What happens when you make a copy of a copy of a copy? Strange question and concept. It can be an artistic, scientific or social experiment. Andy Warhol did some interesting art work based on it. I remember working at a temp job in the 1980s and having a conversation about this concept with an art lover. We decided to take a very detailed print and make a hundred Xerox copies. Each copy became slightly less detailed. The hundredth copy was blurry and very subtly different. Not the same and technically inferior. Cloning mammals in the 1990s brought out some interesting findings. It seems that the clones were unfortunately also inferior to the original. They had many problems. On a social front we can look at the UFT. Albert Shanker being the original president, a great union leader. He chose Sandra Feldman as his successor. She was a little less effective, but still very good. Sandra chose Randi who started out good but sank to rock bottom with the 2005 contract. (She left to become AFT president and has basically destroyed us with her preemtive endorsement of Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders.) Her pick for UFT president was Mike Mulgrew. How has this copy of a copy of a copy been for us? Well we are facing a Republican president, Senate, House of Representatives and tie breaking Supreme Court Justice. Mike's answer is a letter of displeasure that refuses to name president elect Trump. His reason being he doesn't want to alienate Teachers for Trump. Ridiculous on so many levels, but insulting because of the implication of our stupidity.
Just to cover all artistic fronts here's a little bit of the lyrics of a great song by Nine Inch Nails, A Copy of A Copy of A -
I am just a copy of a copy of a copy
Everything I say has come before
Assembled into something into something into something
I don't know for certain anymore
I am just a shadow of a shadow of a shadow
Always trying to catch up with myself
I am just an echo of an echo of an echo
Listening to someone's cry for help
Look what you had to start
Why all the change of heart?
You need to play your part
A copy of a copy of a
Now look what you've gone and done
Well that doesn't sound like fun
See I'm not the only one
A copy of a copy of a
And here's a funny little video with the song playing in the background
Only now, has Randi come out to battle as though she understands she is "leading" a UNION. Like Clinton (yes I reluctantly voted for her), Randi has existed in a self interest bubble which afforded her members little support. Mulgrew pressured UFT delegates to indirectly vote in, our enemy Bloomberg. I was a delegate at that time and many of us (delegates) were against extending term limits because we did not want Bloomberg to continue. I witnessed delegates voting to extend term limits (Mulgrew wanted this) when it came down to a public display vote. We have been sheep in this intricate game. We do not live in polite times and Mulgrew's wanting to follow proper etiquette is tantamount to his supporting Bloomberg.
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