Decades ago, unions were necessary in that they made management take into consideration the needs of their workforce. But as time went by, the unions became just another bureaucratic layer seeking to make a fast dollar. The analogy is that of a tennis game. You either keep your eye on the ball or the score. If the latter, you will loose. And so the decades of ripping off the public has lead Detroit's Mo-Town to where it is today.
It is part and parcal of our 'throw-away' society. It wasn't thought too much about as long as it was dealing with ink pens and other small objects, but when the same philosophy (e.g., planned obsolesence) became part of larger, more expensive objects, the devastation became clear.
John D. Rockefeller loathed compebreastion! Rockefellers still use your money to stay rich, but now it's called philanthropic. Compebreastion was never seriously embraced; it's just the pc thing to say. Blame it on glob-(gobble)i-zation. Globalization. Anytime you rip down the barriers things are going to be different and not necessarily for the better. Everyone (buyer as well as seller) wants more for less, so the game goes on.
Those enjoying living high on the hog now, will have their day. It's cyclical unless and until the greed mentality is broken. It won't be anytime soon.
