On international unity and American isolationism.
      So May Day came and went yet again, with no mention of anything on the 'Merican side of things other than the vague, obscure "Loyalty Day" garbage that was concocted years ago to intentionally cast aside notions of a true labor movement--par for the course, really, given the history of the United States. And it's gotten me thinking.

      From what I have read on the subject--not to say that I've read as extensively as I probably should--there has never really been a strong labor movement at all here in the United States. I mean, on the first of May, nations of many kinds, be they communist, capitalist, socialist, join together in acknowledgment of the sacrifices and duties the common workers of the world have faced, still face, and will continue to face. The day, if absolutely nothing else, serves as a reminder of the work of labor movements long since passed, in the pursuit of a better life and greater protections of their rights. Even if it's all just a bloody farce, the notion has a sort of poetic beauty to it...even, just maybe, a faint glimmer of hope in a world that is rapidly becoming less and less about the people.

      And yet, here we are as Americans, in 2007, being told that the first day of May is "Loyalty Day," a day to celebrate our loyalty to the "stars and stripes," and blindly accept that our "Labor Day" is not for some time (and yes, that holiday has little to nothing to do with any American labor movements--guess which day fits that distinction). It just boggles the mind that here, in this supposed "finest of nations," the legislative bodies of back-when found it necessary to fear communism more than promote an ideal that would not only unite hard-working Americans, but also allow America to join with other nations of the world, as a greater symbol of the reverence that the common workers are at least said to have earned. Maybe more disturbing is how there has been no successful legislative measure since to remove this bullshit holiday and join the ranks of other nations in a proper Labor Day...but maybe that, in and of itself, would require a greater shift in the role of the American working class.

      I don't know. Maybe it's too late (or early) in the day for me to be completely cynical, and I realize that posting this without sources is a bit in poor taste. It just seems, day by day, that there are fewer and fewer reasons for this sham of a republic to even exist without collapsing in on itself.

      Hell, it probably already has, and it's just taking its damn time.