"…a sense of controlled panic…"

Oregon AFL-CIO President Tim Nesbitt will be blogging the AFL-CIO Convention, and I'm looking forward to his dispatches. In preparation, he offers an opening salvo that identifies the divisions without clarifying (to me, at least) his personal disposition. Still, he's straightforward about the issues and opportunities facing the labor movement…

Usually, at these conventions, we celebrate our successes. This time, we will acknowledge our failures and address the gathering threats to our movement. There is a sense of controlled panic that surrounds this convention...

I've had trouble covering this story, because I've been conflicted about where I stand. On the one hand, any division in the House of Labor is distressing. 'Solidarity Forever' and all that. On the other hand, the AFL-CIO is hyphenated for a reason. Division is hardly a new phenomenon for labor, politically, strategically or structurally. It's certainly hard to argue that what we've got now is working very well, but 'what else?' is a big question.

This convention may be a landmark event in American labor history, and I'll be checking in on Nesbitt's reactions regularly.

Hat tip to Blue Oregon.