 Executive Board.

Rank and file members would continue facing abuse from the TWU 556 Executive Board simply because of their disagreement of the leadership of TWU 556.

In March of 2018, Lyn Montgomery was elected as the President of TWU 556 by a huge margin of support from the rank and file members. Many 556 veterans are confident that their new President can get the job done and are happy to voice a positive opinion of President Montgomery.

However, the damage done to the union and to the rank and file members of TWU 556 is extensive. The grievance machinery of TWU 556 is tainted with at least two arbitration awards stating that Southwest Airlines can fire the flight attendants if a union President asks Southwest Airlines to do so. A dangerous place for the rank and file members of TWU 556. "Audrey Leftovers" have shaken the faith if the rank and file members of TWU 556. Whether or not any faith can be restored to the leadership of TWU 556 remains to be seen.

[berniesrevolution]

JACOBIN MAGAZINE

On paper, the news out of New York last night for leftists was decidedly mixed. But it still felt good.

Democratic socialist Julia Salazar defeated real-estate industry darling Martin Dilan, winning 59 percent of the vote to represent rapidly gentrifying working-class areas of North Brooklyn. Salazar will run unopposed in the general election, so barring anything unforeseen, she will be the next state senator for New York’s eighteenth district.

Progressive gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon lost in a bid to replace Governor Andrew Cuomo, with the incumbent winning nearly two-thirds of the vote. Long-time social justice activist and current New York city councilor Jumaane Williams narrowly lost to incumbent Kathy Hochul in his bid for lieutenant governor.

A slate of progressive mainstream Democrats known as No IDC achieved several victories over a group of Democrats who had caucused with Republicans in the state senate, with challengers Alessandra Biaggi, Rachel May, Jessica Ramos, John Liu, Robert Jackson, and Zellnor Myrie all defeating the incumbents.

With Salazar’s victory, the Democratic Socialists of America continued its winning streak, overcoming (especially in Salazar’s race) unprecedented smears against the candidate from the press. What lessons do Thursday’s results hold for the Left?

Workers Can’t Be an Afterthought

Nixon made upgrading the subway her signature issue. But less than two weeks after announcing her campaign in March, she went on the attack against union workers building a new train line: “With the deals [building trade unions] have now, you can’t hope to make improvements to the trains in a fiscally responsible way. . . . Everybody’s got to pull together, and everybody’s got to make sacrifices.”

This quote was, in effect, one of Nixon’s first public statements as a candidate. Union leaders quickly struck back.

“What does Cynthia Nixon know about the construction industry? What does she know about the subways and the MTA? She says that she’s a progressive, but this kind of anti-union rhetoric shows that she is no friend of working men and women,” Gary LaBarbera, president of the Building and Construction Trade Council of Greater New York, told Politico. The heads of Transit Workers Union Local 100, TWU international, and the president of the New York AFL-CIO were all quick to denounce Nixon as well.

Well before March, Cuomo had cultivated intense loyalty from high-level union officials, and there was never a serious chance of any major union officially endorsing Nixon. But while Nixon issued a tepid correction to her initial statement, she remained essentially silent on labor issues until August.

Her eventual labor platform was in many ways a model for progressives running at the state level. But by the time it came out, it was too late for her to make serious inroads among rank-and-file union workers.

Nixon left union militants who agreed with her other policies hamstrung when it came to talking to coworkers about her. If the only thing she had to say about workers for four months of the campaign was that they should be paid less, why listen to her on other issues?

Future candidates running as democratic socialists — or merely progressives — must emphasize the concerns of workers, unionized or not. Socialist organizations especially must make a priority of consistently pushing candidates they endorse to advance aggressive, class-wide demands in their labor platforms.

They’re Coming For Us

Right-wing and centrist smears on prominent leftists are nothing new. But after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s surprise victory this summer in her congressional primary, the notoriously corrupt, insular, and convoluted New York Democratic Party pulled no punches against yesterday’s left candidates.

In the last days of the campaign, the New York State Democratic Committee sent a postcard to Jewish voters suggesting Nixon is “silent on the rise of anti-Semitism.” (There is no evidence Nixon holds antisemitic views, and she has two Jewish children.)

It is unfair and inappropriate for a state party to actively support one candidate over another in a party primary at all, let alone to baselessly accuse a contender of bigotry. Still, with the Democratic Party barely maintaining even a pretext of neutrality and internal democracy, such propaganda was deplorable but not surprising.

More surprising was the intensity of the attacks on democratic socialist state senate candidate Julia Salazar. Salazar likely received more national and local coverage than any state legislative candidate in history. However, late in the race — the time when most voters are paying attention — very little of it focused on her platform to dramatically expand rent stabilization, pass the single-payer New York Health Act, expand labor rights, or reform New York State’s untransparent and undemocratic campaign-finance laws.

(Continue Reading)

[violetfaust]

What if Regina is...Robin Hood?

So we’ve got Rumple and Killy and Henry’s twu wuv as cops but no Lana sightings as yet.

What if Regina is the local crime lord who is Not What She Seems? Ie. undercover FBI, or just a mob princess trying to dismantle her family’s criminal holdings from within? Or a hardened PI who has stumbled on a conspiracy of corruption ranging from the DA’s office (Gabrielle) to the police (let’s face it, Detective Spinner is going to be a corrupt, cowardly obstacle for Stalwart Saint Sergeant Killykissangel--unless Eddy has gotten a better therapist over the summer).

I  think it would be fun to see Regina fighting the good fight from what seems to be the wrong side of the law. Who knows, maybe she (and a certain brunette single mother who has to go into witness protection with her son) can remind the tarnished detective of why he became a cop in the first place.

[556betrayed]

Disparity in treatment brought out in Charlene Carter vs Transport Workers Union Local 556 Southwest Airlines Co proved Railway Discrimination and company interference with employees choosing their own Union representatives.

Acts of company union intimidation that can't be remedied to this very day.

The company union is comprised of company favorites like this one.

Heaven help innocent flight attendants get a decent contract!

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Not a great look for TWU 556 professional standards. When does it stop? Flight Attendants deserve better representation.

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Bully Brett AKA "the Leg Breaker" attempting to recreate TWU 556 history.

Brett Nevarez served as a negotiating team member for TA 2013 which was shot down by 9,916 pissed off flight attendants.

Nevarez also served as TWU 556 2nd VP while sexually harassing rank and file members and disrespecting flight attendants demanding better maternity leave. Many rank and file members attended meetings while signing the Recall Petition demanding his resignation and/ or removal from the negotiating team and/ or the TWU 556 Executive Board. Many showed up in T - shirts saying 'Bye Felicia.

Mr. Leg Breaker retaliated against dissident flight attendants and violated the Railway Labor Act when telling SWA Management to fire innocent rank and file flight attendants. His actions are documented in the transcripts of Carter vs TWU Local 556 and Southwest Airlines. Bully Brett/ Mr. Legbreaker also refused repeatedly a court order to sit for a deposition - following a pattern of arrogance that the law "doesn't apply to him" or the corrupt union leaders/ cronies he serves with.

Say no to Brett Nevarez for any leadership positions with TWU Local 556. Say no to bullies in union leadership. Say no to union officers who have rank and file members fired from their jobs as Southwest Airlines Flight Attendants.

Time to stop the abuse cycle of TWU 556 leaders like this one.

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Core Team Member, FADAP Team Member, -800 Committee Team Member Brian Talburt shared with the Core Team on Feb. 7th, 2015 reaching out to SWA "leaders" to support "Team Audrey."

SWA Leadership and TWU 556 "Standing Together."

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Casey Rittner Ennis. Transcripts and Depositions show it was testified that Casey was/ is a rank and file member of TWU 566.

Casey's own FB posts state otherwise.

Casey did not win his bid for TWU 556 DEBM. Let's hope he doesn't win any offices at TWU 556 in the future.

Also, Casey Rittner Ennis opposed the Recall Petition and even brought charges against Recall Petition leader Jeanna Jackson.

More about the history of TWU 556 and its toxic leadership.

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When corrupt officers save your job, you gotta be the henchman and file charges to stop a valid Recall Petition. Casey Rittner Ennis proved his loyalty to the corrupt TWU 556 Executive Board. Casey Rittner Ennis has proven to be useful to the corrupt TWU 556 Executive Board and to Southwest Airlines. He is a player in the TWU 556 / Southwest Airlines Collusion. Rank and file flight attendants will remember Casey during the next union election.

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TWU 556 History lesson: this email sent to the TWU 556 Executive Board after screenshots of the unbecoming behavior of TWU 556 officers/ officials and their paid loyalists were exposed.

There were no apologies. And the retaliation for demanding apologies and taking corrective action was just starting. Rank and file would later feel the wrath of corrupt union officers and officials for years to come.