Workers, writers, and Mailer

In modern day America, we're taught that being rich is the universal dream and that dream is attainable for everyone. It's not a new idea to think that the latter part of that sentence is the reason the American public doesn't take to the streets when we hear about CEOs making over 500 times as much as their counterparts in the mail room, not to mention getting taxed on that salary at a lower rate. With the right lottery ticket the mail clerk could be right there with him. So why would they want the CEO taxed more on his income. Oh yeah, and taxes are bad. We don't demand that gasoline companies cut into their Monstrous profits to lower the price at the pump. Our current economic philosophy cares more about a company's bottom line going up than getting affordable gas and heating oil to Americans that Need it. The "needs" of the top outweigh the needs of those at the bottom, even though there are far more Americans at the bottom than are at the top. Oil company profits aren't driving the price of oil, that's more about demand (with places like China coming on), production, and the falling US dollar that its value is calculated in. "Big Oil" could share the economic hit with their consumers, but why would they care about people.

Speaking of people versus huge corporations, the Writers Guild of America strike is still going on, denying a satire craving public of programs like the Daily Show and the Colbert Report (links to their videos on the strike). You see, the studios put episodes and "webisodes" written by writers on the internet. Millions of viewers watch the episodes and web exclusive webisodes. The studio takes the viewership and uses its numbers to sell advertising, which the studios make a bundle on. The problem the Writers Guild of America has is that those who write the material presented in these internet productions, and episodes rerun, receive zero royalties, zero residuals, ZERO compensation for the work they did in helping to create what is now being used by the studio to sell advertising, like they are in another medium called television. The worker, in this case the writer, is totally undervalued by the boss, in this case the studio. Writers, and late night viewers, aren't the only ones being hurt by the strike. The cast and crew of the effected television shows, films, etc. are really feeling it. People are starting to step up to help. David Letterman is paying his crew out of his pocket while the strike continues. 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live have held one night stage performances to raise money for those effected by the strike. And the studios have started suspending the actors. The Writers Guild may sit down as early as the November 26th with the studios to hammer out a contract. The Broadway stage hands and France's transit workers are also currently on strike.

I would be completely remiss not to mention that, on November 10th, America and the world lost a great writer with the death of Norman Mailer. Mailer was a self confident to a fault proponent of pugilism, a new journalist, a political activist, the sworn enemy of Gore Vidal, and a Real Man. Along with his huge ego, Mailer had the balls to tell truth to power and to the public, in all its irreverence. His guts set him apart from other authors of his time, and are something that is sorely missed in Our current dialogue.

"America is a hurricane," said Mailer, "and the only people who do not hear the sound are those fortunate if incredibly stupid and smug White Protestants who live in the center, in the serene eye of the big wind.”