Monday, September 6, 2010

Is Labor Day the last in summer?

'Tis the last rose of summer
Left blooming alone;
All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone;
No flower of her kindred,
No rosebud is nigh,
To reflect back her blushes,
To give sigh for sigh.

I'll not leave thee, thou lone one!
To pine on the stem;
Since the lovely are sleeping,
Go, sleep thou with them.
Thus kindly I scatter,
Thy leaves o'er the bed,
Where thy mates of the garden
Lie scentless and dead.

So soon may I follow,
When friendships decay,
From Love's shining circle
The gems drop away.
When true hearts lie withered
And fond ones are flown,
Oh! who would inhabit,
This bleak world alone?

--Thomas Moore

By the modern American calendar's rhythm to-day is the last day of summer, the astronomical calendar gives us a fortnight, and sometimes longer. Here in the industrial heartlands, now the rustbelt, it is rare to get another hot day; though, Thursday, the 2nd we saw 90s°F, for the fifth consecutive day. Here it was not so bad, Russia burned. Muscovy sits in thick and tall forest. Europe uses only Celsius, Russia if they used a two digit Fahrenheit display would have to find another digit holder.

Moore was an early romantic poet who left us with at least a couple of songs of great beauty. The last rose speaks of melancholy and constancy. Through two centuries of hybridisation and genetic play we have more roses, but there had been a shorter season, and to the sentimental psyche the passing of the last sentinel of beauty could evoke poignancy.

In the US, labor has travailed greatly. It must be remembered, that in the US of A there was a time, when it was illegal to join an union, but slavery was protected by many statutes. Under Franklin Roosevelt labor was truly free, and since Reagan the protections created by Roosevelt's New Deal that prevented a second Great Depression had been continuously removed, hence the predicament we now have that was delivered to us by gwbjr.

The corporate establishment has been successful in besmirching free labor.
Their representative groups such as the Chambers of Commerce and front and allied groups, and their anti-labor party have employed newspeak. The current activist Republican Supreme Court has allowed a plutocracy to challenge democracy, and the plutocrats are spending heavily. Local television is filled with their propagandist lies, what they do with language is mendacious degradation, but not unsuccessful. What was partly honest in the term, 'pro-business' [which every sentient being had to know meant anti-labor] is being substituted with 'pro-job'dirty, filthy liars. The press is forecasting a horrid election day in November, to-morrow is Cuyahoga county's primary.*

Labor Day is also the traditional beginning of the election season. Vice-President Joseph Biden and Governor Ted Strickland were in Toledo's parade, this morning. Last night Lt. Governor Lee Fisher, candidate for the US Senate, polkaed with his Missus amidst the Poles at St. John Cantius [alma mater of Dennis Kucinich] Cleveland. There was also a candidate's family politicking against Dennis.

It turned out, they [the Fishers] were acquainted with the Bishop of Cleveland and needed only be asked to sign a petition to protest the unjust suppression of St. Casimir's. Only two people were chatting amongst the crowd appealing St. Casimir's fate with pen and paper. It was easy getting most people to sign. In about three hours, over 160 did, and only a handful refused, and only one tried to shoo away a petitioner. Some people were boisterously dissatisfied with Lennon, the bishop, a particular term that was repeated was 'prick', and enthusiastically signed.
_____________________
* i originally wrote, "to-morrow is this year's movable Ohio primary." No, the primary was in March. This is an odd development here, and of course an opportunity for tax levies. Politics on these levies is different, when propaganda is spewed over taxes, it is usually over income taxes. Here the press speaks differently too. People often vote against particular levies. Politicians often endorse these taxes, because the rich and corporations hold their income, and percentage of the whole as sacrosanct.

No comments:

Post a Comment