I am shocked and saddened at what has become of the AOA. It is bad enough that we have had to fight the adversary of our management for the past 25 years (!), but now it seems we have to fight our own union leadership as well.
There are only brief periods in history of the Western hemisphere where income distribution is flat. It may be statistical noise, but both correlate with the end of major conflict.
At all other times the powers in the economies have sought to leverage their position.
It is at times like these where the people begin to realise something is very wrong, that unions appear to reinforce the power asymmetry. The question is whether it was ever any different? Or is it as the economy declines and the spoils lessen the asymmetry is more obvious.
That the Western hemisphere needs a 'new deal' is axiomatic. Whilst in times passed there may have been a broader 'middle' with which to gradually chip away, there now is an extreme and the many failings of the 'system' become evident to all.