RK ARCHIVE - Jobs, Race, Veterans and Democrats

This is not as an LTE because a previous letter of mine was published in your paper a few weeks ago. Rather I wish to express my opinion on your recent unsigned editorial, entitled "Jim's Web," because it is quite clear that you chose not to speak with any representative of the person about whom you were writing.

The way you describe Jim Webb's view on affirmative action is irresponsible. I'm sure that Mr. Webb's campaign headquarters would be glad to answer any questions, but here is a brief explanation from the Roanoke Times:

It also points out the problem with your phrase, "newly minted Democrat." Briefly, from the same article:

You also noted that Webb attracted a "sea of faces." And yes, most of those faces were indeed white which is how I must interpret your reference to the old Byrd organization. You failed, however, to point out in your article that this event occurred after Harris Miller held a press conference wherein Miller publicly issued the unsupported generalization, "Jim Webb's views on diversity programs are in line with some of the most radical Republicans out there."

Omitted is the fact that at Miller's Charlottesville rally there were about five people in attendance, including Miller's own staff members. So at most two or three people in the entire Charlottesville area were motivated to turn out for Harris Miller of their own volition. I do not know the ethnicity of those individuals. I do know that on the previous day at the same location, a very diverse crowd of 400 people gathered at the same location to dedicate a wall to Freedom of Speech. A few days later, also in Charlottesville, approximately 75 were in attendance to listen to Jim Webb speak. And this crowd was indeed far more diverse than was the group in Richmond. One can only wonder if Miller's mischaracterization of James Webb was effective and did indeed convince Richmonders to stay at home.

We differ in that I don't particularly care to speculate about black voters as reliable cohort. Rather I believe that black voters, and all voters who are committed to social justice and honest government, will make the best choice based upon the information they have available. It is, however, important is that the information is correct and complete.

Senator Marsh also stated, "Harris Miller is the only candidate in this race who will fight side-by-side with us for equal opportunity for all Virginians."

That is incorrect as evidenced by the Senate transcript. That equal opportunity to which Senator Marsh refers does not include the individuals who lost the thousands of jobs that Harris Miller has worked so hard to send offshore. Thousands. Minorities are impacted more adversely when large-scale layoffs occur. Harris Miller has a shamefully extensive and well-documented record of fighting against workers, regardless of the color of their skin.

I also am unable to locate any information supporting your claim of a Webb surrogate accusing Marsh of race-baiting. If there is such a statement, would you please point it out? I don't know what happened with Mr. Miller and the Senators in Richmond. I suspect that he applied his well-honed persuasive skills as a national and international lobbyist to his political advantage. In this case, that is indeed race-baiting on the part of Harris Miller.

If there is a cold war as you refer to the situation with Senator Marsh, then the blame for that war rests on the shoulders of Harris Miller and his scorched Virginia strategy.

I don't know anyone who is an Abraham Joshua Heschel or a Martin Luther King. But as this campaign shines the light on racism in Virginia and misunderstandings about it, I can only recall the many times that people I know have spoken out against discrimination, fought for equality and courageously acted accordingly. One can't help but to become even more acutely aware of the sharp difference between glib promises of diversity by someone utterly indifferent to a displaced worker blowing his brains out because he has been laid off after training his replacement and a substantive and demonstrated commitment to equality. That is what this is all about.

Furthermore, if George Allen travelled on his knees from Washington to Farmville, it would not begin to compensate for the glib and overt racism that he has demonstrated as an alleged leader in this Commonwealth.

Now here is the letter that I wrote several weeks ago to Senator Marsh and his colleagues. I'm sure they are busy, because they did not respond. I would like for you to have this information as well.
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I am a native of Richmond who now lives in rural Virginia. The outrages of racism and social injustice did not and do not form the fabric of my
life, and rarely do they affect me in a direct way. For myself and so many other white Virginians, racism is more of an occasional thread in that fabric. At the core of our white privilege is the power to make a choice to admire, ignore, or combat those threads.

I am not powerful leader. But like so many other anonymous individuals, I have made a lifetime commitment to stand up for social justice and racial equality in the small ways available to me, with the hope that the accumulation of small acts on the part of many can contribute to the greater good and a more inclusive society.

When Harris Miller initially announced his Democratic candidacy for Senate, I was pleased and eager to support him as an opponent of George Allen. Later when James Webb announced, I considered him as well and concluded that he was by far the better candidate. I was especially
impressed with his strong leadership ability because I believe that is a critical attribute if we are going to get our country back on its feet,
develop disaster infrastructure quickly and get our young people out of Iraq.

When you and your colleagues announced your support of Harris Miller, I examined the candidates histories much more carefully. I was particularly concerned upon reading Miller's comment, "Jim Webb's views on diversity programs are in line with some of the most radical Republicans out there."

Radical Republican often indicates an overtly racist ideology, and I have made encountered numerous radical Republicans. To this day they lament the loss of large family properties because an ancestor was "too nice to his slaves." They preface racist comments with "some ethnic groups, I won't say which.."

In contrast, this is a passage that had made an impression on me when reading James Webb's book, Born Fighting.

"As my grandmother, great-aunt, and aunt all told it, my grandfather's sin was to explain to the black folk of Kensett that they were being charged
higher interest rates than whites at A.P. Mill's store, thus keeping them in an even worse spiral of debt - and also to suggest to A.P. Mills that
this was not a particularly Christian thing to do. My grandfather was pointedly warned that he was causing trouble. But all accounts, my grandfather then told A.P. Mills to go to hell. And A.P. Mills, along with some others who controlled the admittedly sparse purse strings of White County, showed my grandfather that there could be such a thing as hell on earth."

Webb goes on to explain how his grandfather could not get a job and was shunned, etc., but continued to speak up for what was right. Then he writes:

"During my initial "courtesy call" in Will Taft's office, I noticed that he kept a huge painting of President Taft just behind his desk. And so
when I returned to my own office, I called my aunt in Arkansas and asked her to send me the old snapshot of B.H. Hodges standing in his boots and overalls, staring ard back at the world that had tried to stomp him. I had the small photo enlarged as far as technology would allow, which resulted in a four-by-seven-inch black-and-white copy. Then I framed the picture with barn wood. And from that time forward, old B.H. has looked down on whatever desk I happen to be occupying, urging me on but also standing watch over my humility."

That is a small act, and it may make little difference to others. His choice of a hero, however, let us know something about James Webb and his the value that he places on speaking up for fairness.

By that time you and your colleages made your announcement, Miller's team had already worked to paint his opponent as a misogynist by
misinterpreting an article written over a quarter of a century ago about women in the military. I was in the Marine Corps in 1972-1974, and I
remember the climate of the time period all too well, but that's a story for another day.

In my subsequent research, I learned of Harris Miller's consistent and extensive track record as a powerful lobbyist of industry. That in itself
is not problematic. The real issue is that Harris Miller's advocacy has consistently been to the detriment of a multitude of workers across the
country. Through his lobbying for outsourcing and work visas, Miller has cost many American workers their jobs.

Along with many other concerned individuals, I have recently posted about this on the internet, particulary at http://www.raisingkaine.com

Harris Miller has under his belt a life time of working against Democratic values, as clearly evidenced in the attached Democratic Senate Hearing transcript. On Friday, March 5, 2004, Senators Dorgan, Durbin, Lautenberg, and Boxer conducted a Senate Democratic Policy Committee Hearing +óGé¼+ôShipping American Jobs Overseas: A Hearing on the Bush Administration+óGé¼Gäós Claim That Outsourcing is Good for the U.S. Economy.+óGé¼-¥

The transcript humanizes the impact of outsourcing on real people. And in it Miller is taken to task by the real Democrats. At one point Dorgan takes Miller behind the woodshed for politicizing the problem:

"Picking up on your last comment, there isn+óGé¼Gäót a Democratic or Republican way to lose your job. I mean, this is not about partisan politics. It is
part of the political system to have a discussion about our economy and about the rules of trade."

Miller probably didn't forget that one. See how he tries to spank generic officials in his recent candidacy announcement:

"Too many of our elected officials in Washington are busy focusing on scoring cheap partisan political points or using their position as a
stepping stone to higher office. As a result, Virginians end up without someone fighting for their everyday concerns in the Senate."

"As Virginia has shown the rest of the nation, we can do great things when we put partisanship aside and look for practical solutions to real problems."

There is much more critical information in the hearing proceedings. For the future of many of those who work in Virginia and their families who
depend upon decent jobs, I appeal to you to explore below the surface examine the real history of Harris Miller and where his real commitment
and service has been throughout his career.

And I appeal to you to consider meeting with Jim Webb on the matter of affirmative action and other important issues. I believe that you will find a thoughtful person who possesses integrity and a strong sense of fairness, prerequisites for meaningful dialog and real change that goes
well beyond currying favor as an election strategy first and foremost.

Thank you for you time in reading this lengthy letter. And I do hope you will take the time to read this transcript as well.

Comments

Harris Miller and the American job loss nightmare (Info_Tech_Guy - 5/2/2006 8:27:49 AM)

Kathy:

This was a tremendously well written letter.

I would like to discuss, in greater detail, the impact of Harris Miller's work for the offshore outsourcing and worker replacement lobby.

Harris Miller has long been considered the "point man" for offshore outsourcing and worker replacement programs by many of us in the anti-outsourcing movement.

More than just a mere "player" in the insider business lobbyist-political nexus, Miller has been one of the most influencial lobbyists for moving white collar jobs offshore. While the ITAA is indeed a "tech lobby" the processes and excuses used to move information technology jobs offshore or import low wage foreign workers are "dual use".

The effect is that largely through the efforts of Harris Miller, ALL American white collar jobs well beyond the information technology companies are under threat of moving offshore or being filled by imported low wage labor. The H-1b and L-1 visas which Miller and the ITAA have long supported are being used now to fill many more than just IT jobs.

For example, teaching positions in the U.S. public schools are now being filled with foreign nationals on H-1b visa. They are hired in preference to Americans. This is also true of health care jobs. I've even encountered H-1b workers employed as journalists in the U.S. by American newspapers where, in two instances I know of, these foreign workers actually misreported the nature of the H-1b program claiming that "American workers could not be replaced by an H-1b".

We know now that the offshore outsourcing of American engineering, technical, scientific and professional jobs could not be successfully accomplished if American employers were unable to bring in foreign workers and force their American employees to perform "knowledge tranfers". This is why the H-1b and L-1 non-immigrant visa programs are critical and why the ITAA, the business lobby and Harris Miller have fought H-1b reform attempts for years. They know that they can't offshore American jobs and replace Americans unless they can force Americans to train their replacements.

This scenario is now playing out in areas beyond IT. Automotive and industrial engineering work, architecture, accounting, stock market analysis, journalism, biotechnology, pharmaceutical research, and many, many other areas of work are now offshore, going offshore or being filled in the U.S. with imported replacement workers instead of Americans. The companies doing this are using the methodology implemented by Harris Miller's friends in the ITPAA lobby member companies.

The short of it is that Harris Miller is not merely accountable for the loss of thousands of thousands or tens of thousands of American jobs. Harris Miller and the ITAA are part of an offshore outsourcing and worker replacement paradigm which will eliminate MILLIONS of American jobs.

The loss of the white collar jobs to foreign replacement workers represents the bitter end of the free trade/offshore outsourcing lies which began in the early 1990s with NAFTA and GATT. Many Americans were lulled into a sense of complacency over the impending loss of millions of middle class blue collar industrial/manufacturing jobs. Business leaders, lobbyists, politicians and alleged "experts" in academia and journalism assured us that we were in the "post0industrial" era and that the knowledge age jobs of the "information age" would be better and more than replace the disappearing middle class industrial jobs.

Well, it's now 2006 and the industrial jobs are mostly gone offshore. And, now the final assault of the offshore outsourcing lobby is being made on the white collar workforce. It's clear that knowledge, skills and training are no protection for American workers. (Yes, white collar professionals are "workers" or "labor" in the minds of corporate leaders and Wall Street investors.) We can see that more than the mere low-level white collar jobs are moving offshore. Business journals, newspapers and Congressional hearings all give evidence that the leading edge information age jobs are going offshore or being created offshore by "American corporations" in preference to being created in the U.S. The cutting edge research and development work -- the innovation work is all going offshore or being filled with foreign workers in the U.S.

In the end, most of the American industrial middle class jobs will be largely offshore as well as most of the "white collar" professional, technical and scientific jobs. Of the remaining white collar jobs still in the U.S., corporations and government entities are using imported foreign workers. We don't know the exact numbers because the government does not make these figures available to us.

Offshore outsourcing and worker replacement programs championed by people like Harris Miller represent a form of class warfare waged against middle and working class Americans. The assault is without historic precedent. The very idea of a middle class society is now not only under threat but facing destruction. The evidence is around us even if the apologists for these trends deny the danger we face or their complicity in these events.