Hollywood's Writers' Strike

[innerSpaceman]

Um, there are ALWAYS people willing to take any job for less money. That rush to the bottom will leave ALL of us STARVING.


Sure, they can try to cross my picket line. They'll find a heavy sign embedded in their skull.


I can make myself no clearer.


But, yeah, that's part of capitalism, too.

[NirvanaMan]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

Sure, they can try to cross my picket line. They'll find a heavy sign embedded in their skull.


I can make myself no clearer.

Murder is a crime. Working is not. At least not in America.

Capitalism does not give one the right to murder, maim or otherwise harm those with whom you disagree. But alas, this is a shining example of the union mentality that I saw first hand crippling the automotive industry in this country.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

Um, there are ALWAYS people willing to take any job for less money. That rush to the bottom will leave ALL of us STARVING.

With unskilled labor, perhaps. But not so much with skilled labor. There will always be someone willing to write TV shows for less money than the people who are currently doing it. However, at some point the studios will not be able to find anybody capable of writing TV shows for the money they're offering. And then they'll increase their offer.

That's how the jobs got to be reasonably high paying in the first place. That's why I'm really not a big fan of unions for skilled workers (for unskilled or minimally skilled labor I still see an important role) and is why I essentially said "**** off" the one time I worked somewhere that had talk of organizing project managers (I'm perfectly comfortable negotiating my own wages/benefits/employment on my own efforts and merits).

But, like I said, Hollywood as an entity decided guild unions were the way to go, so this is how the game gets played. If you create a secondary business dependent on the participation of the guild unions, strikes like these have to be part of your business plan as sucky as it may be.

[NirvanaMan]

Originally Posted by innerSpaceman

Um, there are ALWAYS people willing to take any job for less money. That rush to the bottom will leave ALL of us STARVING.

Sure. But they won't get the gig unless they are just as good as those currently employed who are making more money. If you excel at what you do, regardless of the industry, then you can command a price premium in the market. That is the beauty of capitalism. All things generally have a way of sorting themselves out in the free market, including employment.

If there are a slew or writers that are just as good and can earn for their corporation a similar amount of revenue for less compensation, that means that the current staff is overpaid. If not, then said employer will be forced to pay more for more experience or more talent.
Not everything needs to be regulated.

I'm not sure what experience you have in hiring individuals, but if you have any then I am sure you have experienced this first hand. Personally speaking, there are lots of people willing to take a job I have in my department for a lot less money than I am expecting to pay. However, I need talented and experienced people working for me, therefore, I need to budget enough to pay for it. I can't expect to get someone with uber skills and 15 years experience in the industry and pay them the going rate of someone fresh out of college. Wise talented people already understand this and exploit it to their benefit. People are not commodities. They should not be treated as such.

The value of the unions at the dawn of the industrial revolution clearly cannot be understated. However, their worth and power in todays business environment is of significant concern and should be reevaluated. Not to say they should all be abolished (though I would dance a happy dance if that were to happen) but perhaps they have become to powerful and too demanding for their own good.

In closing, you will only be STARVING if you suck at what you do or are lazy. So long as you are hard-working, talented, and your skill set is deemed to have value to an employer then you will continue to be well compensated. In fact, you will almost always be worth more to an alternative employer than your current one, within reason.

Fear not.

[Strangler Lewis]

Originally Posted by NirvanaMan

That is the beauty of capitalism. All things generally have a way of sorting themselves out in the free market, including employment.

If the market were entirely free, there'd be no need for antitrust laws. The government may not care, but price fixing is alive and well.

And now, Steinbeck:

"And the migrants streamed in on the highways and their hunger was in their eyes, and their need was in their eyes . . .. When there was work for a man, 10 men fought for it -- fought with a low wage. If that fella'll work for 30 cents, I'll work for 25.

"If he'll take 25, I'll do it for 20.

"No, me, I'm hungry. I'll work for 15. I'll work for food."

Perhaps not entirely apt when the subject is Hollywood writers, but I always liked it.

Oh, and on the violence subject, strikers have endured no end of violence at the hands of the owners. Don't make me start singing "Joe Hill."

[NirvanaMan]

Originally Posted by Strangler Lewis

If the market were entirely free, there'd be no need for antitrust laws. The government may not care, but price fixing is alive and well.

Sure, which is why I used the term "generally" as opposed to language that would be more absolute in nature. But generally, I believe the government needs to butt out of such things as well. In time the market generally finds a way. There are of course exceptions, especially prevalent at the dawn of the prior century.

There are exceptions to every rule, but they are just that. I challenge anyone to find anything that is perfect in life outside of the following:

• 1967 Corvette Stingray convertible with a 427 and side pipes
• Boiled Maine lobster fresh off the boat eaten at a picnic table out of a paper basket with lemon and melted butter
• Boobies
• Tacos
• Fireflies
• That which is the "Glorious Maximus"

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Originally Posted by NirvanaMan

There are exceptions to every rule, but they are just that. I challenge anyone to find anything that is perfect in life outside of the following:

• 1967 Corvette Stingray convertible with a 427 and side pipes
  
• That which is the "Glorious Maximus"

Mentioned in the same breath as the Stingray??

[BarTopDancer]

Originally Posted by NirvanaMan

I challenge anyone to find anything that is perfect in life outside of the following:

• Boiled Maine lobster fresh off the boat eaten at a picnic table out of a paper basket with lemon and melted butter

Change that to boiled Nova Scotia lobster and your list will be golden.

Crap. Now I want lobster!

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by NirvanaMan

That is the beauty of capitalism. All things generally have a way of sorting themselves out in the free market, including employment.
[SNIP]
People are not commodities. They should not be treated as such.

Umm, huh? Those two statements are kinda contradictory, aren't they? By saying, "Let the market sort it out" you are precisely suggesting that people should be treated as commodities.

[NirvanaMan]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

Umm, huh? Those two statements are kinda contradictory, aren't they? By saying, "Let the market sort it out" you are precisely suggesting that people should be treated as commodities.

No, I'm not at all. I can't even see the correlation. My opinion is quite the opposite in fact.

Unless you are suggesting that the only items traded or dealt with in a free market are commodity goods.