Thoughts on the Auto-Workers’ Strike

When the negotiations between the auto industry and the United Auto Workers began, the company spokesmen presented themselves as industrial statesmen. It was in the interests of the American economy, they said, to have a noninflationary settlement and they, as responsible citizens, would exercise their corporate power toward that end.

Of course, it just happens that this disinterested logic leads to the conclusion that the workers in Detroit should not demand a big pay increase. The industry, in short, is ready to volunteer sacrifices on the part of its employees. May I propose that those selfless executives and stockholders might also do something for their country?

The figures released by Leonard Woodcock, the UAW preside...