Matt Noyes's blog
Appeals court backs union curbs on the internet
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Thu, 09/03/2009 - 11:42pmFrom Union Democracy Review, #180 www.uniondemocracy.org
The U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia has upheld a union rule that places new burdens on candidates who want to use their own independent web sites to campaign for union office. The court's decision gives the green light to those nervous union officials who hope to develop new ways to limit the potential of the internet as an instrument for union democracy.
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Handsome is as handsome does -- internet free speech
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Tue, 04/21/2009 - 7:04pmA recent article from Union Democracy Review on efforts by SEIU and MEBA (Marine Engineers Benevolent Association) to block "objectionable" and "irresponsible" speech raises the question: what's really objectionable?
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Eric Lee on Diigo
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Fri, 04/10/2009 - 7:36pmDiigo: A Web 2.0 tool to get user input on your website
If you want to know how to make your union website better, ask your members. And if you really, really want it to be better, use the most powerful Web 2.0 tools to do so.
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Critical eyes needed for information about cyber-democratic rights
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Fri, 01/30/2009 - 2:41amFriends -- I am leading a collaborative review/assessment of the AUD website, using diigo (http://diigo.com -- if you want to participate email me via CorD). One item that called out for help from the CorD community is the handout on "Cyber-democracy for unionists: your legal rights online." What I'm looking for is feedback on this handout -- is the info useful? clear? relevant? does it answer the questions you or other union webstewards have about their rights? What's missing? What questions do you want to see answered? Thanks in advance for your help!
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Reviewing the AUD website using Diigo
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Tue, 01/27/2009 - 8:33pmHelp needed for AUD website review using Diigo -- an online bookmarking/annotation website.
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Article: "American unionists try organizing online"
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Thu, 12/18/2008 - 6:31pmLaetitia Mailhes sums up the ways unionists are using the internet to revitalize the labor movement. Dondley becomes a PDG!
http://www.lesechos.fr/management/actu/4808435-les-syndicalistes-america...
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Rank-and-filer's cartoons tell a complex story
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Mon, 11/24/2008 - 9:00amWant content that educates, provokes, entertains?
Ellen Dillinger's great cartoons, on http://www.dillingertoons.net , tell the complicated story of the struggle over union democracy and centralization going on in the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) with humor and insight. Dillinger is a talented cartoonist and former shop steward in United Health Workers West. She knows whereof she doodles! This is just the kind of content that a democratic union website could draw on, and it's already being made by members.
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Union officers uncomfortable with online free speech
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Thu, 11/13/2008 - 7:21pm(From Union Democracy Review #175
http://uniondemocracy.org/UDR/179-Union_officers_uncomfortable_with_free...)
The cases of retired Marine Engineer Paul Norman and EMS Helicopter pilot Mike Cheek, who were banned from official union online forums, reflect the growing importance of the internet as a new space for member participation and the contrary efforts of union leaders to limit discussion to what they consider acceptable.
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Rules for official union forums
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Wed, 10/29/2008 - 11:28amThere has been discussion here of posting guidelines for official union websites. Think of an official union forum, members-only. Here is a specific example and some commentary -- what do you think?
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Any ubuntu users out there?
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Sun, 09/28/2008 - 7:52amJust curious if CorD types are using the Ubuntu Linux distribution and if you are promoting it. Seems like a good fit, certainly for the techie types here and open source advocates, but also increasingly good for users with no experience beyond Windows or Mac. I bought a Dell xps with ubuntu pre-installed and after a little initial apprehension am finding it a real pleasure to work with. I'm new to Linux, so I'm a good test case of the usability of Ubuntu for newbies. If you want to check it out you can download the software, burn a CD and run it on your PC without installing it. (Haven't tried that, mine was preinstalled.)
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Anybody using Organic Groups?
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Wed, 09/24/2008 - 10:25pmI'm looking for info, thoughts on using the Organic Groups modules in Drupal -- has anyone used them? Or decided not to for specific reasons?
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Worker blog to watch: My unions
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 9:32pmI have reported on Steve Sloan's great work on his blog My unions, CSUEU & CFA (Steward uses camera phone for health and safety and
Podcasting from the Eboard Meeting -- CSU Employees Union)
His recent posts on using Social networks, SMS/Texting and user generated content sites like YouTube for union building and participation are quite good.
<cite>Understanding the ability for social groups to define and communicate virtually using tools like Facebook, move synchronously using portable devices like cell phones and technologies like texting, and communicate dynamically using technologies like YouTube and understanding how pervasively this capability has been adopted by younger people, is a key concept to being able to organize them.</cite>
Take a look -- and let's add him to the blogroll (do we have one?)
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Steve Sloan on Use of Media by Unions
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Mon, 09/08/2008 - 4:50pmSteve Sloan is a shop steward in Chapter 307 of CSUEU, the California State University Emplyees Union at SJSU, San Jose State University, San Jose, California. He uses cell phone photos/blogs to raise health and safety issues and videopodcasts to share interviews with union officers about issues and debates within the union. In this blog entry (from his My Unions blog), Steve advocates using the newest of the new media.
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Not trusting L. 157 trusteeship, carpenters create own blog
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Sun, 06/15/2008 - 10:14amThe following article, by veteran building trades activist and AUD Research Director James McNamara, appears in the May-June issue of Union Democracy Review. See also Richard Dorrough's previous comments on this. -- Matt Noyes
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Blogging, Vlogging, and more from the SEIU Convention
Submitted by Matt Noyes on Sat, 05/31/2008 - 10:15amWant to see a hint of what internal union democracy could look like, if union officials embraced the internet and used it promote internal discussion and debate? Check out www.SEIUVoice.org and its coverage of the SEIU International Convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (See too the SEIU International's convention site -- the old seiufactchecker.org address now resolves to it -- www.seiu2008.org )
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