Miles Mulloy on the plight of the post-85 railroader
With all due respect to those who precede me in the American journey and given that I can not know their times and feelings and experiences that shape their opinions and that they can not know mine I try to avoid being boxed in by anyone philosophy. History at best is an incomplete record however I feel there is compelling evidence in our modern world to believe that, as we live history and our technology allows us to, we leave a record of the events that is without precedent.
How to manage the changing crew consist in an environment of so many openly hostile and competing interests; may be beyond the capabilities of the people who represent the workingmen and women who operate the trains.
My main motivation is to achieve what I believe is the best deal for myself. Unfortunately my experience has been less of an achievement in wage scale or working conditions or quality of life than it has been an exercise in avoiding disaster. In that light my experience seems to mirror that of the average railroader.
Though it can't go without saying some railroaders clearly have it much better than their fellow railroaders whether they are engineer or trainman. Pre 85 trainman receives a productivity check each year that most boast of amounts in the thousands. The old head engineer is being paid by the mile to dead head the post 85 engineer is being paid by the hour. Hundreds of dollars difference in a days pay.
Yet all pay the same amount in dues. The GC and LC will spend most of their time with collecting time claims for pre 85 members. Arbitraries that the post 85 engineer or conductor have lost.
The same organizations that created post 85 railroader cannot represent fairly the interests of the post 85 railroader. Yet under the Railway Labor Act all railroaders are forced by law to allow the organizations that cause the problem to provide the solution. As I read history the people or organizations that cause the problems try to suppress the criticism of those they have offended and ultimately fall into a defensive position against their own members and start a propaganda campaign that will try to discredit the rebels.
One would not think that the statement" the basic Law of capitalism is you or I do not you and I " and yet that is the results of the union actions that created the post 85 / Pre 85 dilemma and in my humble opinion is "the problem with the UTU and the BLE describing themselves as unions". They have a rather skewed view of unionism; I guess we could call ourselves capitalist unions.
I am indeed looking for any forum to report my observations air my views and opinions and in any other way that I think that I may effect a change for the better for the post 85 railroader. So in the future and as you are willing to accommodate my writings I will gladly copy to you for your consideration my statements regarding the above-mentioned issues.
Thanks for your efforts with your web page and the opportunity to contribute.
Semper fi
Miles Mulloy
12:34:43 AM 
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