Some years ago, I did a body of work for an exhibition I called “A Show of Hands.” Themes of the show were democracy and labor. While researching the show, I learned that gloves were once only for aristocracy, they were so painstaking to make by hand. Thus very expensive.

Now one finds gloves littering the pavement. Workers are the main people wearing gloves now, and they are left on bumpers and rooftops of trucks, I guess, this is how they end up as “roadkill” on the streets.

Whether working at the computer (as so many workers do today) or doing labor, workers are “hands on.” As a name, it would imply having control as well as keep the idea that hands are the source of our work. Or at least of the work that has been left un-unionized or otherwise dis-organized.

I have been pondering this since I read the post last night.

Working Life is already a labor blog (look it up).

Anything whatever with socialist/communist connotations is iffy if you want “working stiffs” (hate that name), especially union members, to read it. If you’re going after students, rock on but I won’t waste my time on it.

The Salt Mine is interesting, BUT… “salt” is also a trick played by somebody who wants to sell something that’s worthless by faking something that makes it look like it isn’t. 2-edged sword there.

Blue Anything is an internet cue that the site is pro-Democrat. Given the way the party is going, I wouldn’t think you’d want to stress the possibility that you’re a Front for the anti-worker Blue Dogs currently running the party.

I ran a labor blog for 5 years called Dispatch from the Trenches, one of the very first back in ’04, and I agree vehemently with narsbars: you limit your scope by leaving out the vast majority of workers who don’t belong to a union. They need to understand their role and their options before they can or will digest union talk. Sorry but that’s reality.

That’s why Solidarity is the obvious and probably best choice: it resonates union but all it really means is that workers are all in this thing together, which is the message we need to hear. Over and over and over.

Always glad to see someone new, especially at a high-profile site like FDL.

Welcome to the party, pal.