A Long Beach Newspaper
Press-Telegram - Opinion

Back then, the lines were clear: On one side were the working people trying to ensure decent wages and basic safety for the dangerous work deep in the earth. On the other side were the heartless thugs brought in by the fat cat bosses to break the strike.

The current Metropolitan Transportation Authority strike by mechanics and drivers and other workers brings to mind the story of striking coal miners — only in this case the roles have been reversed.

This time the MTA strikers are the thugs, using political blackmail to shut down public transportation for nearly half a million people. And the workers are left by the side of road. Like the coal miners of yore, those who can least afford it are those who will suffer the most.

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This is not helping. Almost everyone I know has had to tighten their belts and deal with the downturns in the economy. If the union-managed Pension and Health Care fund has lost money, well, almost everyone else's pensions have been reduced.

These mechanics are not going to be very popular going forward.