Buck it up

OK.

I do not claim to by sympathetic to the corporations. I am not. I do believe that there are more of us then them, and would love to champion a cry of workers unite!

Worker's Unite! That said, I would also like to impart a bit of wisdom passed on to me from a man who was the General Manager of a company that I was fired from. (yes, fired. Not restructured, as they claimed, but fired for not keeping my ideals to myself. I am proud to say that I was fired, I hold it high as proof that they cannot function properly with a thorn in their side, and I proved so much of a thorn that they felt I needed to be removed. Sadly, I was easily usurped, but that is another matter)

Anyway, workers unite! This manager, new to the company, stood before us in his first official address and berated us one and all. He had spent time on the floor, in the lunch room and the staff room and in the back offices, listening to the workers grumble and crank about work, work sucks, people suck, the managers suck, everything sucks. He stood before us and said, if you are that unhappy, then leave. You'd obviously be happier somewhere else. If you choose to come to work day after day, then come with a good attitude so as not to 'ruin' everyone else's day. If working at that company was so bad, then he welcomed our leaving as it would open up a spot for someone else who would bring a good attitude to work with them.

Workers unite! I was blown away for a couple of reasons. First, I realized I was part of the reason that I was so unhappy. I felt entitled to a working environment of my own choosing and felt that those around me were obligated to act accordingly, and they are not. We all have a choice every day to do what we do for our own reasons. Even if we do not have the choice whether we work or not, we do have the choice regarding the attitude that we bring to it.

That said, again, workers unite. The second reason that I was floored by the manager's statement was because for me it finally put into perspective the relationship between corporation and worker. We are snowed by our own expectations into believing what we say and do within the system make a difference. They don't. Management doesn't care, the corporation doesn't care, they just want the waters to be smooth. They don't want to have to hear it, or deal with it. They would mollify us with a disparaging remark about our own attitudes, calling us ungrateful and disruptive. They are right, but we are not wrong. We do have the right to expect more from our employers, and not be threatened with the door. There are workers lining up for our jobs, but that does not give the employers the right to treat us like we are disposable.

Anyway. I want to explore this idea that voicing discontent makes us "ungrateful". Talk of a revolution is seen as misguided, because don't we live in the best society ever? How can we compare the plight of the Canadian or American worker to that of the peasants in the Russian or French (hell even American) Revolutions? I'd like to ask, not 'how can we', but rather WHY AREN'T WE?!?!?!?

WORKERS UNITE!

A few of my favourite jokes (aka: things that make me smile!)

Q:  What's brown and sticky?
A: A stick

There were two muffins in the oven getting baked.
The first muffin said to the second muffin, "it sure is hot in here!"
The second muffing said, "whoaa!  A talking muffin!"

Q: What do you call a fish with no eyes?
A: A fsh

Q. Where do you find a one legged dog?
A. Right where you left it.

Q:  How do you call a one legged dog?
A:  It doesn't matter, it won't come anyway!

(for the next one, I'm going to hell, so don't bother with the ranting)
What's the opposite of Christpher Reeves?
Christopher Walken

There were two cows in a field.
The first cow says to the second, "terrible thing about that mad cow disease!"
Second cow says, "yeah, good thing we're penguins!"
(you see...he was a mad cow)

There were two horses in a field.
The first horse says to the second, "terrible thing about that mad cow disease!"
Second cow says, "yeah, good thing we're horses!"

 

Today's Card: Two of Pentacles

 

The Two of pentacles is about balance.  It is about judgement of one's own actions.  It is about paying attention to the details and being bright eyed and vigilant in order to keep all of the balls being juggled in air.  The form in the picture essentially is juggling his worries, his problems, his concerns and managing to keep things in balance.

This card signifies success through careful action and through flexibility.  It tells us to be confident in our own abilities to keep the 'balls in the air'.  We have the tools to manage our own concerns successfully, but we must be able to move when the balls move, change our course to keep them moving, as any good juggler understands.  We must learn to trust in our intuition and make decisions almost without thinking in order to catch the balls before they drop.  Although we rely on ourselves, we take our cues from our surroundings and learn to adapt to them.

The Two of Pentacles also symbolizes movement and energy, vitality and even a bit of fun, as he is in fact a juggler.  What is more entertaining and fulfilling then a good busker who can keep multiple flaming torches moving while balancing on a tiptoe over a pool of water.  We love it, and he takes his energy from our adoration.

Open the floodgates

In my perfect world, as I have come to see it, money would not exist.  The constant struggle to earn enough money would not exist.  All people would have the things they need to live comfortably and safely.

Niave?  Perhaps, but I do subscribe to the idea that money is the root of all evil, and that to live and die by the dollar is no way to live at all.  Money itself, the hard physical reality of currency creates nothing.  All that we use, need, desire exists independently of currency, and is neither created nor consumed because currency exists. 

This in mind, a society based not on economic gain is possible, in theory.