I was looking at some of the mining history in Idaho and found this:
Labor unrest was a problem throughout the district in the 1890s, and martial law was declared on two occasions. In 1899 labor agitators destroyed the Bunker Hill mill with a massive explosion of dynamite (Figure 35). Attempts, often successful, to destroy property were a favorite tactic used by union organizers against companies whose management was opposed to having unions at their mines.
Figure 35. Bunker Hill mill following explosion in 1899. (Engineering and Mining Journal, v. 67, p. 648).
And from here:
Business are frequently criticized for their oppression and violence against workers. Progressives/liberals/communists do not have any high ground to claim.
To be fair, it was an ugly time. Agencies like Pinkerton got their start by being hired muscle of factory owners to beat up, maim, and allegedly kill union agitators.
I don’t disagree. I’m just saying there isn’t much high moral ground for the left.
There is no moral ground for Progressivism (a system of incremental step toward authoritarianism/communism) unless we define coercion as “moral” and/or we assume that some men are created superior to others.
If a business is violating people’s constitutional rights they should be brought to justice on that basis. If the justice system was, or is, so broken as to be incapable of functioning properly, then those responsible for the failure of the justice system must be brought to justice as well. In the absence of any official body capable of doing that, or if they are too corrupt to do it, then those citizens involved must at all times remain attached to the concepts of rights and justice while pursuing the same as best they can. One evil does not justify another.
You can bring all the complaints you want, citing examples of wrong-doing on the part of this or that company, but you still have no moral case for Progressivism. You’re just using the “Well he started it!” argument. Authoritarian union thugs are no better than authoritarian company thugs or authoritarian government thugs– they’re like one criminal gang fighting another, the true concepts of rights and justice being swept under the rug in favor of emotional satisfaction (i.e. insanity).
All that being said, I tend to ask, seeing a photo of a mining shack blown to bits by employees, or hearing of a cop getting shot, or etc.; “Did they have it coming?” The answer could be “yes” or it could be “no” depending on the conditions explained above.
We all got it comin, kid.
Deservin’s got nuthin to do with it.
I think I see your point. Maybe I should have worded it more like “Was this the only option?” but then I suppose there are always other options, or almost always.
This was pure European Bolshevism, imported via almost-unlimited Immigration. In those days (which persisted up until WW2 with the Wobblies), the Government was against the Bolsheviks.
Jump to the present. Marxism is coming back, with full force, and this time, the Government is WITH the Marxists.
It’s not going to be pretty. I’m thinking about ex-migrating to Europe, where the socialism has at least been limited by the reality check of history.