This is a half-truth that is turning into an outright lie as Capitalism moves towards neo-feudalism which is one step away from neo-slavery.
Let's start with the railway strike or lack thereof. The first, and most crucial blow to this fight for 15 days off per year was obviously the legislation passed during the Biden administration that prohibited the employees from striking. While this was shameful, in and of itself, what the Main Stream Media did was arguably even worse. As the fourth estate and one of the biggest firewalls against oppression, corruption, immorality, and illegality, the press is supposed to root out the malicious intent of those in power. In this regard, however, they have failed and hardly ever as spectacularly as was the case with the railway workers. When news stations asked the following question (paraphrasing here) of the railroad union representatives but not of the railroad company owners, the bias was clear.
"Are you willing to risk shutting down the rails which would cost the economy 2 billion dollars per day?"
While the railroad companies make billions in profit and paid time off would cost them $200 million per year, it seems this would be a fair question for both sides of this fight. This is especially true since, for billionaire owners like Warren Buffett, it would mean NO CHANGE in lifestyle, but for the railroad worker(s), it would mean downtime from up to fourteen-hour work days. It would mean less control by a small minority over the lives of a majority... Does more family time for the railroad employees sound like more or less freedom to you?
Besides the railroad strike, consider the employee/employer relationship (in general), historically, and the way in which it is trending. Years ago, an employee at a restaurant or in some other service industry job would work the schedule provided by their employer. They knew exactly when they had to work, so they could plan their lives when not working. Nowadays, it seems that more and more, the employee is on call, without being paid for being on call. Does this sound like a trend towards more freedom or less? And, when stories mount in which employees are having to take two or three jobs and even sell blood in some cases to make ends meet, who is benefitting? It is certainly not the worker.
While we're at it, let's consider those individuals and families living on the streets and in cars. No, I'm not talking about the stereotypes that the mainstream media portrays as the norm for homelessness. I'm talking about the ones who work full-time jobs... the ones that are ignored by the press. The ones whose stories contradict the narrative of drug-addicted, crazy mental cases. I'm talking about the stories that include a multitude of children who live in squalor imposed by a system as corrupt as any witnessed throughout the world. If you think my claim is hyperbolic, ask yourself what you would call a system in which billions go to a country as corrupt as Ukraine and controlled by neo-Nazis? (The truth is coming out) This, however, is of less importance than the fact that Americans are waking up to the fact that more money is going to the defense of a foreign country than to helping the citizens of this country.
So, if more people are being paid less (relative to the cost of living) and becoming more indebted to the Elite, which way is our economic system trending? If more people are becoming more dependent on Government subsidies, but those subsidies are overwhelmingly going to the most profitable businesses instead, who will the people rely on for their well-being? Within a few generations of Socialism for the rich and rugged Capitalism for the rest, we will find ourselves in a system in which the majority have nothing and must utilize, borrow, and rent resources owned by the few to eke out an existence... This system sounds more like one that could be described as feudalism, but new... A neo-feudalism? And, what came before feudalism?
So, we don't have slavery in America anymore... Except for every person convicted of a felony in this country. I will leave that research up to you but suffice it to say that the 13th Amendment is negated for anyone convicted of a felony in the United States. That is why we have or at least had inmates making products for McDonald's and Victory's Secret for less than a dollar a day. Funny, but I thought a convict's debt was to Society, not privately-owned corporations. Modern-day slavery set aside, from where else does my comparison to historical slavery come? Well, I would have to clarify it as neo-slavery because no longer do we have the practices of branding, beating, torture, rape (Epstein and all of his elite friends excluded), and lynchings, but we do have an ever-increasing number of people who will have to work for whatever scraps their masters, I mean employers throw their way. It may just be me, but negate all of those most horrific practices mentioned above, and Capitalism feels a lot like slavery where the masters don't cover expenses like room and board. Instead, the employees/slaves get to live in apartments that they don't own and can't really afford. They get to buy less nutritious food they can't really afford. They get to work more hours and thusly spend less time with their loved ones. They're allowed to hate each for their differences, which keeps them from realizing common goals that outstrip political affiliations and other dogmatic views that only serve those who are manipulating us all.
Our Government voting to prohibit the railroad workers from striking is just the latest attempt to strip away one of the freedoms upon which this country was built: The right to self-determination, which is defined by the United Nations thusly:
"... Based on respect for the principle of equal rights and fair equality of opportunity, have the right to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no interference."
If self-determination is a concept upon which almost all nations can agree, why wouldn't it be a concept upon which the United States government could agree and one upon which it would abide? Why wouldn't America, as a nation, not want what is best for the majority of its people?
The Regaining American Democracy (RAD) dictionary word or phrase of the day is;
Neo-Slavery - noun
A modern-era use of labor attained through higher rates of incarceration (legitimate or not), impoverishment of the population, and zealot adherence to the will of an Oligarchy.
