September 8th: The Tuesday 4

 Thanks to Annie for today's questions!  Join the fun by clicking HERE!

Labor Day

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4, where we ask 4 questions every week.

 Labor Day is Monday, Sept. 7. The original Labor Day was September 5, 1882, when over 10,000 workers took to the streets to protest 12-hour workdays for low wages and cruel practices of employers.

The first official Labor Day was on September 7th in Oregon.

President Grover Cleveland signed on for the first official federal observance of Labor Day following the Pullman Strike, in which government forces shot dead many unarmed workers striking over dramatic wage cuts and dramatic cost of living increases in a company town.  Workers' pay was cut by 30%, and they could not afford basic food.  When a group of men tried to negotiate with Pullman, they were fired, and 34 of them were killed by government forces.

1. How do you observe Labor Day, and were you aware of its background?  Yes, I'm aware of its history.  I didn't do anything special to observe it yesterday.

2. Many holidays become just a day off rather than a real commemoration of an event. How do you propose we can remedy that?  I'm retired now, so it's just another day for me.  I think it should be taught in schools, as it was when I was in school.  Our history is being forgotten.

3. What is the most labor-intensive job or activity you have done?  I had a part-time job cleaning motel rooms when I was just out of high school.  My full-time career in accounting was mentally demanding.  LOL

   

4. If your income were cut by 30%, could you still survive?  What would you do?  I would survive, but it wouldn't be easy or pretty.  When you are on Social Security, it isn't easy to begin with.  If our working life's investment in Social Security continues to be squandered by the government, it will all be gone one day.  Let's just not go into the 1968 politics of all that. 

      Thanks for your visit today!

Peace and Hugs!

Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee, Verse 3
--Words: Henry Van Dyke Music "Ode to Joy" by Ludwig van Beethoven

Thou art giving and forgiving, Ever blessing, ever blessed, Wellspring of the joy of living, Ocean depth of happy rest! Thou our Father, Christ our Brother, All who live in love are Thine; Teach us how to love each other, Lift us to the joy divine.