Sarah Smarsh

But most people are hurting. And here's the thing, because I know that a lot of liberals and Democrats and progressives alike might be saying, but you're saying all that. And the Democrats have the better policies. They address all of those needs better, even if imperfectly in the end. Ain't the Republicans worse? And while I happen to agree with that, here's the trick.

But most people are hurting. And here's the thing, because I know that a lot of liberals and Democrats and progressives alike might be saying, but you're saying all that. And the Democrats have the better policies. They address all of those needs better, even if imperfectly in the end. Ain't the Republicans worse? And while I happen to agree with that, here's the trick.

The Republicans, meanwhile, are the ones validating the pain. Right. And politics is an emotional business before it's a rational one. And that's why they win.

The Republicans, meanwhile, are the ones validating the pain. Right. And politics is an emotional business before it's a rational one. And that's why they win.

It does. And, you know. just to go back to neoliberalism and the way that it crosses those party lines. NAFTA, I think, kind of originated with the first Bush administration, but was, of course, signed into law and celebrated as a major victory for the Clinton administration. And the person who held that pin, by the way, I think there's been a bitter taste in a lot of workers' mouths recently.

It does. And, you know. just to go back to neoliberalism and the way that it crosses those party lines. NAFTA, I think, kind of originated with the first Bush administration, but was, of course, signed into law and celebrated as a major victory for the Clinton administration. And the person who held that pin, by the way, I think there's been a bitter taste in a lot of workers' mouths recently.

around specifically the Democratic Party, even though both were complicit in NAFTA. But these moves toward globalization, which depending on who you are, means very different things. And yeah, the devaluing of the American worker without a real plan other than like, how about this coding program for people in Appalachia?

around specifically the Democratic Party, even though both were complicit in NAFTA. But these moves toward globalization, which depending on who you are, means very different things. And yeah, the devaluing of the American worker without a real plan other than like, how about this coding program for people in Appalachia?

So it's really a wash. Come on. So there were big money and corporate interests involved in all of those shifts. But ultimately, part of that perfect storm of really pissing off the working class was that meanwhile, you've got the party who used to be on their side, at least seemingly, who now just flat out apparently don't get it.

So it's really a wash. Come on. So there were big money and corporate interests involved in all of those shifts. But ultimately, part of that perfect storm of really pissing off the working class was that meanwhile, you've got the party who used to be on their side, at least seemingly, who now just flat out apparently don't get it.

Well, I think there was a very successful kind of messaging campaign some decades ago to not only get those laws through that the so-called right to work laws that were basically union busting, but also to kind of poison the water to really shift the culture around a worker's relationship to the concept of a union.

Well, I think there was a very successful kind of messaging campaign some decades ago to not only get those laws through that the so-called right to work laws that were basically union busting, but also to kind of poison the water to really shift the culture around a worker's relationship to the concept of a union.

As a child in the 80s, a lot of my family worked in the airplane factories in Wichita. That used to be a major center of that industry. Still is to some extent. And also in wheat fields and the agricultural industry. That would not be a sector that's traditionally so tied up in unions. But I have folks in the trades industry.

As a child in the 80s, a lot of my family worked in the airplane factories in Wichita. That used to be a major center of that industry. Still is to some extent. And also in wheat fields and the agricultural industry. That would not be a sector that's traditionally so tied up in unions. But I have folks in the trades industry.

in my family and communities who didn't want anything to do with unions. And I think it might have been that not just the laws changed, but somehow cleverly the culture also did. Those are imperfect systems themselves, of course. Labor and unions have historically also been rife with their own problems and been power structures of sorts. Right.

in my family and communities who didn't want anything to do with unions. And I think it might have been that not just the laws changed, but somehow cleverly the culture also did. Those are imperfect systems themselves, of course. Labor and unions have historically also been rife with their own problems and been power structures of sorts. Right.

Sure. Sure. Yes. And that's fair. And nobody knows that better than a worker. But they remain, to my mind, the greatest perhaps tool that laborers have. And it has been stripped away from people in a lot of states, as you say.

Sure. Sure. Yes. And that's fair. And nobody knows that better than a worker. But they remain, to my mind, the greatest perhaps tool that laborers have. And it has been stripped away from people in a lot of states, as you say.

Yeah, I get you.

Yeah, I get you.