At the striker's table some innocent probably asked what "managment" 
was and got a similar response.

At about that age I asked my very RRRRREPUBLICAN/MANAGEMENT type father 
what the Democrats believed...sounded like commies the way he told it.

I've only been in a union when I needed one once...teachers 
union...pretty damned near worthless when needed.  Was in Printers 
union...didn't need them...probably because they were pretty damned 
useful when needed...still, I didn't like being told to abandon my 
machines for an impromtu demonstration, went back to shut them down 
properly...boss saw me...didn't say anything...which generally was high 
praise from him.

Its nice to know that someone is in charge of inflating rats' erections.

-jc

On Nov 13, 2003, at 10:06 AM, Met History wrote:

> In a message dated 11/13/03 10:54:45 AM, [log in to unmask] writes:
> Rat pumping is the art of keeping tall (ca 10ft) rubber inflatable 
> statue of the rat impersonating non union contractor in erected 
> position. Unions are the  organizations which supply trained workforce 
> for this noble task.
> could there, then, be rat-pumping strikebreakers?  then what would be 
> the counter-demonstration? 
>  
> my grandfather was with Armco Steel from 1916 until he retired (as 
> chairman) in 1964.  he hated JFK (for not setting steel tariffs, I 
> think) but he really felt the unions were the absolute enemy  (union 
> members do not pump up rats near strikebreakers, they just infiltrate 
> and through them into the electric steel furnace - makes a little pop.
>  
> one time at dinner my sisters, then 12, asked grandfather about the 
> then-current steel strike, and what a union was, and what, for that 
> matter, a strike was.   he just stared at them, silently, like he was 
> going to kill them. 
>  
> yrs.   better mousetrap