Brain Soda Podcast - Episode 33 - Hey Careful Man, There’s a Union Here!

Episode Date: September 16, 2023

On this week's episode Kyle and Brad will be discussing the cult classic The Big Lebowski, and the famed worker rights organizer Mother Jones!

Brainsoda. Well, that's just like our opinion, man. It's the Brainsoda podcast. I, as always, am your host Kyle, join by my co-host and cohort, Brad. How's it going? Today, we're going to be talking about Mother Jones, but first, Brad? Yes. In 1998, a film came out that critically had like kind of middleing reviews and a budget of like $15 million, but it literally became such a cult classic that it spawned festivals and even some would say a cult religion.

We're talking about the big Lebowski. Oh man, this is going to be a great one. Yeah. Now, dudeism isn't really a cult. I do want to go out there and say that. I mean, No, it kind of is. It's not a cult, but it's a following,

because I remember it's a kind of a joke, falling off shirt, but. Yeah, it's like people who put Jedi on their taxes. It's like, yeah. Yeah, yeah. I had this on my list for a long time, and I've kind of held it in my back pocket because I feel like it's so easy

to talk about so many elements of this film that you could almost do a whole podcast about the Big Lebowski. It was largely inspired by Raymond Chandler, like Pope novels, right? Crime mystery novels, right? Yeah, okay. The main two were the big sleep and the long goodbye

but beyond that like this film and the plot of those inspirations for this film that story is an afterthought the actual mystery details aligned in this film but like man this is one of my favorite movies it's one of those movies where the character that someone will play at times make you forget who they are. Like, I forget Jeff Bridges was in Tron when I watched this movie, though. Yeah.

But no, the big Lebowski, the big Lebowski, Browseki, or Ausky. Lebowski, sir! Yeah, you're right. No, the big lobowski. It has a bunch of big people in it. Like, that you wouldn't think, you know, it's a kind of sleeper movie.

It really is. Yeah, yeah. It made like $5 million its first week under something like that, right? Was it a summer release? I bet you it was a summer release. So like, next to like a million other great movies. I mean, it performed like fifth and made $5 million

to be fair. I don't feel like it did absolutely terrible. Okay, it made its money back. It did. It made 46 million gross worldwide. Okay. I feel like the funniest thing about this is that we were talking about with Blade Runner,

stuff like that. It kind of doesn't matter what it did. It's opening weekend because 20, 30 years later, it's so much more important than anything else even remotely close to it. Except maybe other blockbuster summaries. Like it's about 1989. It's a little different, but yeah.

It really does. So the movie starts out with this mistaken identity case. You have this kind of super slacker, what's the good word for that like he's yeah just like a slacker you're super underachieving he's not like he doesn't worry he just drinks light russians bowls and has a nice rug that tied the room together right exactly yeah pretty much which like I you don't even figure out if he gets a new rug by the end of this film. I think it's implied that he's a...

I would agree with that as well, but anyway, throughout that inciting incident of two thugs coming in and mistaking Jeffrey Lebowski or the dude as he's known our narrator Sam Elliott, this mysterious cowboy sitting in the bowling alley. I guess he's not really mysterious, maybe the mud named cowboy sitting in the bowling alley, but-

Well, where does it take place at? In 1991 in Los Angeles. And that's the thing that's so weird to me, though, too, is that like, for 1991 Los Angeles, this feels a lot like 1975, 1980. I guess, yeah. It does feel like a 90s movie though, I would say. And I think part of it though too is that they use much motif in the aesthetics for 70s and 80s things.

Yes, that's true. That is true. The sets and all that. If you look at the characters themselves, the dude is like this kind of hippie-esque guy. His best friend, though, is John Goodman, who's this Walter character, this big Vietnam vet. And like, this is supposed to be taking place

during the Gulf War and stuff like that. During this dream sequence. You see Saddam Hussein and it really is just this crazy amount of stories and character pieces and things like that. That fit this narrative and take the dude along this journey of hilarious different mishaps and maladies at times, right? But it all kind of tunes into this like awesome cult film that was a total sleeper. One of the things I found that was really funny though when I was looking stuff up about this film is so the Cohen brothers knew they wanted to go with Jeff Bridges and they knew they wanted to go with John Goodman. But John Goodman's doing Rose Ann still and Jeff Bridges is doing Wild Bill.

Okay. So instead they wait. They hold off until they can get both of those guys and they make Fargo. Was that like one of their big air movies? Arguably the landmark Cohen brothers. Yeah. That's funny. I mean, I think they've kind of always been successful. They've done like 18 films, and they are a whole episode

onto themselves. Again, it's kind of crazy that literally, like, this film has really turned the corner in a way that like, I think only a handful of films do, and it's just because like, in initial success, enough people can't, or don't get it, so they don't go see it, and then a bunch of people end up finally seeing it.

You know what I think with that, though? Like, really, you know what I think with like a lot of people end up finally seeing it. You know what I think with that though, you know? Like really, you know what I think with like a lot of movies is is that it's again, like when they come out at like the timing and like if they come out or on other movies and stuff because like, and also like the ad, you know, the advertising for it because a good movie is a good movie. People are gonna find it one way or another and just because it doesn't do good in the theaters.

But I think the one way or another. And just because it doesn't do good in the theaters. But I think the one way or another is just simply, does everybody miss it while it's in theaters? And then two, three months late. Like I think the way a lot of the cod on for me was this. And I kind of wonder if this is a problem that I didn't get to address in the streaming episode was, I feel like I didn't end up seeing a film that I had some level interest in when I saw advertised, but I didn't go see it at the box office, and then I

would see it on rental. Maybe even not renting it myself, maybe somebody else rented it and I was over there or something like that, right? Sure. And then I was like, man, I really like that. I do, you know what I like, those surprise films where you walk out and you're like, I kind of thought this movie was gonna go one way. It didn't, it wasn't bad, I kind of enjoyed it. At least that, right? This was a film that I feel like everybody had that sort of experience

were three, four months later, they finally ended up seeing it because they didn't really know enough about it to be like, I'm gonna go see that. And then they're like, dude, I saw that movie with Jeff Bridges and John Goodman, you have to watch it, right? Like, because it was a big hype film

when I was in high school. You know what I mean? Like, less than 10 years, I would say, almost, this film had a cult status. So I mean, what do you think about that, though? Like, it came out in 98, and I remember hearing about it when I was like, well like, okay, you're saying it was a cult classic.

Like that was, you know, in high school, we're talking 10 years late. Well, okay, 98, never mind. So this is like five years later maybe, right? Like so, yeah, that's when I watched it. And I think it takes like 10 years, it does. I think like 10 years minimum for like When did the warriors come out and then when did the warriors become like bro?

You got to see this movie There's all these gangs and like some of them are goofy, but still you know That might not happen as much anymore just because the way social media is you know like we probably don't have like cult classics Maybe there will be the way streaming is yes streaming just kind of you know, like we probably don't have like cult classics. Maybe there will be. The way streaming is. Yes, streaming just kind of you get those like cult, like viral things. Now if there's a really bot movie that nobody watched when it first came out, you gotta be like,

yo, do you got Paramount? Check this out. And it's like, maybe I don't have Paramount and aren't gonna resign up. That's true, that's true. You know what I mean? Like that, I feel like that might be a gateway on some movies now which sucks,

but you know what, I feel like good stuff per se of yours no matter what. The honest way is to get them. Always, you can always just purchase it if you have to, like with a rental through like Google or whatever. Yeah. It's one of those, it's a perfect comedy, you know?

We're like, it has like good, like a main story arc and it ends good. It ends like on a funny note, you know, I think this is the catty shack of its generation because the one liners like you know the lines from catty shack. Yeah, sure. And then you hear a line from catty shack. That's one thing. Yeah. If you don't, you're like, what the?

You're like, you're like, kind of taking a bat, or you're curious, right? This is the film I feel like, if somebody goes, shut the fuck up, Donnie, you're like, yeah bro, like yes, indeed. Well, you just, you know, like, because this is one of those films. There was three people that, like, he was a boulder his bowling team

Yes, just of at least Donnie Walter Exactly. I think it's mostly about like he goes to his bowl. Yeah, I can get you a tow by three at quality With nail polish like if there's just so many good Walter lines in this movie Yeah, like it John Goodman's a guy who doesn't to me disappear But like you can't suspend your disbelief. That's John Goodman. Yeah, but you're ready to buy whatever John Goodman's a guy who doesn't, to me, disappear, but you can't suspend your disbelief, that's John Goodman. But you're ready to buy whatever John Goodman's gonna give you.

Like that's what it is. Yeah, almost everything he does. The stories like we said before, that take place throughout the narrative of the plot, mean more than the plot as a whole, almost right, the plot is kind of an afterthought, although it's the through line that takes you from all these different places, just all these different kind of comedic, crime, pulp, inspired, set pieces.

Yeah, it really is. You're right. It like mixes a bunch of different genres together. It's almost like an anthology. Like, we're the dude just steps through all these different little scenes and stuff like that. Yeah, almost like I who done it Phil well, it is a who done it That's that's the thing about it being inspired by a pulp novel But that doesn't matter what matters is the characters you meet when you meet Julien Morris character this Yoko Ohno and Another woman I never I didn't write down her Yoko Ohno like John Lennon's wife. Yeah, but like that's just who she based on as

Okay, it's part of the character because they were bohemian artists You know what I mean like that's that's kind of the motif for this character. So you just riff the dude is Inspired by like a film producer that the co-embrothers met when they were getting funding for some of their other projects, their earlier projects, called Jeff Doubt. And like, Jeff Doubt is a real guy who drank white Russians, referred to himself as the dude, and was like a real laid-back children. Really? So it's like based on a real person then?

Yeah, that's awesome. It's so s**t. It's a helpful real people, but mainly it's the dude. That's so s**t. Like, Jeff Bridges has said, like, yeah, I met Jeffery Dowd and like, he largely is what inspired the script of the character, but like, as far as playing him, I kind of looked at myself because I was hanging out in a schlobby apartment and kind of a burnout, you know. But I always think of him in more serious roles. He doesn't usually pray comedies, right?

I mean, Tron, to me, is the thing that comes to mind with Jeff Bridges. But you're right. Like, again, he was shooting while Bill before this. Jeff Bridges is mostly known in big dramatic roles, yeah. With some comedy sprinkled through it. I don't think Jeff Bridges ever stopped doing comedies or anything, but just like leading men in film now. Like, you do some action, you do some drama,

you do some comedy when you can, if you can. And that's really about it, you know what I mean? I think that's one of the things it really makes this work though too, is how many other funny Jeff Bridges movies can you think of? Exactly, yeah. And this is like one of the funniest movies

you've ever seen and you're like, it's Jeff Bridges doing it, you know what I mean? And like, it's Jeff Richards doing it, you know what I mean? And like, it's just weird to see. I mean, I guess the roles fit. Like it's not like he's not being funny usually though. Like him being funny is just by the way he acts. You know, like it's not like he's being like a funny man, you know, or like saying funny things so much.

Yeah, yeah, there's not a lot of goofiness and eccentricity to the character of the dude. He is just, again, a burnout. But then Walter is based off the director, John Millius. And he's the guy you did red-don, he's a former Vietnam vet. So this is crazy. So we're the co-brothers just like, all right,

we're gonna fight, you guys, you and you, we can just make a movie out of you guys. It's largely, okay, all right, we're gonna fight like just you guys, you and you, we can just make a movie out of you guys. It's largely, okay, so again, it's more about what you've dealt with in your periphery of Los Angeles and all these weird characters you've met. And then taking those characters, giving them these really awesome actors.

Like when you think about the cast list that's here, when you look at who's there, like there's name after name after name, like you said at one point, Phil, see more Hoffman. Steve Buscemi is Donnie. Yes, that's who I was thinking. I was trying to think who the other big actor was in it.

But he really doesn't do a whole bunch. Like, right. I know, he's just like a side character. Totally. Yeah, he's literally just, I am walrus. Like, he's just, and they're just saying random stuff kind of. He usually is though. But yeah, again, Julianne Moore's in the film and then John Tuturo.

The real Lebowski, I remember him, he was like a big actor for some reason, like, or not for some reason, but he was, yeah. They originally wanted to get Marlon Brandt, and he couldn't do the film for health reasons. Maybe that was what it was. And they looked at a bunch of other people too, like Robert DuVal and Jack Nicholson and all these other people,

and like for a litany of different reasons, they didn't take it or whatever else. Maybe that's the thing is because they weren't able to get, like that guy was a big actor, but they really, really wanted a big actor with, you know, a Jack Nicholson or Robert DuVall or him or Anthony Hopkins or like the lineage of people that they pitched it to. Yeah, like an A-list actor, yeah. Well, sometimes that's what Asher's I think like to do is non-seriousness. Right. Like you can tell sometimes there's like

to let off steam, you know, like it was probably, maybe it was easier to shoot or something. But yeah. And another thing is though too, is like I was saying maybe that hurt the box on. Yeah, I see you're saying. I mean maybe, but it's a comedy's, do comedies ever do that great?

Big ensemble comedies like knives out have done well recently, but typically, I mean typically it's kind of three to five guys at Matt. Yeah, like action movies and like, you know, things like that. I think at this point, celebrity is so big that if you have a decent cast of actors for the time period you're making a film like it's, you know what I mean? Like you're like, oh yeah, I saw her on Deep Space Nine. Oh yeah, I saw him in X number of big franchise films, but I remember half these people

from all this different stuff because people follow things more closely than they did even back then. Yeah, definitely. People who played bit roles on this, that and the other thing in films and whatever else. Like, have a following now. Does that make sense?

Like, I don't feel like they did back then. Yeah, like on their social media and stuff. Yeah, definitely. Like, it's different then. Yeah, on their social media stuff, yeah, definitely. It's different now. Yeah, because of social media almost. Things are just different now than they were in the 90s and 2006. Yeah, I think public consciousness of it even. Yeah, because social media is just the tool. But I think more people have devoted themselves to being like,

oh yeah, it's that one guy. You know, they know who James Remar is now. Exactly. Another warrior's reference for the podcast. One of the things about it too is that this is one of the Cohen Brothers films that I do feel like you know it's a touchstone of theirs when you see certain people in roles, right? Like John Goodman is highly featured in those films, right? You know, John Tertreau, you know, these different characters and actors and things like that. But aside from that, maybe some of the art direction

with the fact that it has that kind of 60, 70s vibe to it, but like, I don't feel like you have to go into this, knowing it's a Cohen Brothers film to be hyped for it. Versus other films where like, now there's films that are probably advertised largely on like, it's the new Cohen Brothers film. I didn't even know it was a Cohen Brothers film. Right, like I just, yeah, it's an awesome film. Like definitely watch it if you haven't seen it.

You know when you told me you're doing the Big Lebowski though, like, I was gonna link it to Mother Jones because it is, it is sort of a tale of like a poor versus rich story, but he's kind of, you know, I don't want people to think that I think or that it is true, that he is the epitome of a poor person for sure. Or like, or the working class people, either, right? Exactly.

Because like, that is not the case, obviously, probably everyone that listens to this is part of the working class people, either right now. Exactly. Because that is not the case, obviously, probably everyone that listens to this is part of the working class I'm assuming. And that is not what we are or they are. But anyways, do you know who Mother Jones is, Kyle? No. I don't. Not at all.

Okay, and that's the thing. I mean, I don't think that she was talked about in history class because like union organizers aren't the biggest subject that are taught in our curriculum But that's who she was, right? So she born Mary G. Harris or Mother Jones as she was later called She was a late 19th century and early 20th century labor organizer Okay, and it's not actually known her exactly like when she was later called. She was a late 19th century and early 20th century labor organizer. Okay. And it's not actually known or exactly like when she was born, but she was baptized

on August 1st, 1837 in Cork County, Ireland. Okay. I respect my brother. Yeah, exactly. Yep. And her parents like, get ready for this. This is like, I'm gonna quickly get through, go through this before we get into like her, you know, know her organizing but her life was just insanely sad and terrible. So she was the daughter of Roman Catholic tenant farmers named Richard Harris and Ellen Harris or Nikata you know was her maiden name. Right. But when she was a teenager the great potato famine hit and oh right. That's why her family had to move from Ireland to Canada initially. Isn't that a predominant reason why that we have the influx of Irish immigrants we've been to? Yes it definitely was yeah for sure. Was she initially moved to Canada and there she

like trained to be like a dressmaker and a teacher? Oh okay. And yeah she attended a school at the Toronto Normal School it was called. And it was in the Abnormal School it was normal. It's just a normal school. Yeah, she was at the normal school All right, nothing nothing to see here everybody's normal school She did not graduate the normal school. However, oh So she's not normal. I yeah, I don't know how you know abnormal that was back then But she at least had enough education though to be able to take a teaching position down in Monroe, Michigan. Okay.

So she came in down into the US and moved to Michigan, you know, our stay here in August of 1859. So at the time she was 23, right? Okay. There she was paying about $8 a month, which like I guess is around like $300 now. And I don't know if that's like good or not. It's probably like halfway decent, you know, especially for a woman at the time.

It was different back then. Like things didn't, just the way like caught, like, you know, a lot of the stuff they did on their own, you know, the end of my career. I'm saying today $300. Oh, no, no, no, no, I'm saying like equivalent wise. That was probably decent enough for her to live on, right? Yeah.

But she could, yeah. That's true with all the different bills you have to pay now. It's different. Money didn't mean as much, yeah. Yeah, I mean, she could live on it. I don't not say she was rich, but she could live on that. But she retired a bit after like two years. So she moved to, first to Chicago, and then to Memphis, Tennessee, by 1861, right? So not even like two years later, she's moved on to Memphis. And right there, that's when she met and married George E. Jones. So that's where she gets her, you know, Jones name from. And right there, that's when she met and married George E. Jones. So that's

where she gets her, you know, Jones name from. Yeah. Okay, right. The name of Jones, right. And he was a member and organizer of the National Union of Iron Moulders. So like, you know, again, this is kind of where all this kind of starts is with her husband being involved with like a union already. And that's at this time, you know, the 18, early 1860s, there was not much for unions. Right. The unions weren't really a thing at that time. Right.

Like, they were starting to become something, but it wasn't like, you know, the 1900s was when like, really the unions got like, it went in full force, where there was millions and millions of people, you know. So this is like the Guilded Age, right? Or what is it called? This is like the Civil War. The Guilded Age is after the Civil War.

Okay. She lives a long time, by the way. I've never heard a read anything about her mean racist or anything. She's always been a norther person and fought for workers' rights. So yeah. And- Even the equal right of the Black counterparts. Exactly, yep.

But anyways, this union though, represented like people that specialize in like building and repairing of like mills and steam engines and other, you know, goods like that, you know. And once she married, she stopped working though and became a stay at home mom, like most women did at that time. And she gave birth to four children, three girls and a boy.

Now this was like within a short time, right? So within like six years, this happened. She got married, settled out and had four children within six years. Now that mother name makes a lot more sense. Exactly. She was a feminist in a different way. She like was really staunch and like, you know, the woman needs to stay home and raise the kids when like not work. She would think that like working was like they're being forced to work. That they shouldn't have to work, you know, like in an ideal society, the man went to work and the women's state home

and raised the kids. That's how she viewed the world. And like at that time, that was the ideal, you know, is like, that was the American family, right? Well, I mean, not the nuclear family, obviously, but like, this kind of 100 by 100 years later, we are still like at that point where that's, that's the modern American dream, you know.

It isn't, it isn't though, because like feminism, I'm all for like women want to work and stuff like, you know, that's a thing. Like that's what's different now is that people don't think like, well, a woman needs to stay home and raise the kids and make dinner, right? Like that's... No, not at all. But a hundred years after this in 1950, that was the typical American household and what people strive for was for things to work well. It was. Right. Yeah. That's what a family wants to do, which you know, like what I guess our family was able to do. Like, you know, shortly thereafter in the 60s through the 70s, you had the next the second wave American feminism, right? And it's not that she was like anti women at all. No, she wouldn't want women working in like hard conditions, right?

Which we'll get into later. Right. So like I was saying, right, within six years, and I say within six years, because in 1967, a yellow fever epidemic swept through Memphis, and it killed her husband and all four of her shows. All her kids were under five. Just imagine, you know, like, I mean, I couldn't even imagine. It'd be insane.

So she couldn't stay, obviously. She's like, I need to get out of here and she went back to Chicago. By this point, that means she was 23 and 61. No, 59 and 59 she was. So we're looking at this point. She's like was 23 and No, 59 and 59 she was so we're looking So at this point she's like in her 30 nine years later. Yeah, she's like 31. She's literally our age. Yep Lots her husband and four children right like this is Exactly. Yeah, and everything that she saw on Ireland too

You know what I mean like all the yeah exactly even who knows what her life was like in Canada You know, it may not have been the rosiest of the spear. Sure. Yeah, I don't know much. And like, this is one thing, I couldn't find much on her. Anyway, so like she goes back to Chicago and she opens a dress making business. And she may dress as for the upper class of Chicago

during the 70s and 80s. So like she was involved, you know, with the upper class, the upper crust of society, you that. Four years later though in 1871 her home and shop and possessions burned down in the great Chicago fire. She was like, what? So this is just like I mean, I'm in this lady appearance. Yeah, I mean, it's terrible. It really is appear at dice. Yeah, I mean, it's just terrible. It really is. All ones. Yeah, but that event though, she stayed and rebuilt this time.

She's like, I'm staying, you know, like we're gonna, I'm gonna stay and choose rebuilt. Like I said, she was prominent in the 70s. So ironclad, a human being, to stay in the present and alive through all of these different things, right? But this is when she started, like, she joined the Knights of Labor, which was like an early union.

It wasn't really like a union though, because they didn't like organize and everything like that. They just like fought for like different rights and stuff like that. They were labor advocates. Exactly. And one notable thing about them though, was that they wanted to bring all genders and races

and skilled and un-skilled labor together. You know, they wanted like eight hour work day and stuff. So like I said, like like she's, you know, she's in the right spot in my mind history. After a strong membership in the 1880s, this group, it quickly lost membership and became small. And because of that, she like, she kind of bounced around to other things.

She focused on like different groups, like the United Mine Workers. That's where she kind of like, stayed with for a long time though. You did in mine workers. They were more organized, right? The Knights of Labor, there was this thing called the Haymarket Affair in 1886 where this guy, they don't know who it was, threw a bomb.

It was fire bomb. Yeah, bombed a bunch of people, workers and police, workers on strike and police, and that it was linked to the Knights of labor and all that. So like, she wasn't, she was never really down for a violent thing. You know, she's always about protesting and like marching and stuff like that, right? Right.

Like, she would go around and lead a lot of strikes, you know? And she would like encourage the strikers to stay on strike, you know, and like, try to help work with the management, like, you know, arrange things like that, break up like, use as a force and like, you know, a range of things like that. Right. Break up like, uses a force and like, I'm just getting, employing scabs and whatnot. So like, she's always been like a peaceful kind of.

Find the good fight though, right? Exactly. Yeah. Through that, though, she changed a lot of different labor things, you know, like in the early days, like, I was focusing a lot on raising pay. And like, it worked too. Like, she got a pay to be raised in a lot of the different

minds and stuff like that. Yeah. But like I said, she continued to organize. And like, she also like educated worked too. Like she got paid to be raised in a lot of the different minds and stuff like that. Yeah, but like I said, she continued to organize. And like she also like educated too though. She would like go around and like teach other people how to organize. And she did that with the Socialist Party of America at that time too. Like there was a Socialist Party

for a good bit of time in the Americas. But in 1901, some workers in silk mills went on strike in Pennsylvania. And she went out there to encourage them. And like, many of them were young women. And this is kind of like where I was talking about like, she was saying like the rich were trying to prevent the women from, you know, having children raising them, right? You know, like, she was like, if you're working as a young woman, you can't be at home having children. That's such a right way to talk to you right now. But I mean, that's just what,

like that was progressive at the time, honestly. Like, it was like, slavery, where they were doing it to get by to live, you know? That's what I'm saying too, is like you have to think of it, like of a man of that time, your life was to grow into a soldier where he did, or a worker at present.

Yeah. In a field, in a mine, in a mill, in a lumber yard, whatever. And it's not even just men. We're talking children too, because that was a huge thing at that time. And that was one of the things that were there at those silk mills. A lot of those young women were not women at all, but children. And young boys too. But she organized through these years.

And it went on growing strikes all the way up to 1903, so over two years where she finally led 100 children who worked at these mills and mines around that area in what's famously called the March of the Mill Children from Kensington, Philadelphia, so like in Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, all the way to the summer house

of President Teddy Roosevelt on Long Island, New York. Wow. They walked like that night. I don't know if it's 90 mile, but yeah, they walked from Philly to New York yet. It's all long. I had looked it up, I googled maps like, how long a walk would take?

Like non-stop, it was two days. So like, they didn't do it to, you know, non-stop. But. Oh yeah, no, no, yeah. They walked two days worth, you know, 48 hours of walking to get there. And they, why they did, they like carried banners, you know, like we want to go to school, not the minds and stuff like that.

And each night they would hold rallies and all the towns they stopped in and played music and skits and like head speeches. And like they just had tons and tons of crowds and all that. And like spread the message because people didn't know what, I mean they knew that like yes, people, kids were working in places but they didn't know how horrific and bad it was, you know.

Like it was amazing what like the... Well, again, we're talking about like this is post a yellow fever here. Exactly. How many different orphan children had been taken from one place to another? Sure. I mean, yeah. It's swept up in different things, you know, I'm sure there were a lot of kids who probably were returning to homes, but many of them kids probably weren't. Well, when people, okay, when we look at the poor nowadays and like not like the homeless people, but like, you know, lower income, right? Yeah. Exactly. We are still living at like a

way higher level than people were back then. Like some people lived like, you know, in squal, like complete squalor. They had no food, no water, no electricity, nothing. You know, like, and that was normal for a lot of, like the poor were a lot more poor back then. That is one thing, like with like education and healthcare and things like that has increased immensely. That's a good thing, obviously. She was fighting to stop all of these like crazy things.

And like with that Teddy Roosevelt, like she like trying to meet with them and didn't meet her anything, but like they did change a couple things. It brought that to the like the forefront of American discourse, right? She started the talk on child labor right? Or was one of the first people to write another famous one that I don't want to go into today because I want to do a whole episode on Was the paint creek or the cabin creek strike of 1912 in West Virginia, a strike with minors, not a minor strike,

but I think I heard about like this ends up being like a battle, right? Like people died during this experience. Yeah, it's essentially like a war. Okay. Between the workers and like a private army hired by the minotors. Yeah, and I just heard about this recently. So yes, this is...

Yeah, she goes down to like try to, you know, obviously negotiate and organize and all this. And like, you know, martial law was declared like twice while she was down there. By Calvin Coolidge, right? I think so. Yeah. Like a direct mandate from the president. Yeah, exactly. And she was actually arrested.

And but she was brought before a military court She was court-martialed. She's not of like I don't like she's an invaded Yeah, right accused of conspiring to commit murder and other related charges like that But she refused even recognize the court's legitimate. She's like I'm being court-martialed. What do you mean? I'm a citizen, you know like court-martiales if you like are literally attacking the United States. Like, she was, she was just talking, like, she was not the active- Or you've broken military law. Exactly.

Right. Exactly, yes. And like, she was sentenced to 20 years, though, in a state penitentiary. Wow, bro. Somehow she got out within like 85 days. It was probably, like, I mean, I know how she earned it. How hard I know some political nature.

Yeah, right. Indiana Senator that, like, named John W. Kern, I know how to get in a position. It's because the Indian as Senator, that names John W. Kern, that started in a Senate investigation into the local mind conditions. So that was when we were like, oh, we were gonna get Mother Jones out, because people know about her.

We're gonna get out. So my wife, I just show up. Exactly. So I'm really actually glad you brought this up though. Like, this is, so we just repealed our right to work laws, which like made it very hard for new unions to be formed in this state. The right to work did make it hard for you. Yes. And another thing with the NFLRB or the NLRB. Now it's, I'm not, I'm not a, you know, expert on this subject, but from what I understand,

the company itself has to like stop the unionization. It used to be where the company would be like, all right, now you need to go talk to the NLRB and get a vote going. After the union was formed to organize. Exactly. Now the union's formed. It's already formed and then they have to go,

like the business now has to appeal. The business has to appeal instead of the, the union appealing, which makes a big difference. And like that's a great thing. And you know what, we're recording this on Labor Day and it's not gonna come out for a couple of weeks. And I didn't mean to do that, but man, like, you know what? Everybody that works, you know, we all work together

and like, you know, I don't care what you are on right left. At the end of the day, we are the working class. We should, we need to be in solidarity with that. Like that's really what we need to think about. At the end of the day, it's us versus the people that are screwing us over, you know? Like, even if you look at it from the simple perspective of if either one of us were to talk about people

politically opposed to what you or I likely would think and feel, and then we were to hear each other in like soundproof booths almost, right? Like if if we were sitting on the other side of the wall and they didn't know it while being interviewed about it, they would talk about like the elites and they would talk about political corruption. Everyone's struggling to make ends meet. At the end of the day, it's all about how we look at things. It's not about, we agree with the same essence. It's how we want to solve it.

And how, you know, because we all want to care for our children. We all want to care for our environment and our country. You know, we all want to, you know, we don't want to corrupt politicians. Right. It's just how we get to that, how we get to that solution is where we disagree. Right. Or where the fork of the road is after that. Right. Yeah. Exactly. But to get off my, my soapbox. Let's continue. No, I mean, but that's a call for unity too, because we love our conservative listeners and we love our leftist listeners. And that is exactly what's most important at the end of the day,

whose president and senator and things like that, although that is definitely important, we encourage you to engage in your local, federal, and state elections. Very much so. Support labor for real. I totally am an advocate of that. That's the one thing I think we can all get behind,

I feel, is support the people working because, you know, that's you. We're all working, right? You know, even even, you know, people that are, you know, business owners and stuff, you know, you're still the working class, like it's yeah. I mean, depending, you know, mother jokes, right? Back to mother jokes.

So yeah, not even a year after she got out of jail though, she was back, like organizing in Colorado this time with another UMW strike against the Colorado fuel and iron company and that was owned by the Rockefellers, right? Oh wow, okay, I didn't realize that. Yeah, that was what came to be known as the Colorado Cold Field War. So like, we don't hear about these again. I never heard about all these, like, they're a little wars. These are wars against our people, right? So working class citizens. Against workers. Against strikers, right? You hear a little bit about,

oh, striking this, striking that in history. But like, I, you know, like I paid attention in history class because I love history. And like, I don't remember hearing about a lot of these things. And like, it really pfft me off. Okay, so I will say this. I do feel like I can after you said it the first time I feel like I remember there being points In history books and like fifth and sixth grade where I learned it does talk about some of them I'm not saying they don't talk about anything about right they really don't but it's briefly covered and like I feel like it's so Important for our nations to see. Exactly. It's just a blurb. It's never a chapter.

In her 80s, she was still fighting, right? There was an arm strike in Logan County, West Virginia, in 1921. Okay. This time though, she went up to him, she told the marchers, like, guys, you need to go home. Like they were armed and everything. They were going to, they wanted to go and kill some people,

you know, and like, she's like, just go home guys. You know, like, it's good to protest, but not to like, you know, violence. She's never been involved in violence. And she told them, she's like, I have a telegram here from President Warren Harding that offers to like, and the private police if you laid down your arms and go home.

And like, I mean, if that's what they were like fighting for, like, I get it. I do, I do get it. There was a private police force and they're like, we're coming with arms, right? Like, I mean, if that's what they were like fighting for, like I get it, I do, I do get it. There was a private police force and they're like, we're coming with arms, right? Like there's, that's the thing. There was private police back then. They were mercenaries.

That's what they were. Pinkerton agents and sh- Like that, yes. Exactly, like we'll get into that someday. Okay, yeah. The in Colorado though, she met with John D. Rockefeller, Jr. And like he started, he visited the mines after that. Like after she like talked to him and everything

and like it led to a lot of reforms. So that's, that's good. Right. The thing is like, well, back to this story with telegram and all that. She wouldn't show it to anybody. So she like, it was probably fake, but whatever. She was trying to avoid a violent conflict though, right?

And how many people would then die on that day, which like, the union people did end up, you know, like settling in and all that. So, right. She fought until like the end of her days. Yeah. Her last bit of activism was in 1924,

when she showed up to support striking dress makers, going back to the dress makers in Chicago. Wow. Yeah, she died on November 30th, 1930, in Silver Spring, Maryland. She was just a woman who that although not like the most well known She was an incredibly influential woman who helped shape today's labor laws and unions and like I had to Give her a little shout out for this. Yeah, I actually really very appreciate her the fact you brought a woman up to I think that's super cool of you and like

Here on labor day two because like women show up and work too, absolutely in our society. And they do. To make the point that you were earlier, like yes, feminism in 1860 was fighting for the woman to stay cook. And you know. It was fighting for the woman to like,

not have to like, slave away at a mill or a mine. to like, you know, it was like, no, you need to like be able to raise a family. And that's the same sh- that's going on. Yeah. Because I'm sure there is plenty of families that would love to be able to have one person stay home and raise the kids at least until they're in school and whatnot, you know. That, you know, it's still, I would say, the ideal thing. And whether it's the man or the woman that stays home, like, it allows the kid to grow, you know, and I don't know. A lot of people aren't able to do that, you know. Most people aren't able to do that. Yeah. There's people who struggle to have the modern equivalent of conventions that were

readily available in that day. Granted, there's like a certain, a cast iron stove and split in cord wood, where you know, cords of wood and heating your house is way different than having to get a hold of. Exactly. Like having a washing machine, you know, for your clothes was, yeah. Anyways, that's Mother Jones. Happy Labor Day, you know,

happy while post-labor day to the people that hear this. And if you, whoever listens to this in the future, think about Labor Day. You know, most people just think of it as a day off, but it's, it's our holiday, guys. It's our holiday. Remember the people who fought so that you could have the things that even now kind of seem like a chore.

Like, you know, that people have fought and worked for things to be more manageable than what it was because you're a right man. Like, they would work you to death, pitch you to the side, throw some lie on top of you and get somebody else in there. Exactly. And I'm not like, that's not, of course, how every job is, you know, but, and like, even back then, but yeah, like, yeah support your workers, guys. Yeah, that value. I want to leave us out. And with that, we'd love to thank you for joining us here,

each and every week. You can find us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and on Patreon. We're for $5. You could get early access to these episodes by one week. Make sure to let us know what you thought about the episode and let us know any suggestions or questions you have for us. With that, we will see you again here soon. Say ya. Siga. Blommer tjef av de lärm. Ah, yes. Bra insåda. Brainsoda