Discuss "SAG shouldn't strike"

"BTW, that warrior President has kept all of us safe these last 8 years, including those who fought him every step of the way." Yes, he did and he also managed to take away a lot of freedoms in the name of security and more of those freedoms disappear every day. As far as the comments of Ms. Gilbert, WOW! How you can you sit there and tell these people to just sit back and take what the studios are offering? They were going to revisit home video at a later date when the business model was better established and over time, not once have they kept their word on that issue.

DM @ 6:50 AM PST, Dec 18, 2008

Thank you, Melissa. As for the comment by "AMPTP APPROVES MEL'S MESSAGE," when are you gutless Membership First (MF) bloggers going to stop hiding behind anonymous web names?" If MF is allowed to take our union to strike, will every MF member resign when you fail to achieve your goals? Doug Allen included? Some advice... When General Dwight D. Eisenhower initiated Operation Overlord during WWII he wrote two letters on the eve of D-Day: one in the event of victory, and the other tendering his resignation in the event of defeat. For all you MF members out there dreaming of victory at any cost, I'd begin to prepare the later.

Ric Reitz, 26-Year SAG Member @ 9:59 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Well said Ms. Gilbert. Frankly, SAG can go ahead and strike. As a viewer, I'll just go elsewhere. I already lost many of my favorites during the writer's strike. May as well take the rest. As an unemployed industry exec, I'll have no sympathy for rich people fighting rich people, while millions of good folks are out of work. BTW, that warrior President has kept all of us safe these last 8 years, including those who fought him every step of the way. Let's hope the philosophical peacemaker can do the same, for all our sakes.

Michelle @ 6:21 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Brava MG. Residuals are a lovely perk but seriously, what other job in life keeps paying you for work already done? The contributions of makeup artists, DP, art directors, etc. all help make a produced piece of entertainment. Why shouldn't they get residuals too? They get paid once for a job. When are actors finally paid enough for their work??? Reality check to SAG, it's time to stop trying to squeeze blood out of that turnip!

PixieDust @ 6:16 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Mizz Gilbert,you speak as one of the 120,000 then recall with pride the past when anyone can smell our dismal present.If you believe the little we ask for is sometime in the future the role for you is Pollyanna.With a good economy and lack of avoricious producers there would be no need for a strike.As to your reference concerning the economy,either you are much too young or have not read of the "myriad" of strikes in the "great depression".Perhaps, unlike then we should shut up and still take the club!..then we who strike could be labled commies voila a list!why certain heads could be rolling as I write!Thank you .. a humble fellow member

Michael Parks @ 5:52 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Instead of knocking SAG Leadership Melissa should be writing about how AMPTP is not feeling that financial crisis, their ad revenue is up and will continue to be high for them. Yes, if a strike is called it will hurt but it will hurt more if SAG Leadership accepts managements ridiculous offer.

Will B @ 5:20 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Striking isn't the answer specially with a very unstable economy GW Bush puts us through. Too many people have already suffered from the Writers' strike another one would put many crew members out of work for good, production companies and post facilities out of business. At the end of the day, the damage wouldn't help SAG members anyway since they'd had killed the back bone and technical side of the industry. Don't forget, a production is the collaborative efforts and team work of multi talented people and companies, therefore no production is possible without that. Can we afford to strike?

VM @ 5:15 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

Thank you for writing this much needed article! Now is NOT the time.

Jennifer @ 4:46 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

The name PATCO mean anything to SAG members? They were the air traffic controllers union that actor then President Ronald Reagan destroyed. The circumstances were very different in many ways except one crucial one way - a strike by members would have zero public support. None. The result - SAG strikes and nobody gives a darn because Chrysler just shuttered their plants for a month, and more than a million Americans have lost their jobs this year. Think those million+ will support SAG, regardless of the actual details?!? Get a clue, take lousy contract terms, and wait for more prosperous times to advance their members' cause.

mill @ 4:38 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

To "censored" - we've done nothing of the sort. Every comment that's come in has been posted, except for one bit of machine-language spam. If it appears that the responses are one-sided, that's either an honest reflection of public sentiment or a sign of someone ginning up comments.

Jon Healey, Los Angeles Times @ 4:22 PM PST, Dec 17, 2008

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