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#1780 Cynicism Is a Scab: Hope, Solidarity, and the Labor Fight That Never Stopped

whatshot 7 snips

Mar 28, 2026

Guest

Vision and optimism commentators

Guest

Organizing commentators / strike narrators

Guest

IWW / Local organizers (collective voices)

Rutger Bregman, historian who argues humans are naturally cooperative; Kim Kelly, journalist and labor writer; members of the IWW and contemporary labor organizers. They explore why cynicism helps elites, how solidarity can be built as a structure, vivid strike logistics and community support, the case for teaching labor history, and the role of hope and moral ambition in sustaining long-term organizing.

03:30:17

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ANECDOTE

Minneapolis Teamsters Won With Flying Squadrons And Community Support

Minneapolis Teamsters prepared for a general strike with HQ, strike kitchens, infirmary, flying squadrons, and outreach to the unemployed to prevent scabbing.
Rapid deployment, daily newspapers, and mass community support forced employers to concede within 10 days.

question_answer

ANECDOTE

Addie Wyatt Linked Labor Rights To Civil Rights

Addie Wyatt rose from packinghouse worker to vice president of her UPWA local and co-founded multiple organizations linking labor and civil rights.
Union protections secured her job and parental leave; she later served on JFK's Commission on the Status of Women.

insights

INSIGHT

Unemployed Leagues Turn Scab Threat Into Strike Strength

Organizing unemployed leagues alongside strikers turns potential scabs into allies and removes employers' reserve labor advantage.
Toledo and Autolite examples show unemployed can swell picket lines and shift leverage back to workers.

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Veneer Theory and Human Nature

01:49 • 3min

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Why Cynicism Benefits Those in Power

04:27 • 5min

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The 1913 Philadelphia Dock Strike and IWW Local 8

09:30 • 6min

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IWW Victory Messaging and Defense

15:57 • 2min

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Elizabeth Gurley Flynn's 'Revolutionary Spirit'

18:03 • 4min

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Hope, Organizing Energy, and Contemporary Labor

22:13 • 6min

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Frances Perkins and New Deal Labor Reforms

27:54 • 3min

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Florence St. John and Equal Pay Litigation

31:18 • 3min

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Workers, Environmentalism, and Common Goals

34:08 • 5min

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Carbon Footprint Propaganda and Collective Action

39:11 • 3min

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Elite Scams, the Gilded Age Analogy, and Progressivism

42:35 • 5min

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School for Moral Ambition: Awareness vs. Expertise

47:10 • 7min

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Algorithms, Solidarity, and the Amazon Organizing Tactic

53:42 • 2min

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Solidarity as Structure, Not Feeling

55:14 • 5min

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Wagner Act's Decline and Building Grassroots Power

59:49 • 2min

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History Deep Dive: English Enlightenment & Ideas

01:02:14 • 5min

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Ben Fletcher: Life, IWW, and Racial Inclusion

01:07:43 • 8min

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Preparing Major Strikes: Logistics and Community Support

01:15:37 • 3min

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Minneapolis Truckers' Strategy and Flying Squadrons

01:18:07 • 8min

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Addie Wyatt: Intersectional Labor Leadership

01:25:56 • 3min

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Pat Schroeder's Legislative Labor Wins

01:29:08 • 7min

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Unemployed Leagues and Strike Power

01:35:45 • 5min

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Organizing Theory: Socialist Vision and Syndicalism

01:41:08 • 7min

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IWW Branch Structure and Democratic Roles

01:48:10 • 10min

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Fight for $15: Reach and Economic Effects

01:57:56 • 9min

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Minimum Wage Debate: Neoclassical vs Monopsony

02:06:32 • 9min

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IWW Organizing Ethics: Worker-Led Decisions

02:15:30 • 10min

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Education for Emancipation: Worker-Led Learning

02:25:18 • 9min

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Teaching Labor History in Schools

02:34:32 • 21min

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Human Cooperation and 'Homo Puppy' Argument

02:55:43 • 8min

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Hope, Courage, and Moral Ambition

03:03:19 • 10min

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Revolutionary Optimism and Practical Steps

03:12:57 • 8min

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Is Liberation Waning? Organizing Amid the Rise of Right

03:20:57 • 4min

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Alternatives to Extractivism and Imagination

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In 'A Paradise Built in Hell', Rebecca Solnit examines how people respond to disasters and crises, often forming strong, resilient communities. The book delves into the human capacity for cooperation, altruism, and mutual aid during times of catastrophe, challenging the common narrative that disasters bring out the worst in people. Solnit draws on historical examples such as the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, and Hurricane Katrina to illustrate these phenomena.

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In *Utopia for Realists*, Rutger Bregman argues that visionary ideas, often considered utopian, can be implemented to create a more equitable and productive society. He advocates for a universal basic income, a shorter workweek of 15 hours, and open borders. Bregman supports these ideas with historical examples, such as Richard Nixon's proposed basic income and the successful Mincome project in Canada, as well as current data and academic studies. The book challenges conventional wisdom and encourages readers to dream big and strive for a better future.

Air Date: 3/27/2026

Today we examine the relationship between labor education, moral ambition, and the possibility of a better world. We'll hear about IWW members building a "Philosophy 101" for organizers, a historian's argument that humanity is fundamentally cooperative rather than selfish, and why getting labor history into public schools may be one of the most important organizing projects of our time.

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Full Show Notes

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