What tort reform really means

Exactly what do they (Republicans) mean when they say we need tort reform? ... Think about it. If you were a businessperson and you knew you could be sued for only a certain amount of money, would this encourage you to make the most reliable and safest product you could make, or would you calculate your predetermined losses?

Mike Wyatt, UAW Local 1250
Source: Enlightener

Lofty goals

Let us set some goals for our community ... hunger eliminated, warm shelter for all, opportunity for all, respect for all, hate and discrimination eliminated, complete health care for all, access to education for all. ... Let our deeds be a true reflection of our purpose and our values.

Bill Pollack, UAW Local 251
Source: Communicator

Preaching to the choir

We can tell each other in the break room how great it is to work in a union shop or how grateful we are to have a great benefits and pension package. But honestly, isn’t that like preaching to the choir? ... We need to assure the white-collar computer programmer that it was unions that fought for and won the 40-hour workweek. We need to emphasize the point to retail workers that it was unions that created job security, not Sam Walton.

Mick Raike, Local 211
Source: Local 211 News

Fight for America

This fight isn’t simply over the size of a monthly Social Security check. It’s a fight over what kind of people we are — and what kind of America we want. Do we want an America that’s simply a collection of individuals with no connection to one another? Or do we want an America where we care about each other and care about the common good?

Former UAW President Owen Bieber
2005 White Shirt Day, Flint, Mich.