Michael Moore's Roger & Me
Roger & Me is a documentary film chronicling the workings of one of the world’s largest corporations, General Motors, as it nearly turns its hometown of Flint, Michigan, into a ghost town. In his quest to discover why GM's management and board of directors would do such a thing, filmmaker Michael Moore, a Flint native, attempts to meet the chairman, Roger Smith, and invite him out for a few beers up in Flint to "talk things over." Moore is the son of a Flint autoworker and a whole family of autoworkers. Roger & Me examines how Moore's hometown of Flint is affected when General Motors closes down a series of factories in order to set up production in Mexico. The town is devastated, economically and spiritually, because GM was practically the only game in town - the city was built around GM.
Since 1983, car sales had steadily risen and GM has posted record profits of nearly $19 billion. So why lay off all of these people? Moore points out that he and his friends were raised on the American Dream which promised that if you worked hard and the company you worked for prospered, you would prosper, too. Now, it seems GM's board of directors has changed the rules: you work hard, the company prospers- and you lose your job. Roger & Me shows that capitalism is not always consistent with this American Dream.
Roger & Me shows that GM's board of directors used company profits not to create new jobs, but to buy already existing assets, such as data processing companies (EDS) and weapons manufacturers (Hughes Aircraft) at inflated prices, and to automate their current assembly lines, and build new plants in Mexico and in Asia -- destroying jobs in the United States in the process. In Mexico, GM pays the worker...
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...t be done in work. This man is also upset because the point of unions is to increase the workers strength in bargaining with employers. The union clearly did not help in the case of the GM workers in Flint.
Roger & Me is a great documentary film. It captures a lot about our form of capitalism. Moore shows the problems that large capitalist companies make, in a way that appeals to a broad audience. Since it is a real story, it is not telling some story of how things could be or would be, but how things really are. Fred Ross must evict numerous people out of their homes daily so that he has a roof over his head and food for himself. While one half of Flint is receiving some kind of Government Welfare for being unemployed, Roger Smith is giving himself a $2 million raise. In a better world profit maximization would not be the goal of an economic system or a society.
Mr. Flint’s comments were discussing what could happen during collective bargaining with employees’ pay and benefits, which is his opinion. Moreover, David Walsh writes, “Employers can make predictions about the likely consequences that unionization will have for the business—consequences that are objectively because of economic reality that is beyond the employer’s control.” (Walsh, 2013-2016, pg. 511) However, Mr. Flint’s comments were discussing a decrease in pay and less benefits, which could be construed as a threat.
Graham, L. A. (2008). How foreign-owned auto plants remain union-free. New Labor Forum (Murphy Institute), 17(3), 58-66. doi:10.1080/10957960802362738
Throughout the history of the United States of America the continuation of misfortunes for the workforce has aggravated people to their apex, eventually leading to the development of labor unions.
In their first attempt to get noticed, workers formed the National Labor Union in 1866. This union joined together various workers in order to create a group that would fight for what they wanted: higher wages and shorter workdays. As the years went by, the National Labor Union did their best in trying to achieve their goals, all while other groups took the matters into their own hands. In 1877, in what became known as the Great Railroad Strike, railroad workers from across America took part in a spontaneous strike on America’s railroads, an attempt that led to violence and, to their dismay, no changes to working conditions. In response to the strike, The New York Times published an article that stated “But if the strike on the Baltimore and Ohio Road is a foolish one, its history up to the present time shows that those who are engaged in it are not only bold and determined, but that they have the sympathy of a large part of the community in which they live…” (Document B). The editorial states that even if it wasn’t worth it, the Great Railroad Strike showed that there is something amiss in their daily lives, and whatever it is, they are trying to fix it for t...
The pool of opportunity has grown smaller from what it once was, and it seems that opportunity parallels the wealth in capitalist America—a small number of individuals are successful in their endeavors, and the rest must settle for less with disappointment and disillusionment. While hard work and perseverance may push individuals to new heights, the power of optimism and positive thinking can only take a person so far. The great American dream and frontier is only available to those with certain circumstances, and those circumstances are becoming less available to the new generation coming into the
The United States is the most developed capitalist economy in the world. The markets within the economy provide profit-motivated companies endless potential in the pursuance of pecuniary accumulation. Throughout the twentieth-century competitive companies have implemented modernized managerial procedures designed to raise profits by reducing unnecessary costs. These cost-saving procedures have had a substantial effect on society and particularly members of the working class. Managers and owners of these competitive and self-motivated companies have consistently worked throughout this century to exploit the most controllable component of the production process: the worker. The worker has been forced by the influence of powerful and affluent business owners to work in conditions hazardous to their well being in addition to preposterously menial compensation. It was the masterful manipulation of society and legislation through strategic objectives that the low-wage workers were coerced into this position of destitute. The strategies of the affluent fragment of society were conceived for the selfish purpose of monetary gain. The campaigns to augment the business position within the capitalist economy were designed to weaken organized labor, reduce corporate costs, gain legislative control and reduce international competition at the expense of the working class. The owners have gained and continue to gain considerable wealth from these strategies. To understand why the owners of the powerful companies operate in such a selfish manner, we must look at particular fundamentals of both capitalism and corporation strategy. Once these rudiments are understood, we ...
Michael Moore is trying to appeal to the audience by showing that he understands what it is like because he grew up in the time of the “middle class”. He grew up in the time where the rich were still rich but also were taxed at a rate of ninety-percent which is unheard of in the twentieth century.(Moore) Michael Moore grew up in a time where his dad worked at a factory on the assembly line, and that was enough for the Moore family.(Moore) The family was supported enough just by the father’s job, the mother didn’t have to work and the kids could go and get a great education without having student loans till they are 50 years old.(Moore) Michael Moore saw what capitalism could do for society, but he also saw the demise of capitalism. He tried to warn the big companies such as GM and other blue chip companies, that their actions were going to catch up to them but none of these industries wanted to listen to him because the rich were getting richer while the poor were getting poorer. Michael Moore effectively represents ethos because he grew up in this time, he saw his city fall apart right before his eyes. He saw the way capitalism was taking control of everything around him. He saw the capitalist society of the one percent take over and wreck thousands of lives. The director goes to an assembly line that was based in his hometown and interviews employees that were given a three-day notice that the company was closing it down. (Moore) Moore interviews the protesters as they fight for what they believe is right. The passion is shown through the workers and how losing their jobs has affected their lives just as his life was changed when his father was let go for the wrong reasons. The credibility of the source comes from the facts that these people present. This wasn’t just a film to them, but their
Fletcher says that when unions and politics come together, people especially interpret unions’ missions and their power critically. He does not expand on how he titles the myth, but skims the surface on union consensus regarding politics. The myth is about the belief that “unions should stay out of politics and focus on what’s happening in the workplace” (Fletcher 65).
Moore, Michael, dir. Capitalism: A Love Story. Narr. Michael Moore. 2009. Overture Films, 2009. 1st ed. DVD-ROM.
One would expect that social equality would just be the norm in society today. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Three similar stories of how inequality and the hard reality of how America’s society and workforce is ran shows a bigger picture of the problems American’s have trying to make an honest living in today’s world. When someone thinks about the American dream, is this the way they pictured it? Is this what was envisioned for American’s when thinking about what the future held? The three authors in these articles don’t believe so, and they are pretty sure American’s didn’t either. Bob Herbert in his article “Hiding from Reality” probably makes the most honest and correct statement, “We’re in denial about the extent of the rot in the system, and the effort that would be required to turn things around” (564).
People who work hard enough become successful and build a good life for themselves and their family. Millions of Americans and others who admire America have believed this for generations. However, is this still true? Brandon King debates his interpretation of the American Dream in his published work, “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” During his essay, the speaker highlights how important the American Dream is to the economy and providing a distance from inequality. The speaker emphasizes his belief that the American Dream is still alive within America and that people must work hard to achieve it. When discussing the American Dream, King will agree that the idea is alive and thriving in the minds of Americans; yet, I argue that the idea is on hold within American society due to lack of upward social independence and economic mobility.
... continuous injustice in financial prospect because the top dogs are too occupied with new ways of making money for themselves while the rest of America are focused on putting a roof over their heads or feeding the entire family. For few fortunate individuals, they will be able to accomplish their ultimate American Dream; however, most Americans will often shun away for the life time of financial progression. Like George Carlin, a comedian once said during his stand up show about the American Dream, “The owners in this country know the truth, it is called the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.” In reality, when the prospects of the American Dream is ignored by our society, dreams often become unfilled and expectations for superior life turn out to be a sham, an enduring nightmare for most people in the pursuit for their American dream.
If you could spend a day with one person in the film, who would you choose? What would you want to talk about with them? I would choose to speak with former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich who knows first-hand the history of the problems that this country faces concerning inequality in the workforce concerning wages. I woul...
This report will analyse the leadership style of two main characters, Bud Fox and Gordon Gekko. This movie shows corporate America and the ethical behaviour in the workplace at the Wall Street. Bud Fox a smart, yound and very motivated stock broker has the desier to become the highes salesperson in his company. His main target is centered on big share trading account like Gordon Gekko. He says, “Just once I would like to be on that side” he dreaming of the day when he will be big corporate shot controlling the flow of millions of dollars like his hero Gordon.
Michael Moore is the author and narrator of this touching film. He is seen throughout the film. He interviews many people and tries again and again to find Roger Smith. He is thrown out of private clubs, offices and yacht clubs. His authorial voice is observational. He tells all sides of this sad story. He interviews the people of Flint and GM executives including Roger Smith. He even interviews the few very well to do people in the now struggling city. One executive is used over and over in this film. His opinion is that "GM has to do what GM has to do to stay competitive", and " the nature of corporations is to ...