Bloggers are cowboys, outside the mainstream, anarchists throwing bombs at the establishment, iconoclastic philosophers who go their own way, loners preaching truth to power -- well, you get the idea. So, naturally, they need to band together in solidarity:
In a move that might make some people scratch their heads, a loosely formed coalition of left-leaning bloggers are trying to band together to form a labor union they hope will help them receive health insurance, conduct collective bargaining or even set professional standards.
The effort is an extension of the blogosphere's growing power and presence, especially within the political realm, and for many, evokes memories of the early labor organization of freelance writers in the early 1980s.
Organizers hope a bloggers' labor group will not only showcase the growing professionalism of the Web-based writers, but also the importance of their roles in candidates' campaigns.
Scratching our heads, indeed. Bloggers are becoming more powerful and influential all the time, so now they need proection so The Man doesn't keep them down? If the bloggers are "labor," who, exactly is management? These aren't "left-leaning bloggers," they are loony moonbats. (In blogger terminology, for the uninitiated, "moonbats" are people who have lost their minds on the way to falling off the left side of the world; people who have lost their minds on the way to falling off the right side of the world are "wingnuts." We must keep the terminology of our rational discussions straight.)
Susie Madrak, one of the leaders of this blogging movement, explains why the union is needed:
Madrak hopes that regardless the form, the labor movement ultimately will help bloggers pay for medical bills. It's important, she said, because some bloggers can spend hours a day tethered to computers as they update their Web sites.
"Blogging is very intense -- physically, mentally," she said. "You're constantly scanning for news. You're constantly trying to come up with information that you think will mobilize your readers. In the meantime, you're sitting at a computer and your ass is getting wider and your arm and neck and shoulder are wearing out because you're constantly using a mouse."
Oh, the humanity. Tethered to computers for hours, scanning and updating and mobilizing. To think of all the whining Cesar Chavez did about the trivial complaints of his migrant farm workers.
